"I ahve to say you ladies are REALLY good, maybe we should skip to the first fall warblers???? " Ladies, we are in trouble. Check your Peterson guide on confusing fall warblers to bone up for the challenge! Actually the guide is pretty good by putting them in sub-sections by field marks and color. You can then proceed by process of elimination until you get down to the correct bird. Then check the Cornell's site for other photographs for further positive ID markers. Local variations and light in the photos make if tougher too but if you find most of key ID points it is probably that bird. According to my SMAS group the Blue Jay is considered partially leucistic, not albino, and is exhibiting other feather abnormalities related to genetics. In another communication, Arlene Ripley commented that she has seen many albino birds but none have exhibited the fur-like structures of this Jay's feathers. I did some of my own research on fur-like feathers and every site pointed to something called proto-feathers which were exhibited by some early dinosaurs before true feathers emerged. It's exciting to imagine this bird may be exhibiting an ancient genetic throwback to prehistoric times which upholds the common belief that birds evolved from dinosaurs as they first took flight. There has been a call to ask everyone on the local site if there is a scientic name for this feather anomaly and this call comes from a man that works for the Smithsonian Institute and really knows birds. So far, no reponse, so the local bird community here may be stumped. There was sentiment regarding hope the bird survives. Jean, has this bird been a regular at your feeder for any length of time in which one could make the assumption it has survived nature with this variance? Arlene suggested the photo be posted on websites dedicated to leucistic and albino birds and see if more information could be obtained from readers. PapaSmurf is a rare Blue Jay indeed. CT

Yep, the spring migrants are really streaming in now. Hearing phoebes (the pewees can't be far behind) and several different warblers now, and if I plan on actually watching any of the newcomers I'd better get at it because once the trees get their greenery started the visibility goes downhill VERY quickly. Once the leaves get going, you have to rely on rainy cooler days to bring many of our migrants down out of the canopy. I've even had summer and scarlet tanagers checking out the feeder area during the darker rainy spring spells. I keep listening for the parulas, which particularly interest me since I first noticed this brief visitor to our area only a few years back. It was that strange buzzy song that got my attention. Ever notice how you can almost set your clock to the arrival of some species, and this also applies to the reappearance of certain plants. I know to start looking for morels when the mayapples, larkspur, jack-in-the-pulpit get so tall. And unfortunately this coincides pretty handily with the time the new poison ivy leaves are just popping out. But I've already got a nice-sized patch of the stuff on my left butt cheek so it doesn't matter. I was burning off a bit of honeysuckle that escaped the burn a few years ago and sat down against a tree for a breather, and , blammo, that's all it takes.

Thanks for all the kind comments! Since these photos I was able to get a few more migration photos before the rain set in, but kept hoping I could get some more. We spent one weekend at a family reunion in IN, then worked out of town as extras in the Disney movie Secretariat during two very cold, windy weeks (long hours, miserable work, but at least I got to see John Malkovich and Diane Lane). This weekend coming up might have some sun, but I've not seen any migrants for awhile, so our migration action may be over.

Thanks Mark, Holly, bandjzmom, terrene, and again to all for your replies. :) terrene - As it turns out that was our last hummer shot for the year... they are gone now. Like most here we'll be watching for them again come Spring. We get that question a lot, about how we recognize Missy and Mr.B ... and distinguish them from their grown fledges or other blues. They are older than their kids... ha, sounds funny I guess, but it's true and easy to see really. And of course we observe their behavior and individual habits and character. I think this is kinda like having multiple parakeets or other pets of the same species that neighbors or friends can't tell apart... but the "owners" can. Our Blues are wild birds and free of course but they have been here with us every day (and several times a day) for nearly four years now. We know them well, and they also know us. They're not our birds, we're their people. Kenn Here is a link that might be useful: All Blue Review