Two cream-colored Passerines, Lesvos, Greece (1 Viewer)

Maturin · Nov 28, 2017

I spotted these birds in a shrub near Megalochori (southern part of Lesvos, Greece) in late July. To be honest I wasn't aware that there were two birds until I looked at my Photos.

My guesses are below (Highlight to see the text) but I'm not 100% sure about ruling out other warblers.
1. Common Nightingale
2. Garden Warbler?

Thanks for any useful advice!

dwatsonbirder · Nov 28, 2017

I suspect nightingale for the first. The second looks fine for Eastern Subalpine warbler.

Maturin · Nov 28, 2017

Thank you for the fast reply!

Should be a juvenile Subalpine then. Which of the features did lead you to this conclusion and how are other possible warblers ruled out?

dwatsonbirder · Nov 28, 2017

I'm not an expert, but the following features shown in your photos help exclude other sylvia's;
- washed out appearance. Pale grey above, whitish throat, breast and chest with peachy suffusion to flanks. Overall tone is too light for Sardinian and Ruppell's warbler
- largely dark centered tertials with pale fringes (rules out whitethroat)
- pale eye ring (rules out Ruppell's)
- Culmen not curved to extent of Ruppell's
- hint of pale sub-moustacial stripe (particularly evident in bottom row centre and right image)
- to my eyes, tail appears concolourous with mantle and not black (rules out Menetries which is also mega rare in Greece)

Hope this helps.

Maturin · Nov 28, 2017

dwatsonbirder said:
I'm not an expert, but the following features shown in your photos help exclude other sylvia's;
- washed out appearance. Pale grey above, whitish throat, breast and chest with peachy suffusion to flanks. Overall tone is too light for Sardinian and Ruppell's warbler
- largely dark centered tertials with pale fringes (rules out whitethroat)
- pale eye ring (rules out Ruppell's)
- Culmen not curved to extent of Ruppell's
- hint of pale sub-moustacial stripe (particularly evident in bottom row centre and right image)
- to my eyes, tail appears concolourous with mantle and not black (rules out Menetries which is also mega rare in Greece)

Hope this helps.

Thanks again - the descriptions made things a bit clearer. I saw a pair of adult Subalpine Warblers nearby and with the described features the determination seems very plausible. No couch-lifer for me today.

Two cream-colored Passerines, Lesvos, Greece (1 Viewer)

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