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ABA Photo Quiz

ABA Online Bird Photo Quiz 43

Answer

Bird Photo

Rails, bitterns, shorebirds, and herons are the species that we most often associate with wading. In most cases it's fairly easy to get to the right group by focusing on structure and size. These are somewhat less helpful here since we can't see the head or the legs.

But we can see that the bird is mostly brownish above (with most of the mantle and wings showing cinnamon edging to the feathers) and white below. The bird also seems to have a conspicuous black line that runs up onto the sides of the neck.

The black line running up the side of the neck may recall a Wilson's Phalarope, but this feature is only shown by breeding plumage females, which also have a rich chestnut and gray pattern to the upperparts.

The uniform edging to the upperparts is very suggestive of a juvenile bird . . . and there is one species that in juvenile plumage matches perfectly-Northern Jacana.

This Northern Jacana was photographed north of Veracruz, in the state of Veracruz, Mexico in September 2006.

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The following people (listed by submission date beginning with the earliest) submitted correct answers for the October Bird Photo Quiz—Northern Jacana:

  1. Dick Baxter, Jonesboro, AR
  2. Matthew Daw, Raleigh, NC
  3. Steve Hampton, Davis, CA
  4. Lyn Imperial, Middletown, DE
  5. Marcelo Brongo, Barcelona, Spain
  6. Petro Pynnönen, Helsinki, Finland
  7. Kevin Welsh, Novi, Michigan
  8. Brandon Percival, Pueblo West, CO
  9. Adrian Azpiroz, St. Louis, MO
  10. Ben Coulter, Erie, PA
  11. James McRacken, Charlotte, NC
  12. Thomas Snetsinger, Brownsville, OR
  13. Michael Lester, Haworth, NJ
  14. Luke Buckardt, Deerfield, IL
  15. Bill Maynard, Colorado Springs, CO
  16. Malkolm Boothroyd, Whitehorse, Yukon
  17. Peter Wilkinson, Hertfordshire, UK
  18. Tim Avery, Indianapolis, Indiana
  19. David Tyrer, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
  20. Michael Flake, St. Augustine, Florida
  21. Luke Seitz, Falmouth, ME
  22. Benoit Dorion, Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada
  23. Will Miller, Boise, ID
  24. Bonnie Reimer, Madison, Wisconsin
  25. Ethan Kistler, Newton Falls, Ohio
  26. Aariel Rowan, San Francisco Bay Estuary, California
  27. Barb Duncan, Jefferson City, MO
  28. George Cresswell, Colorado Springs, CO
  29. Will Richardson, Truckee, CA
  30. Ben Young, Salem, OR
  31. Elaine MacPherson, Sierra Madre, CA
  32. Graham Etherington, Brisbane, Australia
  33. Gerald J Brow, Cedar, Michigan
  34. Jenifer Detter, Eureka Springs, AR
  35. John Van Kirk, Huntington, West Virginia
  36. Philip Kline, Tucson, AZ
  37. Colin R Gjervold, St Petersburg, FL
  38. Alan J. Knue, Seattle, WA
  39. Chris Warren, Portland, OR
  40. Robin, Hampstead, NC
  41. Julie Cocke, Jacksonville, FL
  42. Stephen Mitten, Belize City, Belize
  43. Leslie Rountree, Fayetteville, GA
  44. Mary Austin, Grand Rapids, Michigan
  45. Ian Davies, Medford, MA
  46. Greg Tito, Richmond, Virginia
