Nicholas Talbot noted that he recorded Eastern Whipbird at Redwood Park and
made the following comment: "best view was of a male just coming into adult
plumage". I am curious as to how the sex of the bird was determined. In my
experience with the species the sexes are indistinguishable based on plumage
(and I just checked, the latest HANZAB states the same), with at least some
established pairs it can be relatively easy to tell them apart when they are
together (the male is larger. I spent some time helping a PhD student
working with a colour-banded population so all the sexes were known once the
birds had been handled, measured and banded).
I wonder if Nicholas is using Pizzey & Knight's field guide, if so the
labels on the plate are incorrect. They should read from left to right:
juvenile (NOT Imm.), immature (or first basic plumage NOT female) and adult
(or definitive plumage, NOT specifically male). The text describes the
female as being browner with white mottling on the throat. HANZAB makes no
such conclusion.
Cheers, Dean
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