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Chuck-will's-widow at Folly Beach - 2nd SC Winter Record?



Hi folks.

While birding the old Coast Guard station at Folly
Beach this morning (with Donna Forsythe and Mimi
Dias), I found a dead Chuck-will's-widow. The bird was
in its resting position on the ground, was in
immaculate condition and appeared VERY recently
expired. The bird's breast was still warm underneath
when I picked it up and it was completely limber / not
stiff. No ants, insects or vermin were on it and there
was/is no odor at all.  Dennis Forsythe confirmed the
ID a short while later. 

The bird appears to be a female, as there is no white
on the outer tail feathers (just small buffy corners
of the tail).  The bird's underwings are a uniform
rusty brown, as is the underside of the tail feathers.
 When viewed from above, the tail is a uniform brown
with slight barring.  The undertail coverts are a
lighter buff with a slight rufous tinge.  The breast
and belly are reddish brown and there is a thin
whitish band across the bottom of the throat.   The
scapulars have a dirty gray wash, however they are not
the distinct paler gray bordered in black of a
Whip-poor-will.  The bird also lacks the sharp dark
crown stripe of a Whip.  

When I got home, I balanced the bird on the tray of
some postal scales and it weighed a tad over 4 ounces.
 The bird measured  11.5 inches long.   After that, I
took some 35mm photos from all angles (with wings
extended, etc).  Then I wrapped the bird in wrapping
tissue and put it in multiple ziplocs in the freezer. 
On Dennis' advice, I contacted Will Post (Co-author of
"Status and Distribution of South Carolina Birds") of
the Charleston Museum to arrange to give him the
specimen.  Will says that the only other record he
recalls of Chuck-will's-widow during winter in S.C. is
a photo Arch McCallum took of one years ago.  

Nathan Dias - Charleston, SC


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