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Help with tern, Saudi Arabia (1 Viewer)

I've never seen White-cheeked and was led to believe that the primaries should be more or less the same colour as the rest of the upperparts. The grey on the underparts is less than I would expect with WCT but rather more than a typical Common - in fact its closest to breeding Arctic in that regard.

With the caveat that I don't know what a late into summer plumage White-cheeked would look like, I'd say it might be a rather dark underparted Common

Then again I can convince myself it looks long-billed! On second thoughts, wait for someone who knows White-cheeked!
 
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Jane Turner said:
and I can almost convince myself that the rump is grey, which would make it White-cheeked..Count that as a U-turn!
Click to expand...
Well my wife always tells me it is a lady's prerogative to change her mind. :t:
 
Too long tail feathers for Common, so it fits also to White-cheeked (Sterna repressa), which has longer tail-fork!
 
Long (the bird is not in full profile) bill with much back in tip, long tail reaching wing-tip (if not further), grey rump, short legs + of course dark grey underside almost darker than upperside.

For me everything fits perfectly a White-cheeked.
 
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Thanks everyone I'll mark it down as a white-cheeked. :t:

Now can anyone tell me what make of tyre that is? :'D
 
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Hi Adrian-Jane!
The short- legged impression, long tail, reaching obviously outside wingtip (?), the grey looking rump could fit White-cheeked Tern, but the bill size (short and thick-based)and contrast wing coverts and upperparts, with a paler lesser coverts doesn´t ring a "repressa bell", but it may also be due to light, depending on which light you see them, in strong light upperparts may look paler than underparts. Fresh primaries are paler than upperparts but quite rapidly wear to darker. The bill though I would like to look like this:

http://www.birdsoman.com/WhitecheekedTern.htm

I´m not saying that it isn´t a repressa, but I´m not convinced looking at the image.

JanJ
 
JanJ - It looks to me like it might be a first summer bird with some which might explain some of the plumage anomolies...am looking for pictures as we speak!
 
JANJ said:
Hi Adrian-Jane!
The short- legged impression, long tail, reaching obviously outside wingtip (?), the grey looking rump could fit White-cheeked Tern, but the bill size (short and thick-based)and contrast wing coverts and upperparts, with a paler lesser coverts doesn´t ring a "repressa bell", but it may also be due to light, depending on which light you see them, in strong light upperparts may look paler than underparts. Fresh primaries are paler than upperparts but quite rapidly wear to darker. The bill though I would like to look like this:

http://www.birdsoman.com/WhitecheekedTern.htm

I´m not saying that it isn´t a repressa, but I´m not convinced looking at the image.

JanJ
Click to expand...
Thanks Jan,

I think I'll have to stop photographing these dubious birds. :-C
 
>>> but the bill size (short and thick-based)

It's debatable of course but the bird is _not_ in full profile (we can see the bill base).
 
Jane, all.

More like a second summer Jane, a first summer would not have this adult looking plumage! As second summer, like Common, usually shows white forehead or narrower band above base of bill. Bill adult like or all dark (occasionally in adult) and usually shorther tail and some dark smudging on lesser coverts.

Usually, depending on light, contrast between white cheek and and grey more obvious than in Adrians pic.

Here is a Common tern on top of a White-cheeked:

http://www.israbirding.com/reports/monthly_summaries/jul_05/white-cheeked_tern_barak.jpg

http://www.tarsiger.com/index.php?p...+White-cheeked+Tern,+Sterna+repressa&lang=eng

The angle of the head is not in full profile, but perhaps well enough to make a judgement of bill thickness.
There are Common Tern eastern race longipennis to consider of course, but has a pale rump and shorther and usually all black bill compared to hirundo Common, but some with red bill base, usually in westernmost birds.

http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/b...=976&Bird_Image_ID=12100&Bird_Family_ID=&p=10


Adrian, do you have some more of this?
JanJ
 
I've been attempting to educate myself in the character of repressa! I find the head shape and bill shape quite distinctive in small sterna terns and have been looking at pics of repressa. They do have quite a subtle difference in terms of bill length, though in particular shape (broad-based but tapering to a very sharp point, as well as in the shape and clarity of the white over the gape line and possibly in the extent of the cap onto the nape. That said the bird in question looks strangely intermediate.
 

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