Clinton9 wrote:To age juvenile & first winter from adult NZ fantails, you need to look at secondary coverts.
In adult the secondary coverts are black and same color and had bright white tips in normal, black in dark phase.
In first winter the outer juvenile secondary coverts are brown, tipped orangish-buff (brown in dark phase) and new middle and inner black 1st adult feathers, tipped white (black in dark phase)
In juvenile the secondary covets are dark brown and tipped orange.
Otherwise body plumages of adults & first winters are same and cannot be tell apart.
Neither the absence of white ear spots the sure way to age the dark phase NZ fantails.
wandering-albatross-in-antarctica-AT33CG (1).jpgBennyboy87654 wrote:I know that the Black Fantails have the white spot by the eye which is quite recognisable, but I saw one without the (or just a faded) white spot, would this perhaps suggest a Juvenile?
Thats some good knowledge to have, I'll try to use it in the future, Thanks for the info