Whitethroat or Lesser Whitethroat , please ?
One from a few years back. Not even sure it's a Whitethroat now :- )
Last year
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I never cease to be amazed at how much I didn't know I didn't know.
That last shot is a cracker! Lovely pose and a really crisp image. I've only just learnt to say Whitethroat so can't help on the ID quandry...
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If I had to call it, Galatas, I'd say it is a Whitethroat - based on my first impression (which I often think is the best one to trust).
I'd expect more of masked look on a Lesser Whitethroat and slightly colder tones to the plumage. Your bird has lovely rich, warm tones, a beautiful deep russet wing and a faint black stripe through the eye. :-)
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue."
Definitely agree with L T T, and would also say the lesser whitethroat looks very grey all over, and even "scaly" when seen close up. Never a hint of brown.
:-)
Seriously thinking about trying harder!
Thanks. I had been told that pics 3 and 4 were Lessers.
Hi G, the best features to separate these two are 1) wing colour - Whitethroat has bright red-brown fringes to the coverts which give the whole wing a bright chestnutty look, while Lesser's wings are rather plain grey-brown, 2) leg colour - pink in Whitethroat, dark grey in Lesser, 3) look of the face - Lesser has darker eyes (though beware juv Whitethroat which is also dark-eyed), no obvious pale eyering and darkish ear-coverts giving it a 'masked' look, 4) general shape - Lesser looks shorter-tailed and more compact. There are other features but these are the most obvious IMHO. Appearance aside, they have different songs, and Whitethroat is generally a lot more showy than Lesser.
Of your pics, 4 looks a good candidate for Lesser. Have you any more pics of this particular bird? The others are all definitely Whitethroats.
psst, want to see my blog? http://mazzaswildside.blogspot.co.uk/
aikiOf your pics, 4 looks a good candidate for Lesser. Have you any more pics of this particular bird?
Finding the originals took some doing. I really need a secretary to sort things out LOL
Luckily there is just one other shot and it's more side on. You can see why I didn't use this shot. There's a twig across his body.
Thanks for that. From the new pic I'm still happy (actually even happier now) to call it Lesser Whitethroat :)