Crazy Bird Cap
One of the joys of birding is discovering an enigmatic bird that you haven't seen before.crazy bird cap Some of these birds will stay on your list forever, while others will flit through your life for just a moment. Then they'll disappear, and you will have to content yourself with a description, photos or video from your fellow birders.
One such enigmatic bird is the crazy bird cap, which has been spotted in Arizona and Las Vegas. It has a wide brim, a crown of feathers and a beak with two creases. It's a fun craft for kids that can be made out of paper, cardboard or another sturdy material. If you're looking for other cool crafts for kids, check out these adorable tin can owls or this Easter sewing project.
This avian accessory was first noticed by blogger Jelisa Castrodale in Las Vegas on September 27. Castrodale was out hiking with her dog when she spotted the strange-looking creature. She took a photo of the bird and posted it to her blog. The story went viral and prompted many people to try and find the bird. One woman even contacted the organizers of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo to see if they knew anything about it.
The hat-wearing bird is a little more difficult to pin down than the skunk or stinky toad. While it's certainly possible that the hat-wearing bird is simply an anomaly, Castrodale has a theory. She thinks it might be the work of a local haberdasher who specializes in outfitting animals for movies and TV commercials. The hat-wearing bird might have been a prop used for a Western film, or it could be a costume for an event like the Rodeo.
Another possibility is that the bird is simply a fashion trend. By the late 1800s, hats were becoming more sophisticated and expensive, so the millinery industry might have been able to justify the use of feathers. The crazier the hat, the more fashionable it was to wear it, and some wore outrageous hats that looked nothing like real birds. The feather-adorned hats were especially popular among women.
Field guide author David Allen Sibley brought further skepticism to the crazy bird cap in a fascinating blog post from 2008. Sibley pointed out several structural oddities and impossibilities in Audubon's renderings, suggesting that Audubon may have used a model instead of actual specimens. Sibley speculates that the wing-scarfing and feather groups are indicative of a bird species other than the wood warbler that the bird is supposed to represent.