  47. Nikolas Kotovich, Mill River, MA
  48. Manuel Mondejar, Portland, Oregon
  49. Bryan Gieszl, Montrose, CO
  50. Liis Veelma, Winnipeg, MB
  51. Wayne Meyer, Denison, TX
  52. Henry Wilton, Rutland, VT
  53. Jim Kopitzke, Mesa AZ
  54. Mark Stevenson, Tucson, AZ
  55. Andre Moncrieff, Berrien Springs, MI
  56. Mike Burrell, Heidelberg, Ontario
  57. Zachary D. Kaiser, Burlington, WI
  58. Nathan Swick, Chapel Hill, NC
  59. Wendy Boothroyd, Whitehorse, Yukon
  60. Ken Madsen, Whitehorse, Yukon
  61. Amanda Auger, Portland, OR
  62. Seabrooke Leckie, Toronto, Ontario
  63. Rich Swartzentruber, Salem, Oregon
  64. John Murphy, Alligator Pt, FL
  65. Jason Waanders, Washington, DC
  66. Rick Wright, Tucson, AZ
  67. Ryan Dudragne, Saskatoon, SK
  68. Hope Batcheller, Petersburgh, NY
  69. Greg Zupansic, Eugene, Oregon
  70. Roberto Cavalieros, Brooklyn, NY
  71. Lee Barnes, Seattle, WA
  72. Ben Wechsler, Baltimore, MD
  73. Alexander Lin-Moore, Houston, TX
  74. Aaron Hulsey, Smiths Grove, Ky
  75. Claire Curry, Greenwood, Texas
  76. A. McAndrews, Xalapa, Veracruz
  77. Maggie MacPherson, Guelph, ONT
  78. Josh Shramo, Dillon, CO.
  79. Mark Brown, Dalmatia, Pennsylvania
  80. Radd Icenoggle, Bozeman, MT
  81. crystal malick, Dalmatia, Pennsylvania
  82. Urs Geiser, Woodridge, IL
  83. Todd Wilson, Milwaukee, WI
  84. Sahida Quispe Bellota, Cusco, Peru
  85. Brian E. Small, Los Angeles, CA
  86. Chris Langman, Media, PA
  87. Amy Dreibelbis, Media, PA
  88. Jim Mountjoy, Galesburg IL
  89. Brent Bomkamp, Northport, New York
  90. Jessica Dube, Saint David, Maine
  91. E.J. Raynor, New York, NY
  92. Tracy Lyn Egbert, Amherst, NH
  93. Leighton Reid, Woodberry Forest, VA
  94. Jill Kaminski, Naples, FL
  95. Matt Pike, Baghdad, Iraq
  96. David Bell, Sault Ste. Marie, ON
  97. Christopher Colby, Guyana
  98. Patrick Dechon, Ellenville, NY
  99. Larry Kline, Fredericksburg, VA
  100. Bobby Walsh, Valencia, CA
  101. Matthew Kenne, Algona, Iowa
  102. Joel Mundall, Loma Linda, CA
  103. Noah Gaines, Flagstaff, AZ
  104. Terry Colborn, Davis, CA
  105. Anthony H. Bledsoe, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  106. Rob Ripma, Carmel, IN
  107. jonathan Lautenbach, Grand Rapids, MI
  108. Lori Fujimoto, Colorado Springs, CO
  109. Jonathan Comeau, Williston, VT
  110. Lauren Tompkins, Kneeland, CA
  111. Adriana Rodriguez, Saint Louis, MO
  112. Richard Garrigues, San Antonio de Belen, Heredia, Costa Rica
  113. Karl Erich Mayer, Saint Clair Shores, Michigan
  114. Karen Rubinstein, New York, NY
  115. Pam Baum, Tucson, AZ
  116. Matthew Williams, Provo, UT
  117. Carl Lundblad, Las Cruces, NM
  118. Jeremy Faucher, Enfield CT
  119. Aaron Bilyeu, Placerville, CA
  120. Joseph Lautenbach, Grand Rapids, MI
  121. Yves Gauthier, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  122. Rob Young, Alexandria, VA
  123. Marcel Gauthier, St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC, Canada
  124. Kathryn Holm, Tamuning, GU
  125. Myles Falconer, Lakefield, ON
  126. Gia Kilbrith, Cold Spring Harbor, NY
  127. Andrew G, Cold Spring Harbor, New York
  128. Jeff Marks, Portland, OR
