Pipit IDs - confirmations needed [Lower Rhine area, Germany] (1 Viewer)

[David_]

Hello everyone,

I think I got these pipits right but would like to get some confirmation as I haven't seen that many yet. Did I get the Identifications right?

First one taken near Düsseldorf next to the Rhine on April 13th. I think this is a Meadow Pipit


Second one also taken near the Rhine but ca 20km father south on May 14th. I think this is also a Meadow Pipit.


Third one taken at an unfinished renaturation side a bit north of Mönchengladbach on April 16th. I think it is a Water Pipit (a bit late in the year for this area)


Fourth one taken at the same date and location. I think it is a Tree Pipit


Last one also same date and location. I think it is also a Tree Pipit but the color seems unusually yellow

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

Hello David,

agree, first one is a Meadow Pipit, uniform head pattern with prominent eye-ring the only standing out feature is a good feature against a Tree Pipit

agree, second one is also a Meadow Pipit

agree, third one is a Water Pipit by buffish grey back, unmarked whitish underparts (yes, thats whishful thinking with this pictur quality) resulting in a Wagtail-jizz, impossible in Meadow Pipit

fourth is also a Meadow Pipit imo. After seeing the first two pictures, I thought iths either a Meadow or a Water Pipit, but third picture shows this to be a Meadow by olive back with just visible tram-lines, and head-pattern with strong eye-ring

fifth is a hard one for me, but it looks better for a Meadow Pipit imo. But only by the last picture (assuming that its always the same bird)

• dirty yellowish hue on back, not smooth and clean
• prominent and large eye-ring. I have seen this only in meadow before (or must I learn her?)
• to extensive yellow reaching towards the belly, plus wrong shade: too cold and lemon, not warm, smooth and buffish

But happy to confirmed or corrected with all, especially 4 and 5!

 

[Redmist]

I think Alexander has these figured out. I don’t see anything in 4 or 5 that would make me favour tree pipit over meadow pipit, although it’s a bit small to properly see some features.

 

[David_]

As always thank you @Alexander Stöhr for not only giving an ID bit an detailed explanation how you got to that ID!

Looking again at birds 3 and 4 I have to agree with Meadow Pipit. When I came up with my original ID in April I probably was bit fast in identifying those as Tree Pipits because during the days before the only Pipits reported from that site where Tree Pipits. As a newbie, at least for me, it is sometimes hard to focus on what you see/hear and not think too much about what was reported by other people.
On the other hand if I hadn‘t known that there had been a Common ringed plover around where I saw my first one this year, I probably would have missed it. Most likely I would have identified all of the Little ringed plovers running around at the end of the range of my binoculars as LRPs instead of spending the time to really ID each individual and finding the Common ringed plover among them. So I guess it‘s about finding the right balance between knowing what might be present at a site but still don‘t let this information dictate your identifixation.

 

[THE_FERN]

As always thank you @Alexander Stöhr for not only giving an ID bit an detailed explanation how you got to that ID!

Looking again at birds 3 and 4 I have to agree with Meadow Pipit. When I came up with my original ID in April I probably was bit fast in identifying those as Tree Pipits because during the days before the only Pipits reported from that site where Tree Pipits. As a newbie, at least for me, it is sometimes hard to focus on what you see/hear and not think too much about what was reported by other people.
On the other hand if I hadn‘t known that there had been a Common ringed plover around where I saw my first one this year, I probably would have missed it. Most likely I would have identified all of the Little ringed plovers running around at the end of the range of my binoculars as LRPs instead of spending the time to really ID each individual and finding the Common ringed plover among them. So I guess it‘s about finding the right balance between knowing what might be present at a site but still don‘t let this information dictate your identifixation.

Presumably birds 4 & 5. 3 is definitely water pipit

 

[David_]

Presumably birds 4 & 5. 3 is definitely water pipit

Yes, I meant 4 & 5.