RARE OCCURRENCE

First occurrence of Black-chinned Bummingbirdin Alabama

With notes on identification

Greg D. Jackson

Photo/GregD. Jackson.

178 AmericanBirds, Summer 1988 observeddunng the courseof the hum- taft-pumpingof the Black-ch•nned•s b•rd (ArchtlochusalexandrO has m•ngb•rd'sstay. The b•rd wasthe same very noticeable whfie feeding, and •s beenHEBLACK-CHINNEDreported casually from HUMMING- Florida sizeas a Ruby-throated . generallymore frequentand persistent (Hoffman 1983)and is an annualvisitor The bill waslonger than that of a Ruby- than that shownby the Ruby-throated to southeasternLouisiana (N. L. New- throated. The wingswere pointed, but Hummingbird (N. L. Newfield pers field pers. comm.), but until January the outermostprimary had an obtuse comm.). Immature males of either spe- 1984 had never been recorded in Ala- subterminal angulation and a broad, ciescan showsome characteristic gorget bama. Besides the breeding Ruby- blunt tip. The tail, which was pumped colorby early fall (Scott 1983). throated Hummingbird (Archilochus constantlywhile feeding,had a mod- colubris),the only other member of this eratelydeep central notch when folded, family recordedin Alabamais the Ru- and was rather square with a shallow fousHummingbird (Selasphorus rufus), notch when spread.The crown and face which is a rare visitorin migrationand weredark gray-green.There wasa short w•nter (Imhof 1976). The first docu- white stripe posterior to the eye. The mented occurrence of the Black- dorsal surface of the tail showed black ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ch•nned Hummingbird in the state is outer rectrices and dark green inner from the Spring Hill district of Mobile rectrices.The remainder of the upper- The author is grateful to Nancy L. •n Mobile County. parts were dark green.The throat was Newfield and J. V. Remsen for their In early January 1984, the author black with a transversepurple band on analysesof photographsof this and learned that two hummingbirdsof un- the lower portion. The breastbelow the for their helpful comments.I would also known identity had been attracted to purple band was clear white. The sides like to extend thanks to Mrs. L. G sugarwater feedersat the home of Mrs. of the breastand flankswere gray-green, Connell for her generoushospitality •n L. G. Connell and had been present all and therewas a longitudinalcentral gray allowingbirders a chanceto view th•s w•nter. The home was in a residential stripe on the lower breast and belly. rarity during the severalmonths that •t area with plentiful hardwood treesand Whitish undertail coverts were noted. was present. evergreenshrubs. Mrs. Connellreported The bill, iris, legs,and feet were black. that only onebird waspresent after De- The throat color observedis specific cember25, 1983, when the temperature for an adult male Black-chinned Hum- fell to seven degreesFahrenheit. The mingbird and rules out similar b•rd that had disappearedwas in female (Robbins et al. 1983). Unfortunately, or •mmature plumage,and had been at- this color proveddifficult to captureon tackedfrequently by the otherbird, an film. However, the shape of the outer LITERATURE CITED adult male. primary and tail, as well as the bill FARRAND, J., JR. (Ed.). 1983. The Au- On the afternoon of January 15, lengthand plumagecharacteristics such dubon Society master guide to birding 1984, the author and Debra G. Jackson, as the dark green upperpartsand the Alfred A. Knopf, New York. both with prior experiencewith the ge- clear white upper breast,are well shown HOFFMAN, W. 1983. The Winter Season nus Archilochus,observed and photo- in photographsof the bird. This com- FloridaRegion. Am. 37(3):293-96 graphedthe remainingbird overa two- bination of photographedfeatures doc- IMHOF, T. A. 1976. Alabama Birds.Second hour period. The subjectwas studied at uments the presence of the species ed. Univ. of Alabama Press,Alabama MYERS, M. and D. P. MUTH. 1984. The rest and in flight in the vicinity of the (Kimball L. Garrett in Farrand 1983; Winter Season.Central SouthernRegion feeders at a distance of 15 to 20 feet. Scott 1983; N. L. Newfield pers. Am. Birds 38(3):325-29. The skywas overcast with light rain and comm.). ROBBINS, C. S., B. BRUUN, and H. ZIM, the light was fair but adequatefor ob- Unusual such as the 1983. Birds of North America. Second servation. Optical equipment included Black-chinnedundoubtedly occur more ed. Golden Press,New York. Bushnell 9 X 36 and 7 X 35 binoculars. frequently in Alabama, consideringthe SCOTT, S. L. (Ed.). 1983. National Geo- Photographs were obtained with an varietyof speciesfrequently seen a short graphicSociety field guide to the birdsof North America. National Geographic distance to the west in southeastern Olympus OM-2N usinga 400 mm lens. Society,Washington. The hummingbird remained until Louisiana (Myers and Muth 1984). In early April 1984 and was seenby 15 to the winter in Alabama, Black-chinned 20 birders during this time; most of is as likely as, or even more likely than, these observerswere experiencedwith Ruby-throated (Scott 1983). The fe- the genusArchilochus. All viewersver- males and immatures of thesetwo spe- bally agreed with the identification ciesare exceedinglydifficult to separate of Black-chinned Hummingbird. On exceptin the hand,and probablyshould --2220 BaneberryDrtve, March 17, 1984, the author and D. G. not be assignedto speciesin the field in Birmingham, AL 35244 Jackson again observed and photo- most cases.One should attempt to ob- graphedthe bird under sunnyskies and serve the longer bill, the curved and better lighting conditions.There wasan blunt-tipped outermost primary, the adult male Ruby-throated Humming- dark greenrather than bright greenup- b•rd in the area at that time, and the perparts and crown, and the "dirty" Black-chinnedwas very aggressiveto- white instead of "clean" white under- wards the Ruby-throated. parts of the Black-chinnedHumming- The following characteristicswere bird (N. L. Newfieldpers. comm.). The

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