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Message: <blockquote data-quote="danny_heptinstall" data-source="post: 2763604" data-attributes="member: 101847">Yhthan Estuary Mystery WarblerHi Everyone,A little ID help needed……I saw a warbler today I wasn’t familiar with and would appreciate everyone’s thoughts as I think it might be a bit interesting….Two points to consider, first I have little experience of non-UK warblers and secondly I was looking at the bird through a telescope at 60x zoom.Steve Palmer first alerted me to the bird as he said he thought he heard a warbler call that he didn’t recognise but we couldn’t see or hear any warblers before he had to leave.  At c.1240 I then saw a warbler on top of a bush.I was viewing in land from the sand dune directly behind the old boat shed at the Ythan Mouth.  The bush was a hawthorn c.100m away surrounded by gorse which was in a direct line with the furthest left upper window of a pale house, with four windows on its upper floor and 2 chimneys.  An obscure reference I know but you try describing the location of a hawthorn surrounded by gorse for 100s of metres on either side!The bird had the following features:Size – considerably larger than a willow warbler that briefly sat next to it, “chunkier” feel to it than willow warblerThroat/upper breast – noticeably very pale (white?)Lower Breast / flanks – pale but darker (greyer?) than throat with slightly darker (greyer?) flanksBill – broad, quite long (as in longer than a willow warbler..), pale lower mandible, possibly pale base to upper mandibleEye – very dark – black?Supercillium – not very bold but visible, pale and extended to just behind eyeEye Stripe – sort of – was a darker line between supercillium and throat coloursHint of pale eye ringBody Colour – was a grey/brown colourHint of a paler patch extending up around neck but not to napeWings – contrasted with greyer colour of back, were browner colour with possible darker edgesTail – long, similar colour to wingsLegs – paleI didn’t hear it callNo bars or stripes visible on birdPrimary projection seemed quite long I believe the above rules out any of the commoner warblers and looking through the Collins the three birds that it appears most like are Booted, Marsh and Oliveacous Warbler. Just going by the illustrations in Collins (a bad idea I know…) I'd have said Oliveacous Warbler but that is obviously extremely rare and I didn't notice (but did not look for..) any excessive tail wagging.  I’d have said it was a Booted Warbler over a Marsh Warbler.  However, I think a booted warbler would be too small as it suggests they are similar in size to a willow warbler.  That leaves me thinking Marsh Warbler?I got a god awful picture which I’m not sure really helps using my phone which I will post online when I work out how…So what do we think?  Have I made a major mistake and its obviously a common warbler of could it be something more interesting?CheersDanny</blockquote>

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