Sage Thrasher

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Dan Vickers

Dan Vickers

James F. Flynn Jr.

On December 19th around 2:00 while driving on Marben Farms Road just off of Rte 11 (about 50 yards) I spotted a heavily streaked bird on a fence post adjacent to the road. My first thought was of a large sparrow. As soon as I slowed down to get a better look I thought it may be an immature Northern Mockingbird, but the time of year was clearly wrong, and the bird was too small. I began jotting down notes on the bird, and when I checked them against the field guide, everything matched perfectly with that of a Sage Thrasher. The bird had a yellow eye, heavily streaked breast and flanks, and two wing bars without a large white wing patch. The corners of the tail were white, and the undertail coverts were a warm off-white color. There was a distinct auricular patch that was also a warmer tone than the gray back. I watched the bird for about 5 minutes in great light from about 30 feet, and then raced away to get my camera. I returned a few minutes later, snapped one shot, and the bird promptly flew into a weedy field across Marben Farms road. I was able to relocate the bird several times over the next few hours until it became too dark, and snapped a few more pictures, but never got as good a view as I did initially. Fortunately the bird stayed in the area overnight and was spotted and photographed on the morning of December 20.

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