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Chiffchaff ?? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter citrinella
- Start date
paulwfromtheden
Well-known member
Not sure it is, is it a lesser whitethroat?
Capercaillie71
Well-known member
Why not a willow warbler? That would be by far the more common species in the NW of Scotland (particularly in a birch woodland).
A good point Paul, persuasively argued.
Capercaillie71
Well-known member
Apart from location and habitat, the leg colour doesn't look too bad for willow warbler, I can't really see the primary projection, and the plumage colouration of willow warbler is very variable.
Edit: Just noticed - my 1000th post!
Last edited:
Frenchy
Well-known member
Check out these excellent maps from the BTO breeding bird survey of Chiffchaff:
http://blx1.bto.org/bbs-results/results/bbsanim-422.html
and Willow Warbler:
http://blx1.bto.org/bbs-results/results/bbsanim-423.html
Don't forget to click next to move through the years until 2007.
As you can see, Willow Warbler is more likely on distribution. I remember seeing a couple of comparative maps in the BTO News (you'll need to be a member to remember that probably) which, if i remember correctly, had an even more clear cut distinction in distribution.
The bird is clearly singing in the photograph, so did you hear it citrinella, as you are in the best place to say what it was. What did it sound like? That said, it does look more like a WW to me, although i've got them wrong on here recently, so best to ignore me...
http://blx1.bto.org/bbs-results/results/bbsanim-422.html
and Willow Warbler:
http://blx1.bto.org/bbs-results/results/bbsanim-423.html
Don't forget to click next to move through the years until 2007.
As you can see, Willow Warbler is more likely on distribution. I remember seeing a couple of comparative maps in the BTO News (you'll need to be a member to remember that probably) which, if i remember correctly, had an even more clear cut distinction in distribution.
The bird is clearly singing in the photograph, so did you hear it citrinella, as you are in the best place to say what it was. What did it sound like? That said, it does look more like a WW to me, although i've got them wrong on here recently, so best to ignore me...
timwootton
Well-known member
I'm for willow - and congrats on the 1k Capercaillie.
Jane Turner
Well-known member
i see a Willow Warbler too
citrinella
Well-known member
Thanks everybody,
I had considerable problems with the song as there was a willow warbler singing right beside me. I didn't hear chiffchaff, but I am very bad on song and I wasn't thinking about it, more about getting photos. If it was singing, it wasn't for long as that is the only photo with it's mouth open out of many.
To be honest I thought I was photographing whitethroat (though I hadn't heard any singing). Please remember I am pretty colour blind, and where I come from willow warbler look browner (to me) than this. Collins mentions greyer in NW. When I looked on screen I couldn't see the contrast between head and body I would expect on whitethroat.
I photoed another individual (not very good) which appears to have much paler legs which made me wonder if this one was chiffchaff. Apparently birdy folk living 50 metres away have never recorded chiffchaff, and there are few (if any) records from this side of the loch (Lochcarron) though they are known on the other side, about 8km away.
Lesser whitethroat are not "supposed" to occur in this area at all. From my books I would have expected to see some contrast between head an back for lesser whitethroat too. On my home patch I only get whitethroat and willow warbler, so I guess I am very inexperienced.
Mike.
I had considerable problems with the song as there was a willow warbler singing right beside me. I didn't hear chiffchaff, but I am very bad on song and I wasn't thinking about it, more about getting photos. If it was singing, it wasn't for long as that is the only photo with it's mouth open out of many.
To be honest I thought I was photographing whitethroat (though I hadn't heard any singing). Please remember I am pretty colour blind, and where I come from willow warbler look browner (to me) than this. Collins mentions greyer in NW. When I looked on screen I couldn't see the contrast between head and body I would expect on whitethroat.
I photoed another individual (not very good) which appears to have much paler legs which made me wonder if this one was chiffchaff. Apparently birdy folk living 50 metres away have never recorded chiffchaff, and there are few (if any) records from this side of the loch (Lochcarron) though they are known on the other side, about 8km away.
Lesser whitethroat are not "supposed" to occur in this area at all. From my books I would have expected to see some contrast between head an back for lesser whitethroat too. On my home patch I only get whitethroat and willow warbler, so I guess I am very inexperienced.
Mike.
In addition of course this all the wrong structure, shape, colour etc for Lesser Whitethroat.
