"reverse breeding plumage" describes a bird with breeding plumage in the
wintering grounds and I would guess winter plumage on the breeding grounds,
not that I have ever seen photos of a winter plumaged bird on the breeding
grounds.
It may well be a myth as the bird at Werribee in 2008 was clearly in
appropriate plumage for that time of year, just wrong location and a number
of other Australian records also look suitably plumaged for the time of
year. There may well be a scenario where young birds moulting too late into
their first breeding attire or not gaining appropriate body weight for the
migration, hang out down south instead of making the arduous flight north.
As a consequence their plumage remains in good condition and the pressure
for an austral spring moult into winter plumage could be delayed or even
skipped. I suspect "reverse breeding plumage" could very well be a myth and
a simplistic answer to something that is actually a little more complex.
Cheers Jeff.
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of Gary Wright
Sent: Sunday, 24 January 2010 3:45 PM
To: birding aus
Subject: reverse breeding plumage
In looking up Little Stint in Pizzey, he states records of little stint are
"mostly in reverse breeding plumage" I googled this and came up with
nothing.
can anyone shed some light on this?
Thanks Gary
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