{"id":54309,"date":"2018-09-26T05:27:50","date_gmt":"2018-09-26T11:27:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=54309"},"modified":"2024-11-02T12:09:39","modified_gmt":"2024-11-02T17:09:39","slug":"female-or-immature-dark-eyed-junco-oreganus-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/09\/26\/female-or-immature-dark-eyed-junco-oreganus-group\/","title":{"rendered":"Female or Immature Dark-eyed Junco – Oreganus Group"},"content":{"rendered":"

The signs of fall can be vivid such as the changing color of leaves on the trees to bright reds, oranges and yellows and the drop in temperatures or they can be more subtle, for instance, seeing birds I don’t normally see in the Salt Lake Valley during the summer, among those species of birds I look for in the autumn are the Dark-eyed Juncos.<\/p>\n

\"Female\/ImmatureFemale\/Immature Dark-eyed Junco – Oreganus Group – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
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I see Dark-eyed Juncos during their breeding season in the high country of the Wasatch and Uinta mountains but I don’t see them in the lower elevations during that period of time although with the approach of fall and impending winter I know that I can expect to see them more often now.\u00a0 Back in Virginia I didn’t see Dark-eyed Juncos (Slate Colored) until just before the first snowfall and we called them “snow birds” because with their arrival we knew that snow would soon follow.\u00a0 That isn’t the case here in Utah but I am still fond of calling them “snow birds” because that name has stuck in my mind.<\/p>\n

Three days ago I was able to photograph a female or immature Dark-eyed Junco of the Oreganus Group when it flew in and landed not too far away from me and I have to admit that seeing it excited me because I enjoy these birds so much. At this time of the year I would have a hard time deciding if this bird is a female or if it is a first fall male which is why I labeled it the way I did.<\/p>\n

I’m fortunate here in Utah in that I can see Slate-colored, Pink-sided, Gray-Headed and Oregon Dark-eyed Juncos during the fall, winter and early spring. Different sources call these subspecies, races or groups but to be clear they are all<\/em> Dark-eyed Juncos.<\/p>\n

I found an interesting video from Junco Projects<\/span><\/a> that explains some of the diversification of Dark-eyed Juncos and wanted to share it for those of my readers interested in this species.<\/p>\n