Skylark or Meadow Pipit - Northern Ireland (1 Viewer)

[AliCat]

Yesterday we say dozens of Meadow Pipits & Linnets around a small salt water lough, on Strangford Lough and, this morning, as I was going through more of the shots I'd taken I came across something which looked different.

I don't remember thinking I was shooting a bird much bigger than a Meadow Pipit at the time, but the crest has me wondering if it's my first Skylark? There is a pipit in the bottom left hand corner, of the full image for size, for comparison.

Any advice welcome, thank you!

 

[Gander]

That's a Skylark for me.

 

[pianoman]

Yep looks good for Skylark to me - crest, no flank streaking, shorter hind claw than MP.

 

[KC Foggin]

Two beautiful images of this Skylark Ali!

 

[THE_FERN]

Doubtless I'm in a minority of one but not a skylark for me. Face pattern, bill colour both wrong, tail too long. It's not really got a proper crest either: those are just raised feathers.

 

[AliCat]

Doubtless I'm in a minority of one but not a skylark for me. Face pattern, bill colour both wrong, tail too long. It's not really got a proper crest either: those are just raised feathers.

So do you think it's possibly a Meadow Pipit? The markings don't match them either, which is what is confusing me so much.

 

[Muppit17]

So do you think it's possibly a Meadow Pipit? The markings don't match them either, which is what is confusing me so much.

I agree with Fern. A classic Meadow Pipit, and a very common bird in Down.

I have just returned from there and conversely Skylark seems to be surprisingly scarce - didn't see one!

 

[Richard Dale]

It's a meadow pipit - apart from other features already mentioned, have a look at the relative length of tertials and primaries on the two species. This bird has the long tertials (entirely covering the primaries) of a mipit.

 

[Jonno52]

Among other things, I thought the bill looked more like that of Skylark. But I have to agree with Richard Dale - where is the Skylark's primary projection? (to quote from a post in a similar BF discussion years ago: “Meadow Pipit typically has no or very little (1 or 2mm) primary-projection, whereas Skylark has a long primary-projection (typically about 2cm)”). Skylark's primary projection is well illustrated in Collins. Meadow Pipit for me.

 

[Rotherbirder]

Facial pattern also makes it MP for me. Bill too thin for Skylark. Not showing a real crest, just crown feathers blown up from behind. Also more 'wagtail-like' in shape with proportionately longer tail than Skylark.

RB

 

[Andy Hurley]

It a Pipit, but why not a Tree Pipit? A genuine question. The flank stripes are thin compared to the breast stripes, bill is stronger than Meadow Pipit, always difficult to judge for me without direct comparison, and the bill base is not yellow, more like orange than pink. Its a worn summer bird with fairly whitish features, not yellowish, ok its worn. The coverts are large, blocky with a lot of white at the tips. I agree that there are Meadow Pipits with narrower flank stripes, due to wear.

 

[AliCat]

It a Pipit, but why not a Tree Pipit? A genuine question. The flank stripes are thin compared to the breast stripes, bill is stronger than Meadow Pipit, always difficult to judge for me without direct comparison, and the bill base is not yellow, more like orange than pink. Its a worn summer bird with fairly whitish features, not yellowish, ok its worn. The coverts are large, blocky with a lot of white at the tips. I agree that there are Meadow Pipits with narrower flank stripes, due to wear.

It looks so unlike any of the other meadow pipits we saw & I didn't consider a tree pipit as they are incredibly rare in Northern Ireland. It was the striking head markings which struck me the most as being different, but as a novice I am at a loss.

 

[Andy Hurley]

I live in Germany, far away from my native Scotland and the birds generally look a bit different. I visit Southern Africa regularly and do a lot of birding there. I am not used to birds in the UK especially Northern Ireland, which I haven't visited yet. I see mainly Meadow Pipits in Germany and not very many Tree Pipits, so I could well be wrong. The Fern is normally right.

 

[Jonno52]

This is well worth watching: BTO Bird ID - Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit & Skylark. (At 0.48, look at the Skylark's very long primary projection). Edit: now I've actually watched more of the video, it is clearly stated that Tree Pipit is not found in Ireland. Further edit (sigh) looking at the distribution map for Tree Pipit in Collins*, the species does occur in Ireland on migration. I wouldn't have thought migration would be happening now, early July being high summer, but someone may have forgotten to tell the birds that.

*I have both the print and iPad/iPhone editions of Collins. Annoyingly, the latter show the maps but not the key to the maps.

 

[Simon G]

The left hindclaw shows well in both photos. It looks long and not strongly curved to me, which indicates Meadow Pipit. Also the Tree Pipit's loral line is missing, though that could be an artefact of wear.