At 12:18 PM 11/20/2009, mcneely4@cox.net wrote:
>Could it be that the pink bill appears yellow in the light you are
>observing with?

Yellow is about my best color, so I don't think so, but could be I
suppose.  The breast as well as belly was whitish, and the back etc
weren't anywhere near as dark as the slaty-colored juncos we get
here, and could have been brownish rather than grayish -- my
red/green deficiency makes that sort of distinction a bit
chancy.  Definitely not a warbler bill.  Can't swear to the streaking
but sitting together on the feeder rail with miscellaneous sparrows
the contrast was notable.  Smaller than an English sparrow.  When I
went for the glasses it flew, of course, both times.

I'm beginning to wonder about a sport of some kind -- the yellow bill
was striking, like a grackle's pale eyes, and I haven't found
anything yet that seems remotely possible.  Just for giggles I'm
going to look in my book of British birds...

Thanks,
David