SOUTHEASTERN CARIBBEAN BIRDS PHOTO GALLERY

Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club         Southeastern Caribbean Bird Alert         Trinidad and Tobago Rare Bird Committee

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)

A                                                        B                                                 C

D                                                          E

Basic plumaged adult at Orange Valley, Trinidad, 24 September 2000 (A-D) and 21 January 2001 (E). Photos © by Floyd Hayes. First record for T&T and South America. Note the following features distinguishing this species from the Hudsonian Godwit (L. haemastica): long, relatively straight, bicoloured bill (distinctly upturned in Hudsonian); long, broad, white stripe on the upperwing (narrow, shorter in Hudsonian); white underwing linings (darker in Hudsonian); and relatively long legs trailing well beyond the tail (shorter in Hudsonian). Traces of alternate plumage, most notably a patch of barring on the belly, indicated that this was an adult acquiring basic plumage. This bird was initially found in the Caroni Rice Fields (14-16 September 2000) and later relocated 20 km SSW along the coast between Waterloo and Orange Valley (17 September 2000 to 21 January 2001). Further details are published in: Hayes, F. E., and M. Kenefick. 2002. First record of Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa for South America. Cotinga 17:20-22.  [abstract / resumen]