Date: 10/13/26 6:38 am From: T. Luke George <t.luke.george...> Subject: Re: [cobirds] Couch's Kingbird Feather Conditions - Arapahoe
A hatch year bird would not be molting wing feathers at this time of year
so it must be an after hatch year.
Luke
*T. Luke George, PhD*
Professor Emeritus, Humboldt State University
707-499-4053 (c)
*<t.luke.george...> <t.luke.george...>*
"what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" Mary
Oliver
On Tue, Oct 13, 2026 at 6:57 AM 'Woodcreeper29' via Colorado Birds <
<cobirds...> wrote:
> Hi all just a quick comment on the reddish crown patch, I have several
> photos that show the patch on this bird.
> Steve Larson
> Northglenn
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Oct 12, 2026, at 6:05 PM, Nathan Pieplow <npieplow...> wrote:
>
>
> Hi all,
>
> I got a spread-wing photo of the Couch's Kingbird that shows not all the
> flight feathers are worn:
>
> https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/666136706 >
> The outermost two primaries, P10 and P9, are very worn, but the next few
> are fresh. Comparing their shapes with those at
> https://www.birds.cornell.edu/crows/kingbirdsX.htm makes it clear that
> the Colorado Couch's must be a female. I suspect it is a juvenile female,
> based on molt pattern, primary shapes, and the bare patches in the
> underwing visible in Paul Malinowski's photo, but I am not great at ageing
> birds by molt, so I'd love to hear other opinions. Juveniles are not
> supposed to have the orange crown patch which many people (not me) reported
> seeing.
>
> Nathan Pieplow
> Boulder
>
> On Sat, Oct 10, 2026 at 8:45 AM David Suddjian <dsuddjian...>
> wrote:
>
>> Jared, This BIRD BOMBS episode I'm Molting!
>> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ-F3pYfJJA&t=3s> offers a good primer
>> on feather molt in our birds.
>>
>> David
>>
>> On Sat, Oct 10, 2026 at 7:30 AM Paul Malinowski <pillarpaul...>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Jared, I noticed that too this afternoon. Look at the bare spots in this
>>> photo as well as the worn feathers.
>>>
>>> <COKI-261009-1.jpg>
>>>
>>>
>>> Paul Malinowski
>>> Littleton, CO
>>>
>>> On Fri, Oct 9, 2026 at 6:49 PM Jared Del Rosso <jared.delrosso...>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I enjoy reading *Birds of the World*, but I don't understand plumages,
>>>> molts, and the terminology used to describe them. So it's hard for me to
>>>> understand what the Couch's Kingbird currently at Marjorie Perry Nature
>>>> Preserve in Arapahoe County *should* look like. But the bird, who I
>>>> visited for the first time this afternoon, looks to be really worn to me.
>>>> Could someone out there who both has access to *Birds of the World* and
>>>> understands the terms of molting, offer some perspective on this?
>>>>
>>>> Here's a couple photos from this afternoon that show what I mean.
>>>>
>>>> <Screenshot 2026-10-09 at 6.46.43 PM.png>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> <Screenshot 2026-10-09 at 6.47.28 PM.png>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> - Jared Del Rosso
>>>> Centennial, CO
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> --
>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>>> Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
>>>> To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
>>>> For more options, visit this group at
>>>> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds >>>> * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city.
>>>> Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
>>>> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ >>>> ---
>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>>> Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
>>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
>>>> an email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
>>>> To view this discussion visit
>>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/<b79b99b0-217d-404f-a18d-02511b8d6a75n...> >>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/<b79b99b0-217d-404f-a18d-02511b8d6a75n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>>> .
>>>>
>>> --
>>> --
>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>> Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
>>> To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
>>> For more options, visit this group at
>>> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds >>> * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city.
>>> Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
>>> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ >>> ---
>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>> Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
>>> an email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
>>> To view this discussion visit
>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAMzYqKpqhPNXJ4fp-QXqPoAwuh9XXWO1ujra2wYnGJ%<2BWFMVd8g...> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAMzYqKpqhPNXJ4fp-QXqPoAwuh9XXWO1ujra2wYnGJ%<2BWFMVd8g...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> .
>>>
>> --
>> --
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "Colorado Birds" group.
>> To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
>> For more options, visit this group at
>> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds >> * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city.
>> Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
>> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ >> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "Colorado Birds" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
>> To view this discussion visit
>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAGj6RoqZgexWO7y_sWWDiifyQ_g73OBJQMZJ%2BAOqqtH%<2BUTfCVA...> >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAGj6RoqZgexWO7y_sWWDiifyQ_g73OBJQMZJ%2BAOqqtH%<2BUTfCVA...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> .
>>
> --
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Colorado Birds" group.
> To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
> For more options, visit this group at
> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds > * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include
> bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Colorado Birds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAFhaDVJndt%2Ba%2B9KbD6zBjV7opYRymW0_%3DoGSCX8GNvAG88%<2BPRQ...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAFhaDVJndt%2Ba%2B9KbD6zBjV7opYRymW0_%3DoGSCX8GNvAG88%<2BPRQ...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
> --
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Colorado Birds" group.
> To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
> For more options, visit this group at
> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds > * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include
> bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Colorado Birds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/<761673BC-4A0E-47EF-AB33-5E43296EEDF4...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/<761673BC-4A0E-47EF-AB33-5E43296EEDF4...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
--
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To post to this group, send email to <cobirds...>
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate.
* Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/membership/ ---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+<unsubscribe...>
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAGFJZuEtwj-U1_zU_6EGqsqCax8OR7kqaTbtZFk2%2BAV2ZYn%<3DmQ...>
