Buff-throated Saltator
By Corey • March 28, 2009 • 6 commentsWhen I was preparing for my trip to Honduras I studied field guides so I would be ready for whatever birds I would see. Sadly, I was still mostly unable to identify new birds on the first try, and some species would stump me even after I had already seen one. So it went with Buff-throated Saltators (Saltator maximus). On the first field trip of the festival that I went on, to Los Naronjos Archaeological Site, we spotted a Buff-throated Saltator feeding high up in a tree with a host of other birds and, to be frank, I didn’t look at it as closely as I ought to have (there were just so many species to see). I know I didn’t look carefully enough because on our last full day of the festival, while wandering the hotel grounds, I came across a whole flock of the species and failed to identify them. I kept trying to figure out what species of tanager I was seeing even though the big bills should have clued me in to the fact that I was seeing a saltator, which is the name given to some tropical grosbeaks.
And, of course, I was looking at and taking pictures of the birds through my Swarovski scope, so I could easily see the gray underparts, white supercilium, black cap, yellowish-olive back, and the namesake buff throat which made the bird a Buff-throated Saltator! Sometimes I wonder how I figure out any birds! Anyway, I eventually got another birder to identify the species for me though I got enough shots that had I sat down with a field guide I would have been able to identify them on my own. And, now, through the wonders of the internet, you get to enjoy the fruits of my labors, lots of shots of Buff-throated Saltators hanging around and eating cecropia.
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I kept trying to figure out what species of tanager I was seeing even though the big bills should have clued me in to the fact that I was seeing a saltator, which is the name given to some tropical grosbeaks.
On the upside, some recent phylogenetic studies have indicated that saltators are tanagers, rather than cardinalines.
Great post Corey. You got some nice shots of the Buff-throated Saltator too! It’s amazing the chances we get to see more after having seen the bird in real life and then going back to see the photos. I took some shots of some Common Mergansers the other day and never even noticed the Killdeer standing right next to them as they preened!
And the identification thing, I think we can all identify with that
Great captures, Corey!
Excellent photos Corey!
Very nice photos…That is one strange looking bird.
That is a cool looking bird. Would have been fun to see in real life.