  129. G Kelsey, Jacksonville, FL
  130. Zack Barrow, McDonald, TN
  131. Mary Keim, Orlando, FL
  132. Dan Walker, Canyon, Texas
  133. Charlton Carscallen, Hawkestone, Ontario
  134. David Hollie, Ringgold, GA
  135. Laura Coble, Cannon Falls, MN
  136. Jason Beason, Paonia, CO
  137. Blue Rubinstein, New York, NY
  138. Sam Galick, Flemington, NJ
  139. Robert Doster, Albuquerque, NM
  140. Bruce Dugger, Albany, OR
  141. Eleanor Proctor, Peterborough, Ontario
  142. Devin Bosler, Baton Rouge, LA
  143. Tony Frank, Houston, TX
  144. Johanna Wielfaert, East Lansing, MI
  145. Olivier Barden, Quebec City, Qc
  146. Javier de Leon, Edinburg, TX
  147. Adam Nisbett, St. James, MO
  148. David Rosenbaum, Lorena, Texas
  149. Judy Klein, Whitehorse, Yukon Canada
  150. Jim Hoover, Jefferson Hills, PA
  151. Travis A. Mahan, Decatur, IL
  152. Benjamin Berkompas, Yacolt, WA
  153. Lawrence Brown, Havertown, PA
  154. Jason Fidorra, San Diego, CA
  155. Cathy Ricketts, Savannah, GA
  156. Tom Benson, San Bernardino, CA
  157. Josh Southern, Apex, NC
  158. glenn werner, Beaufort, SC
  159. Haynes A. Werner, Beaufort, SC
  160. Thierry Fournet, Paris, France
  161. Kevin Kerr, Guelph, ON
  162. Nathan Schirmacher, Princeton, MN
  163. Kevin Winegardner, Ithaca, NY
  164. Jeremy Linden, Warren, PA
  165. Aaron Boone, Columbus, Ohio
  166. Melissa A. Sherwood, Gig Harbor, WA
  167. Tracy McCarthey, Tempe, AZ
  168. Bob Zaremba, Marietta, GA
  169. Peter Kasper, Batavia, IL
  170. Bill Mossey, Pensacola, FL
  171. Noah Strycker, Creswell, OR
  172. Allen Chartier, Inkster, Michigan
  173. Mike Armer, Mountain View, CA
  174. Greg Dysart, Natick, MA
  175. Michael Hobbs, Kirkland, WA
  176. Blake Mathys, Milltown, NJ
  177. Larry Semo, Westminster, CO
  178. Mike Austin, Friendswood, Texas
  179. Lucy Duncan, Gulf Breeze, FL
  180. Paul Sunby, Austin, Texas
  181. Bob Krinsky, New York, NY
  182. Mark A. Brogie, Creighton, Nebraska
  183. Dick Cabe, Huntington Beach, California
  184. Wesley M. Brown, Parksley, VA
  185. Steve Sosensky, Aliso Viejo, CA
  186. Scott Schuette, Troy, MO
  187. Geoff Malosh, Pittsburgh, PA
  188. Brad Meiklejohn, Eagle River, Alaska
  189. Noreen Mole, Pittsfield MA
  190. Tom Johnson, Ithaca, NY
  191. Howard King, Riverside, CA
  192. Candace Myers, Amarillo
  193. Jay Sheppard, Laurel, MD
  194. Carrie Braden, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba
  195. David B. Donsker, North Hampton, NH
  196. Danny van den Broek, Gladstone, OR
  197. Leslie Pernas-Giz, Melbourne, Florida
  198. Frank Bader, Lawrenceville, NJ
  199. H Thomas Bartlett, Tiffin, Ohio
  200. Paula Sullivan, Alexandria, VA
  201. Brooke McDonald, Santa Barbara, California
  202. Robert Lockett, OR
  203. Jay Gilliam, Norwalk, IA
  204. DB McCorquodale, Georges River, NS
  205. Peter Bono, Yarmouth Port, MA
  206. Diana Bradshaw, Damascus, OR
  207. Holden Baker, Greenfield, MA
  208. Michael Moore, Gilbert
  209. Mark Peterson, Colorado Springs, CO
  210. Michael Hilchey, Albuquerque, NM
  211. Mark Cranford, Mississauga, ON
  212. Michael McCloy, Southern Pines, NC
