It may also be hard to fit the 12 tail feathers of a Reed in there
Ekopa, could you describe the general environment. It's not at all conclusive this time of the year, but a Garden warbler that wants to take a bath has to be near some form of water
That tail looks much darker than rump and back (back is in shadow so comparable). Garden doesn't show that marked contrast.
First I was going to say that this second picture made a strong case for Reed. A Garden warbler with overall warm brown colors would be even weirder then a Reed Warbler with a Garden warbler like bill.
I just tried to find on the web samples of both species calls (not songs). Something like harsh clicking or "chekking". If they are not too similar, probably I will be able to say more...
Talk of the hind claw is a red herring - it's of no use at all as far as I can tell (if anyone can give a link of the value of colur of hind toes as an i.d. criteria I'll happily change my mind), as I can think of plenty of reasons why it would vary.
It still comes down to the bill with me. What am I most willing to believe - that the photos have misrepresented the colour or misrepresented the bill? We all know how the camera can change colours, but I think we can see the bill clearly enough to see it's true shape/length in a good profile shot.
CAU, drinks are on me B
CAU, congrats that you keep your's mind :t:
However, the toe colour is a useful character separating Reed Warblers from Marsh Warblers,
As said previously, to me the bill looks good for a Reed Warbler with a not fully grown bill,[
but that is a physical impossibility - the bird has no trace of gape so is well beyond being a fledgling, so the bill is not growing.