It's a Curlew. They do make odd noises on occasion.I was thinking this bird might be a whimbrel as when it was calling it sounded different from a Curlew, any help appreciated.
Location is Scotland, from the present tense way the OP is written you could assume it is recent ...
Whimbrel is an uncommon wintering bird in the UK (and Ireland) - predominantly in the south/south west on rocky shores. Not sure how infrequently they can occur as far north as Scotland...
Agree with Curlew, mind. Also on jizz (Whimbrel dainter, also generally darker), bulkier body and legs. (Don't the head stripes on this bird indicate an immature bird?? and perhaps a male on bill length??)
(I think you may find that 'resident' in terms of Scottish birds means summer resident (as opposed to eg passage migrant, as in much of the rest of the UK), not year-round resident)If it's the very northern tip of Scotland, Whimbrel are resident in small numbers (a few hundred pairs), but yes for the rest of Scotland it's an unlikely (although not impossible) winter visitor.
Bill length does suggest male to me. I'm not sure on whether head stripes always indicate juvenile or not.
(I think you may find that 'resident' in terms of Scottish birds means summer resident (as opposed to eg passage migrant, as in much of the rest of the UK), not year-round resident)
?? ;-)
Whimbrel (other than a few birds not travelling as far, as mentioned), is essentially a sub-saharan migrant.
That was the drift of my post. It is far less likely to be Whimbrel if it was taken recently. Curlew for me in any case.Whimbrel is an uncommon wintering bird in the UK (and Ireland) - predominantly in the south/south west on rocky shores. Not sure how infrequently they can occur as far north as Scotland...
...and then tell us the date too?IL try again to upload it tomorrow
You can see the crown pretty clearly in this and it's uniform in colour, without the pale median stripe you'd expect on a Whimbrel.This is the best I could do using vlc player, the more I look at it the more I think it's a curlew
Date was 26/02/2023...and then tell us the date too?