Juvi Treecreaper ID

["Philip Veerman" <>]

I also thought habitat was unlikely for Brown Treecreeper (which is hardly common anywhere in our region) but then I have seen them in forest and HANZAB mentions it, though it isn't their preference. The new photo shows the throat as whiter and no real sign of the dark stripe on the face and pale eyebrow that a juv Brown Treecreeper probably should show. I don't know, on balance of probabilities a juvenile Red-browed Treecreeper fits and seems the more likely. Pale throat is probably not white enough or high enough on the head to be a White-throated.......

 

Philip

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Clayton [
Sent: Monday, 23 February 2015 2:26 PM
To: 'shorty'; 'Philip Veerman'
Cc:
Subject: RE: [canberrabirds] Juvi Treecreaper ID

Thanks for the new photograph. In Brown Treecreepers – I don’t know about the others in the genus – it is the young females who move looking for new territories, not the males. Your new photo appears to show some faint black feathering in the upper chest which would make this bird a male, females have a rusty red colour.

 

Checking Peter Marsack’s illustrations of the Red-browed and Brown Treecreepers in HANZAB,  I am more convinced now than when I replied to Shorty earlier this morning that the bird is a juvenile Red-browed Treecreeper. Habitat also needs to be taken in to consideration. I don’t think Brown Treecreepers, a species that often feed on the ground, would find Wark’s Road  suitable habitat as the understory is too dense.

 

Mark

 

From: shorty [
Sent: Monday, 23 February 2015 1:50 PM
To: Philip Veerman
Cc:
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Juvi Treecreaper ID

 

Thank you Mark, Suzanne and Phillip for your responses.

 

I am fairly new to birding and have a lot to learn so take any on my thoughts with a grain of salt.

 

I got pics of Brown Treecreaper at Old Boboyan Road on the 7th so i would not rule them out myself.

The illustrations in P&K don't look as young as my bird so this could be confusing things. ( No yellow on bill )

 

I will post a close up of the head (massive crop so excuse the quality)

With the white brow and lack of markings on the throat i can only pic one bird in P&K but it is well out of range.

 

Again take my thoughts with a grain of salt.

 

And no Phillip, no adults present that i saw.

 

 

On Mon, Feb 23, 2015 at 9:04 AM, Philip Veerman <> wrote:

No adults nearby? Not an obvious choice. Only 3 local species but by my looking at Pizzey's book & HANZAB both White-throated & Red-browed have a white-throat and more obvious markings. Juv female White-throated have a really obvious chestnut rump but that doesn't help if it is a male (and rump not showing in the photo but you would have noticed). The lack of much contrasts suggests to me a Brown Treecreeper and I would go with that. But are they there? As a young bird it could easily be dispersed from somewhere distant. I have seen them in forest habitat near Suggan Buggan but not in forest around ACT. But I don't go there often enough. And I am not aware of having encountered young Brown Treecreepers so I am indifferent to that it doesn't exactly match these books though it does more than the other species.

 

Philip

 

-----Original Message-----
From: shorty [
Sent: Monday, 23 February 2015 6:01 AM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Juvi Treecreaper ID

Got this on Warks road on Saturday and not sure which one it is.

 

Any help would be appreciated.