Phainopepla nitens Status: Accidental in winter. Documentation: Photograph: 1 Jan 1983 Alliance, Box Butte Co (Thomas 1983). Taxonomy: Two subspecies are recognized (Chu and Walsberg 2020, Gill et al 2022): lepida, breeding from California east to west Texas and south to southern Baja California, and nitens, breeding in southwest Texas south into Mexico. The subspecies […]
EURASIAN TREE SPARROW
Passer montanus montanus Status: Rare casual winter visitor. Documentation: Photograph: 3 Feb 2007 Madison Co (Brogie 2008). Taxonomy: Nine subspecies are recognized throughout Eurasia (Gill et al 2022). The introduced North American population is derived from some 20 birds released in St. Louis, Missouri in 1870; these birds were thought to be from Baden-Wurttenberg, Germany […]
[NORTHERN RED BISHOP]
Euplectes franciscanus Status: No accepted records. Taxonomy: Two subspecies are recognized, both in east-central Africa (Gill et al 2022). Comments: A male on the University of Nebraska – Omaha campus, Douglas Co 29 Sep 2016 was unexpected; photo above. There are no known established populations closer than Texas, southern California, and New York (eBird.org, accessed […]
SAGE THRASHER
Oreoscoptes montanus Status: Rare casual spring migrant and summer visitor west, accidental central. Rare casual breeder west. Uncommon regular fall migrant west, rare casual west central. Accidental in winter. Documentation: UNSM ZM6640, 13 Jul 1901 Antelope Creek, Sioux Co. Taxonomy: No subspecies are recognized (Gill et al 2022). Spring: The spring migration route for this […]
BROWN THRASHER
Toxostoma rufum Status: Common regular spring and fall migrant and breeder statewide. Rare casual winter visitor south and southeast. Documentation: Specimen: rufum, UNSM ZM6643, 17 Sep 1921 Lancaster Co. Taxonomy: Gill et al (2022) recognized two subspecies, longicauda and rufum. According to AOU (1957), eastern rufum breeds west to western Minnesota, western Iowa, and western […]
CURVE-BILLED THRASHER
Toxostoma curvirostre curvirostre, T.c. palmeri Status: Rare casual erratic resident. Documentation: Specimen: UNSM ZM6646, 2 May 1936 North Platte, Lincoln Co (identified by H. C. Oberholser). Taxonomy: Gill et al (2022) recognize seven subspecies, but other authors (Pyle 1997, Tweit 2020) recognized two subspecies, corresponding to the two phenotypically recognizable groups (Rojas-Soto 2003, Rojas-Soto et […]