BIRDS OF COSTA RICA

PHOTO LIBRARY

Cherrie's Tanager / Tangara Lomiescarlata (Ramphocelus costaricensis)

 

QUICK TIPS:

1) Consider overall plumage - only adult males are black and red; females and HY males are brownish with an orange wash on the breast; more study is needed on the timing and extent of moult to be certain about the typical plumage of SY males.

2) Check the rectrices - narrow, pointed, and worn tail feathers are believed to be indicative of HY/SY, while broad, rounded, and less worn tail feathers are typical of AHY/ASY.

3) Check the colour of the bill - it appears that AHY/ASY birds have a silvery-blue bill, while HY/SY birds have a grayish-black bill.

4) Consider the iris - it appears to be red for AHY/ASY birds, and brown for HY/SY birds.

Species account updated March 2009

Ageing and sexing overview:

Spring:
ASY - M
Entirely black except for large red rump patch

ASY - F
Rich brown with orange breast; silvery-blue bill and red iris
SY - U
Brownish with some orange on breast; grayish-black bill and brown iris

Ageing and sexing details:

SPRING:  ASY-M (after-second-year male)

Adult males have a striking black and red plumage, accentuated by the silvery-blue bill.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

 

The tail of an ASY male shows broad and rounded adult rectrices.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

RETURN TO AGE/SEX OVERVIEW

SPRING:  ASY-F (after-second-year female)

Adult females have a rich brown plumage with a strong orange wash on the upper breast, but are most easily distinguished from SY individuals by their silvery-blue bill and red iris.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

The wing of ASY females is uniformly brown, with broad and rounded high-quality adult primaries and secondaries, and broad coverts.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

The tail of ASY females shows broad and rounded rectrices.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

RETURN TO AGE/SEX OVERVIEW

 

SPRING:  SY-U (second-year, sex unknown)

Overall plumage of SY females (and possibly males) is a dull brown, with some orange on the upper breast; they are most easily distinguished from ASY females by their grayish-black bill and brown iris.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

The wings of SY Cherrie's Tanagers appear to lack the lustre of ASY females; the primaries and secondaries may be somewhat narrower and more pointed, and the coverts are dull and also somewhat narrower.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

Note the narrower and more pointed shape of the rectrices on SY birds compared to the broad and rounded rectrices of ASY birds.


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008


Photo by Marcel Gahbauer, Las Caletas (CR), April 2008

RETURN TO AGE/SEX OVERVIEW

 

© 2002- The Migration Research Foundation Inc.