Hi Bill and all,
Ahh, the perennial Leaden vs. Satin question! There was an excellent
article on this by Graeme Chapman in the June 2003 Wingspan. It all
seems to boil down to the fact that the female Satin has a bluish
sheen on the crown, which the Leaden doesn't have. None of the other
features, e.g. amount of rufous on the breast, are reliable and in
fact the various field guides seem to contradict each other on some
points. However, the female Satin does also tend to be darker on the
throat and back than the Leaden.
I'm lucky enough to live in a spot where Satin is the norm, with
Leaden more usual further down the mountains. However more often than
not, my notebook just has the words "flycatcher sp." written in it.
Frustrating!
Looking at your photos, I can't really see a bluish sheen but the
bird does seem quite dark, so I'm not convinced of either species.
But they are excellent photos! Will be interested to hear others'
opinions.
Cheers
Carol
Carol Probets
Katoomba
Blue Mountains NSW
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