Groove-billed Ani (Crotophaga sulcirostris), Sweetwater Wetlands, Pima County

This Groove-billed Ani was spotted bt Sharon Szczesny and Lisa Vogel and ID'd by Michael Skinner during a Tucson Audubon Field trip to Sweetwater Wetlands on 11 November 2012. It was discoverphotographed by Glenn Seplak on 19 November 2012

Groove-billed Ani is a casual visitor with about 20 previous records. Nearly all these records are concentrated into two time windows, either mid summer (late May to August) or late fall (October to December).

Seen well this large, black cuckoo can only be confused with Smooth-billed Ani, which has never occured in Arizona and probably never will. Separating Smooth-billed from Groove-billed is very tricky, especially because small billed, Smooth-billed Anis can have faint grooves on the bill. The combination of a straight lower mandible without a pronounced gonydal angle and the extensive bare skin around the eye are probably the best marks for Groove-billed.

19 November 2012, photo by Glenn Seplak

21 November 2012, photo by Andrew Core

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