  213. Mike Burchett, Churchville, MD
  214. Susan Kritzik, Portola Valley, CA
  215. Michael Rogers, Sunnyvale, CA
  216. Murray G. Honick, Murrells Inlet, SC
  217. Lucy Newman, Albany, New York
  218. Ned Keller, Cincinnati, OH
  219. Bernice Comisky Jackson, Mont Belvieu, TX
  220. Kay Regester, Ventura, Ca
  221. Georgia Conti, Anchorage, Alaska
  222. William Purcell, Hastings, NY
  223. Lori Conrad, Hermosa Beach, CA
  224. P. D. Hulce, Portal, AZ
  225. John G. Anderson, Reno, Nevada
  226. Chris Benesh, Tucson, AZ
  227. Daniel Froehlich, Seattle, Washington
  228. Barbara Combs, Eugene, Oregon
  229. Michael Bender, Athens, GA
  230. Craig Tumer, Adelphi, MD
  231. Phil Crisp, Winston Salem, NC
  232. Jed Kusterer, Lewes, DE
  233. Todd R. Pepper, Leamington, Ontario
  234. Nigel Bates, Hopewell, NJ
  235. Michelle Davis, Miami FL
  236. Tim Fitzpatrick, Batavia, OH
  237. John Brunjes, Frankfort, KY
  238. Scarlett Howell, Ocala, FL
  239. Robert Machover, Milford, NJ
  240. Martin Spiess, Sempach, Switzerland
  241. David Trently, Knoxville, TN
  242. harlow bielefeldt, Brookfield, WI
  243. Joni Ciarletta, Carlsbad, CA
  244. Jim McCarty, Lakewood, Ohio
  245. René Corado, Oxnrad, California
  246. Harvey Farber, Melville, New York
  247. Mark Mushkat, San Francisco, CA
  248. Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA
  249. Barbara Ross, Cincinnati, OH
  250. Thomas Collins, Pittsfield, MA
  251. Chad Heins, Mankato, MN
  252. Jody Allair, Port Rowan, Ontario
  253. Gary S. Lester, McKinleyville, CA
  254. Tony Godfrey, Portal, AZ
  255. Ruth Kelley, Salisbury, MD
  256. Mary Lou Cole, Tucson, AZ
  257. Danny Williams, East Lyme, CT
  258. richard frechette, peterborough, nh
  259. Gerry Wolfe, Death Valley, CA
  260. Anne Brown, Durham, NC
  261. Andrew Dobson, Bermuda
  262. James McAllister, Windsor, Ontario
  263. Harry Hooper, Tallahassee, Florida
  264. Jenny Michaels, Tucker, GA
  265. Leonard Frost, Friendswood, TX
  266. Patricia Seibert, Tulsa, OK
  267. Scott France, Lafayette, LA
  268. Nicholas Pederson, Albuquerque, NM
  269. Lois Goldfrank, Santa Cruz, CA
  270. Brad Rossa, Manassas, Va
  271. Ed Harper, Sacramento, CA
  272. Dorothy Wadlow, Seattle, WA
  273. vera capogna, sayville, NY
  274. Douglas E. Gill, College Park, MD
  275. Melissa Hein, North Branch, MN
  276. Steven Mlodinow, Everett, Washington
  277. Jim Flynn, Seattle, WA
  278. Tom Striker, Blue Ridge, GA
  279. Judy Rabi, New York, NY
  280. Kathryn Osmond, Natick MA
  281. Julia Marko, Newmarket, Ontario
  282. Nick Anich, Ashland, WI
  283. Stephen Seiffert, Lansdowne, Ontario, Canada
  284. Michael Woodruff, Spokane, WA
  285. Jim Parker, Bishop, CA
  286. Sue Andrews, St. Louis, Missouri
  287. John Walko, Collierville, TN
  288. Mark Scheuerman, Sugar Land, TX
  289. Tom Lally, Chicago, IL
  290. Robert Furrow, Cambridge, MA
  291. Jay Stenger, Cincinnati, Ohio
  292. Hans Spiecker, Kenilworth, IL
  293. Rachel King, Brooklyn NY
  294. John Boback, Morgantown, WV
  295. Cindy McCormack, Spokane, WA
  296. Robin Womack, Beaufort, SC
