Expert: Roger Lederer - 7/13/2006

Question
I don't know if you can identify wild birds if you cant could you please pass it on to someone who can and if you can, give it a try.

I have a bird that comes to my feeder that I can't identify can you help me. I thought it might be a song sparrow but it has gold on it. It has a gold crown and gold cheeks and a little gold going down its neck but its belly is cream with black flecks. It the size of a sparrow. Its wings are dark gray and the get lighter near the edge. Then when it opens its wings it has gold near the base of its tail. I live in Florida. it has three toes inn front and one in back and it eats the seeds I put out and the fruit. Can you help with the identification?thanx

Answer
I rarely get stumped identifying wild birds but this a tough one. Birds that eat both seeds and fruit rule out a lot of birds. But I suspect it is a Yellow-rumped Warbler. This time of year the males, females, and immatures come in a variety of plumages. But the yellow/gold head, wing color, and gold/yellow at the base of the tail make me suspect it is an immature Yellow-rumped Warbler. The one thing that bothers me is that they don't eat seeds. If you can get a photo, even a bad one, it would be helpful. Shape of beak would help too. Roger Lederer at Ornithology.com