Pipit, Taiwan (1 Viewer)

[modrawnu]

My friend photographed this pipit last year. Is this a Paddyfield Pipit Anthus rufulus or Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris. Because this could be the first record of any one pipit above in Taiwan, please help to ID. Thanks a lot for any comments.

Location: Pingtung County, Taiwan
Date: 1st Jan. 2016

Ting-Wei, Hung

 

[modrawnu]

Another two photos.

 

[KenM]

It would appear that (Anthus campestris) range extends East to China, that said, your images do look very much like Tawny Pipit to my eye (bold eye-stripe and relatively unmarked under-parts). I would wait for further comment, but does look a good candidate from where I'm sitting?

Cheers

 

[johnallcock]

I'm replying mostly to bump this post up for any further comments.

Personally I'm struggling with ID of this bird. It seems (to me) to be more heavily marked above and below than I would expect for Tawny Pipit, but the head pattern does look promising.

The obvious species to rule out should be Richard's Pipit, but head pattern and structure don't seem right for that.

 

[SteveMM]

My friend photographed this pipit last year. Is this a Paddyfield Pipit Anthus rufulus or Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris. Because this could be the first record of any one pipit above in Taiwan, please help to ID. Thanks a lot for any comments.

Location: Pingtung County, Taiwan
Date: 1st Jan. 2016

Ting-Wei, Hung

Hi Ting-Wei,

I've been passed these photos before and thought then that they were Paddyfield Pipit. I think the same now.

The face pattern comfortably eliminates Richard's, and the structure favours Paddyfield (as this bird looks as if its rear end ends abruptly and it has a shortish and rather skinny-looking tail). Tawny should look altogether sleeker.

Paddyfield occurs northern Luzon, only a hop and a skip away from Pingtung! Some similar-looking birds from Luzon (I think) here: http://tonjiandsylviasbirdlist.smugmug.com/keyword/paddyfield pipit;pipit/

 

[Grahame Walbridge]

John,

Given the face pattern Tawny Pipit would seem the most likely option. It is certainly a possible/likely vagrant in that its a long-distance migrant though I could not find reference to any published records from the region.

The images are rather small making interpretation of colour tones and detail difficult. I agree the upperparts appear too heavily marked for Tawny and the underparts maybe too, though some 1st-winters can be surprisingly well marked. The feature that most worried me was it looks consistently too short-tailed. I have tried blowing up the images to see if I could make out the hind claw, which might clinch it, but failed.

Agree Richard's can be safely excluded.

Paddyfield Pipit is sedentary with the nearest population lugubris in the Philippines.

I am glad I am not the only person struggling with this bird.

Grahame

 

[johnallcock]

Paddyfield occurs northern Luzon, only a hop and a skip away from Pingtung! Some similar-looking birds from Luzon (I think) here: http://tonjiandsylviasbirdlist.smugmug.com/keyword/paddyfield pipit;pipit/

Those Paddyfield pictures do seem to be quite a close match to this bird.

 

[Grahame Walbridge]

Steve,

I missed your comments!

Agree it looks a very good match for lugubris Paddyfield. Would that represent a first for East Asia?

Grahame

 

[SteveMM]

Steve,

I missed your comments!

Agree it looks a very good match for lugubris Paddyfield. Would that represent a first for East Asia?

Grahame

Hi Grahame,

I guess so. It's certainly the first for Taiwan, and it seems like an unlikely candidate to penetrate any further north than here!

Steve

 

[modrawnu]

Thanks for all the comments! I'll tell my friend the result.