Doubt about identification of yellow wagtail subspecies - Central Spain (1 Viewer)

[JLRamos]

Hello everyone, these photos have been taken today in Guadalajara, in central Spain, in an area of dry crops, but close to a small pool of water.

In the area we were able to see many yellow wagtails of the usual subspecies in our area: iberiae

However, we doubt the bird in the photographs, since the yellow throat and greenish head would not correspond to iberiae. Reviewing the description of the subspecies in guides, we were not able to identify if it is another subspecies and which one.

Thanks in advance

(Sorry for the previous message in Spanish. I used a translator app and, by mistake, I copied and pasted the wrong part. My apologies)

 

[JLRamos]

up

 

[01101001]

Spring yellow wagtails photo ID guide

Dominic Mitchell takes a look at the various guises, both familiar and scarce, of one of our most eagerly awaited summer visitors.

www.birdguides.com

I don't think this link fully answers your question, but, maybe, someone else will.

 

[01101001]

Pages 902-903 if you're really intent on getting the ID:

Handboek Europese vogels SET deel 1 en 2 - Inkijkexemplaar - bol.com

EDIT: Better scans here: Handboek Europese vogels | het nieuwe standaardwerk | vogelboek, vogelgids KNNV Uitgeverij

https://knnvuitgeverij.nl/data/ab/artikelen/artikel-zoom/handboek_europese_vogels(23).jpg

https://knnvuitgeverij.nl/data/ab/artikelen/artikel-zoom/handboek_europese_vogels(24).jpg

no intergrades described, though

EDIT 2: at least two forms: dombrowskii (feldegg x flava) and flava, seem to be a possible match

compare:

Western yellow wagtail subspecies identification - Istanbul, Turkey

These were all at the same location, in April 2021. Would you agree with my below classifications? Any other thoughts? Thanks very much in advance... 1-flava - female 2-feldegg - male 3-thunbergi - male 4-thunbergi - male 5-flava - male

www.birdforum.net

including:

The apparent feldegg (2) has a green nape and 4 has a grey head but also with green intermixed on crown, a typical sign of these kinds of hybrids.

the exact crown colour in your pictures is hard for me to judge with certainty, though I see you wrote:

the yellow throat and greenish head would not correspond to iberiae

EDIT 3: Also, from the Birdguides article:

'dombrowskii' resembles flava but has blackish ear coverts and is slightly darker grey on the crown and nape

You can always try submitting it via eBird and see what happens and what is the opinion of your local reviewer (and please report back if you do).

Western Yellow Wagtail (dombrowskii-type intergrade) - Motacilla flava (dombrowskii intergrade) - Media Search - Macaulay Library and eBird

Explore millions of photos, audio recordings, and videos of birds and other animals; powered by Macaulay Library and eBird. The Macaulay Library collects, archives, and distributes wildlife media for research, education, and conservation.

media.ebird.org

EDIT 4: Although now I see that ssp. flava seems to be much more frequently recorded in Spain (though it can be so for a variety of reasons that I'm not qualified to judge).

The nominate subspecies does seem to migrate through Spain: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3677265?seq=3, so you might actually have a hard time trying to prove a possible dombrowskii from these photos.