Finsch's Wheatear (1 Viewer)

I was wanting to add this picture to the Opus page but not sure what I'm looking at.... ummmm.... winter male.... female?

http://www.birdforum.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=181964

Can someone help please.

D

Finsch´s would be the correct choice and not Mourning.
In the Middle East race lugens the sexes are quite similar- while in N.W.Africa race halophila male and female are dissimilar, female are more similar to female Finsch´s.
Probably an adult female.

JanJ

Thanks JanJ

Judging by the number of views and lack of response this appears to be a tricky one.

I've added the picture to the article with a link to this thread

D

Well, sexing the bird isn't tricky, as male Finsch's Wheatears (also winter males and first-winter males) should be more or less strikingly black and white. The identification of the species is more problematic, as some female Mourning Wheatears may be very similar. However, like Jan wrote, both sexes of the Mourning Wheatears that occur in Kuwait (ssp. persica) are black and white.

Another species that might cause identification problems is Variable Wheatear (aka Eastern Pied Wheatear). I happened to find this bird through another thread that's currently on the front page, and I'm wondering whether it is a Finsch's Wheatear or a Variable Wheatear (it isn't a Desert Wheatear, like the caption says). It looks a lot like the subject bird, but the tail pattern isn't perhaps the best possible for Finsch's (extensive black at the edges), the bill is quite small and the primary projection looks rather long:
http://www.pbase.com/abdulghani/image/111124436

According to the caption this is a Finsch's Wheatear, but the pattern of the tail feather that is visible in the second picture fits better Variable Wheatear (black shaft streak):
http://www.hawar-islands.com/blog/index.php/2006/12/15/finsch_s_wheatear

This should be a certain Variable Wheatear (morph capistrata, which should also occur on the Arabian peninsula):
http://www.tarsiger.com/gallery/index.php?pic_id=annika1231347748&lang=eng

As you might have guessed, I don't know much about Variable Wheatear (or even Finsch's)...

Female Variable (capistrata) usually browner and muddier compared to female Finsch´s.

http://orientalbirdimages.org/searc...2585&Bird_Image_ID=33763&Bird_Family_ID=&p=13

http://www.netfugl.dk/pictures.php?id=listpictures&species_id=617

JanJ

Strangely enough, had forgotten that me myself had raised the question about this wheatear.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=108322&highlight=finsch%B4s+wheatear

JanJ