  297. Dave Magpiong, Bellmawr, NJ
  298. Ruth Troetschler, Los Altos, CA
  299. Andrea Green, Fayetteville, AR
  300. Paul Glass, South Boston, VA
  301. Drew Chaney, Tampa, FL
  302. Cynthia Taylor, Tucson, AZ
  303. Matthew Schneider, Silverton, OR
  304. Francesc Jutglar, Cardedeu, Spain
  305. Joshua D. Kreitzer, Sandston, Virginia
  306. Richard Aracil, Bronx, NY
  307. Raymond VanBuskirk, Albuquerque, New Mexico
  308. Robert Packard, Haydenville, MA
  309. Jon Atwood, Spofford, NH
  310. Jared Caster, Hannibal NY
  311. Judy Phoenix, Reno, NV
  312. Nicholas Block, Chicago, IL
  313. Andrea Leistra, Pasadena, CA
  314. Tim Miller, Pooler, Georgia
  315. Brad Wilkinson, Tallmadge, OH
  316. Hannah Kistler, Torrington, Wyoming
  317. Tayler Brooks, Seattle, WA
  318. Mark Chao, Ithaca, NY
  319. Peter Humphrey, Croton-on-Hudson, NY
  320. Ronnie Macko, Alliance, Ohio
  321. Shari Jackson, Alliance, Ohio
  322. vicki deloach, estill, sc
  323. Tony Leukering, Brighton, CO
  324. Bruce A. Aird, Lake Forest, CA
  325. Vaughn Morrison, Todd, NC
  326. Richard Hibpshman, Issaquah, WA
  327. Paul Matthews, Ottawa, ON
  328. Gary Herbert, Rochester, New York
  329. Richard Hartley, Sydney Australia
  330. Claude Girard, St-Michel. P.Q.
  331. Gay Christensen, Dayton, Ohio
  332. Tim Hochstetler, millersburg
  333. Benjamin Griffith, Merrimack, NH
  334. Andrew Keaveney, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  335. Justin Jones, Glendale, Arizona
  336. ed elmendorf, loma linda california
  337. Kevin Kincaid, Indianapolis, IN
  338. Tim Snieder, Sarnia, Ontario
  339. Jessica Bruland, Damascus, MD
  340. James P. Smith, Amherst, MA
  341. Priscilla Lai, Guelph, Ontario
  342. Yukii Lepas, Kennebunkport, Maine
  343. James McKay, Mesa, AZ
  344. Cathleen Frey, Pensacola, FL
  345. George Kappus, White Plains, NY
  346. Brandon Miller, Morgantown, WV
  347. Marlene Jay Cashen, Veradale, WA
  348. Robert Lengacher, Tallahassee, FL
  349. wayne deloach, estill, south carolina
  350. Arun Bose, Richmond, VA
  351. Sandra Lautrup, Effingham, Illinois
  352. John Kuenzli, Columbus, OH
  353. Carolyn Vance, Los Alamitos, CA
  354. Penny Soares, Huntersville, North Carolina
  355. Ferenc Domoki, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
  356. Eddie Mundall, Yreka, CA
  357. Greg Gillson, Hillsboro, Oregon
  358. Marcus Mundall, Williamsport, MD
  359. Neil Gilbert, Beverly Hills, MI
  360. Jay Keller, Arlington, VA
  361. Lois Lindsay, Frankford, WV
  362. Erik Mundall, Yilan, Taiwan
  363. Phoebe Mundall, Yilan, Taiwan

How Did You Compare?

As stated in the quiz rules, answers must consist simply of the Common or English name exactly as it appears in the ABA Checklist.

The following list shows the number of submissions for each species guessed.

Northern Jacana
363
Wilson's Phalarope
56
Black-necked Stilt
3
American Avocet
2
American Bittern
2
Least Bittern
2
Osprey
2
Red-necked Phalarope
2
White Ibis
2
Clapper Rail
1
Hermit Thrush
1
Sharp-tailed Grouse
1

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The photo and answer for this quiz were supplied by Chris Wood.