Bird Mastermind Round 2

[Jane Turner]

4 this time. Two taken in the UK (one in my garden) two abroad.

I knew being a cr*p photographer would finally be of some value. The ID on one is contentious so it should be a good debate...the other three are proven.

[Jasonbirder]

Blimey not all over again! Seriously though enjoyed the last one so thanks....

Reckon no1 is a Great Scaup, still thinking on the others

[Jane Turner]

How about one a day till the end of Nov and a bottle of something for the winner! First to get all 4 named right...

[Andrew Whitehouse]

1) Greater Scaup
2) Verreaux's Eagle
3) Dunlin
4) Yellow-rumped Warbler (probably not though)

Don't suppose you'll be getting down to Woolies on my account this time either Jane. Can't imagine which of these you had in your garden either.

[Jane Turner]

I wasn't offering to flash in Woolies this time MF gave me too much of a fright on the last one.

Actually I probably have had YRW in my garden...I just failed horribly to clinch it. Now if I had got my mitts on it, it would have been a different story!

[Jasonbirder]

1. Great Scaup
2. No more raptors please - i`m cr*p!!! I make Nick Rossiter look like a Guru!!!
3. Dunlin
4. Grey Wagtail

[Jane Turner]

I'll wait for a few more before giving any serious hints....at least its gull free this time!

[tom mckinney]

Tufted Duck, Black Vulture and no idea about the other two

[Andrew Whitehouse]

Number Four is an escaped Yelloweyed Canary that turned up in your garden.

Maybe.

[Michael Frankis]

1 Greater Scaup
2 Black Vulture
3 (provisional) Greenshank
4 (been to Japan??) Narcissus Flycatcher (wild guess, almost certainly wrong)

[Harry Hussey]

Hi Jane,
Ouch,my head!Is it just your photos or have I lost the ability to identify anything?;)
1)most likely a Scaup
2)can narrow it down to 4 sp!!
3)LOOKS like a Tringa,but is it?Will go with Greenshank,but prob.way out!
4)Yellow-rumped Flycatcher(??)
Please,somebody post a clear close-up photo of ANYTHING,even an unstreaked Acro or a 1st-w large gull!!
Harry H

[Jane Turner]

Three have been named correctly and the 4th...the genus has been mentioned

Its my photos...I take sh*te ones!

No body has got the one that is a wee bit contentious

[Michael Frankis]

Bit more checking up on #4 - Yellow-fronted Canary (Serinus mozambicus). Contentious - was someone trying to claim it as a genuine vagrant?

Michael

[CJW]

Greater Scaup
Lappet-faced Vulture
Greenshank
Yellow-fronted Canary (Thanks Michael).

[Andrew Whitehouse]

Just to clarify on the Canary situation, Yelloweyed and Yellow-fronted Canary are the same species Serinus mozambicus.

[Grousemore]

I'm going for tufted Duck on No1 and am still wracking on the others;but if 3 is a Greenshank,than make some room for me in Woolies window!

[Jane Turner]

OK Number 4 is Serinus mozambicus. No, no one is claiming it as genuine... its very much an escape! It was in my garden though. It was briefly interesting, being small and in possesion of a yellow bum. I have aalso had Cinnamon Teal, Barbary Falcon (hybrid not 100% ruled out, Fulvous Whistling Duck and what looked suspiciously like a Housefinch in or from the garden!

The wader is the one that is open to question. I was photographing another species and looking through the camera lens when it ran into view. I got this one shot and it flew before I got bins on it

[Steve G]

I'M CRAP AT THIS BUT HERE GOES:
1.Greater Scaup
2.Black Vulture
3.Marsh Sandpiper(adult summer plumage)....get them all the time up here! ;)
4.Tweetie-pie

[Jane Turner]

Still no one with more than two right and no one has guessed one bird

[Joern Lehmhus]

I am going to get them all wrong; well, not the serinus mossambicus now that is solved.
Greater Scaup, black vulture and wood sandpiper would be my guesses, though i am least happy with the sandpiper...

[Jane Turner]

Only one wrong there Joern... getting clsoe, i'd better prepare another batch

[Jane Turner]

Here is what I was snapping when bird three appeared on the scene. Bird 3 was slightly closer to me than this, so just a little bit bigger than this one...

[Jane Turner]

Round three is now ready..all passerines and three streaky brown jobs. I guess we should wait until this one is done though!

Just found another pic of bird three and I'd go as far as to say the ID is not contentious at all. The pics came back as I was moving house and I just filed the box under lost.....7 years ago. My projector didn't survive the move and I never got the pics out again.

[Jane Turner]

Is it time to reveal the answers then, since its all gone quiet in here... No one even had a guess at the 5th species to appear

[Jane Turner]

Bird 3

1 was a pair of Greater Scaup btw

[Michael Frankis]

A Curlew Sandpiper with a straight bill?

[Jane Turner]

Here is an alternative pic of bird 2 The dark one to the right. This has been correctly ID'd by a few people. Its an old Black Vulture Aegypius monarchus. I have a terrible confession, I got my daughter (thn 6ish) to play dead in the extreme heat of Extremadura to get this bird to come in for a look!

Number 3 has still not been identified by anyone.

[Michael Frankis]

Curlew Sand x Pec Sand hybrid ("Cox's Sandpiper")???

[Jane Turner]

Well I thought it was a Western Sand at the time... Adult coming out of summer plumage...but as I say it vanished before I lay bins on it. The other bird was a Least Sand... that at least is certain... It was somewhere in East California

Happy to have a debate about it though

[Jane Turner]

So in summary
1. Greater Scaup at Dunbar, Scotland
2. Black (Monk) Vulture Extremadura, Spain
3. Western Sandpiper California USA
4. Green singing finch/Yellow-fronted Canary etc etc Merseyside England

and no one got them all

Steve G was the first to get two non-escapes correctly