English and Scientific names:	Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana)
Number of individuals:	1 adult plumaged male
Locality: LOUISIANA:	Cameron Parish
Specific Locality:	Peveto Woods Sanctuary
Date(s) when observed:	Saturday, April 24, 2010
Time(s) of day when observed:	12:45 PM
Reporting observer and address:	Jeffrey W. Harris Baton Rouge, LA 70806
Other observers accompanying reporter who also identified the bird(s):	Jerry Lenhard
Other observers who independently identified the bird(s)
Light conditions (position of bird in relation to shade and to direction and amount of light):	The bird passed in and out of sunlight under the canopy of the large live oaks.  For the most part, it was seen in the shadows.
Optical equipment:	8 x 42 binoculars; Alpen; good condition
Distance to bird(s):	The distance between the bird and I varied from 20-60 feet during the ca. 30 second observation. The bird stayed about 15-20 feet off the ground in shrubs and tangled vines under the oaks.
Duration of observation:	Approximately half a minute.
Habitat:	Understory of a live oak grove near the coast.
Behavior of bird:	The bird was first seen perched rather erect, but it quickly flew away in short bursts as I tried to approach for videotaping.  It was fairly active, and remained on any single perch for only a few moments.  Nothing extraordinary about the bird's behavior -- it seemed to behave like the tens of Orioles and Warblers that were also occupying the Sanctuary at the same time.  There were also a lot of people (> 30 in the woods), which probably added to the anxiety of some of these birds.
Description:	At my first glance I thought the bird was a Summer Tanager in a partial molt.  I saw the front of the bird first, and the orange head seemed similar to many of the immature Summer Tanagers that I had already witnessed in the woods.  The bill was thick and yellowish like a Summer Tanager.  However, the bright yellow of the breast seemed much more canary like, which caused me to give the bird a second look.  At that moment, the bird turned and the back was visible.  I notice a very dark black back and black wings and bright yellow wing bars.  That's when I knew that it was not a Summer Tanager.  The bright wing bars on the dark wing were quite noticeable, even when the bird was in the shadows.  Then I remembered my field guides and thought that this must be a male Western Tanager.  I immediately videotaped as best that I could with a miniDV, and the bird was gone within moments.  The black tail did not register on viewing, it was only in reviewing the video did I actually notice it.
Voice:	The bird did not vocalize.
Similar species:	The dark wings with bright yellow wing bars are like no other tanager.
Photographs or tape recordings obtained?	I recorded a miniDV using a camcorder with 48x optical zoom.  Conditions were tough:  dark lighting and gusty winds made it nearly impossible to get a good focus on the fast moving bird.
Previous experience with this species:	Prior to this sighting, I had only seen a female Western Tanager during the winter in Baton Rouge, LA at Kevin Morgan's home (which is only a few blocks from my house).
Identification aids:	I used Sibley's and Peterson's guides to confirm the ID when I went home a day after the sighting.
This description is written from:	This description was made from memory.
Are you positive of your identification? If not, explain:	Yes, I am positive of the identification.
Date and time:	April 26, 2010 at 9:30 PM.