Barcelona and Kenia (1 Viewer)

[Egretta]

Hello,

I've recently been to Barcelona where I spotted this Starling, is it a Common or a Spotless Starling? Personally I think its a Spotless but I have no experience with the species so I'd like to be sure.

I recently refound a few pictures I made in Kenia in 2008, I identified the birds in the field and later on, but I'm still not sure if I have the right identification. I thought the first picture was a Sooty Chat, but the male should havve white shoulders so I'm not too sure about my identification. The second one I identified as a Northern Anteater Chat, mainly because it was browner than the other one.

Thanks in advance, Niels Geelen

 

[The Hairy Highlander]

Neils,

your starlings are common starling.....I won't bother commenting on the Chat, I have zero experience with these!

 

[TZBirder]

I think you've got a pair of sootys here - the male showing unusually little white (just a couple of flashes). Northern anteaters are very similar colours for both male and female and both have white on the wing. If it flew you really should know though - white on primaries = northern anteater, none on primaries = sooty. Range also helps - Sooty is only possible in and around the Mara, Northern Anteater is rather more widespread. Female and juvenile sooty are brown all over with no white at all.