Mystery Bird

Yesterday, I heard a weird bird call coming from my neighbor’s yard. When I looked on their roof, I caught a brief glimpse of this little guy. For the life of me, I can’t figure out what it is!

I only managed to take two photos before it flew away, so this is the only reference that I have to go off of. It was around noon, the bird was facing west but there was a slight wind blowing it from my direction so the feathers were moving a little in the breeze.

If you look close at the chest, you can see the breeze is allowing you to see that the feathers are darker the closer it gets to the actual bird.

My best guess is a juvenile Rock Wren but the coloring doesn’t seem right although the overall shape seems correct. The dark patches on the chest and the lack of much facial markings is throwing me for a loop. I originally thought thought maybe a juvenile Cactus Wren, but the head lacks that really distinctive color contrast between white and brown.

Any guesses anyone? I would love to figure out what it is because it’s driving me bonkers. Please leave a comment below!