rafa got a single shot early this morning of what has been ID’d as a Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Check it out:
Apparently the bird was moving around too fast for rafa to get a closer shot. Here’s a magnified version of the one shot we have:
Zoomed in like that, and checking the field guide (which I have to do, since it’s a bird I don’t know personally), I’d say there’s no question. I can barely make out the bird’s beak, extending to the left, and the dark marking around the bird’s left eye. The markings on the tail, and the overall shape and coloration, are perfect: It’s an adult Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Fits the Welder checklist and the Sibley range maps, too.
Great bird! Thanks for being alert on the dawn patrol, rafa!