Can anyone identify the bird flying off a rooftop in Argeles sur mer close to the Pyrenees in South West France in April this year, and the other bird is a wagtail in Dorset two months ago, is it a pied or white and what is the difference ?
Why isn’t the wagtail pied?
Do you often see pied wagtails in jolly old england ?? I thought it was rather an african ??
Pied Wagtail is the local name for Motacilla alba yarrellii, the British ssp. of White Wagtail.Do you often see pied wagtails in jolly old england ?? I thought it was rather an african ??
It was Powderham Castle, Devon in mid October. The castle is ia large park so not an urban area really
Do you often see pied wagtails in jolly old england ?? I thought it was rather an african ??
Surprised you've had so few - virtually the entire Icelandic White Wagtail population passes through Britain and/or Ireland on spring and autumn migration, and that's probably not far short of the total population size of Pied Wag. One of the commoner inland passage birds in Britain, though surprisingly tricky to ID juveniles in the autumn.Thinking about it I've seen a White Wagtail (with a couple of Pied) on a farmhouse roof a couple miles inland in Cornwall - but just the once.
Surprised you've had so few - virtually the entire Icelandic White Wagtail population passes through Britain and/or Ireland on spring and autumn migration, and that's probably not far short of the total population size of Pied Wag. One of the commoner inland passage birds in Britain, though surprisingly tricky to ID juveniles in the autumn.
Wasn't obvious that you were limiting to rooftop sightings! But I can't see that Icelandic White Wags would differ in habitat choice from Pied Wags 3On roofs? - guess I've never really looked, which was my point - do others?
Wasn't obvious that you were limiting to rooftop sightings! But I can't see that Icelandic White Wags would differ in habitat choice from Pied Wags 3