Paul Manchester sent me this great picture of the resident female Kestrel on the Great Orme. He also sent me a picture of a bird he thought may be a female Redstart which he saw distantly by the cemetery on Saturday. The bill and head shape don't seem right for Redstart to me, but I'm not 100% sure what it is. A Wren with its tail held downwards was one thought, while the possibility of it being a female Rock Thrush seems thoroughly ridiculous. I'm off to find the branch tomorrow so that I can measure it's size and nail the i.d. inthe process. Any one got any opinions?
A bit of a conundrum, because it is hard to ascertain the size and colouration in the light, but from the head and the bill, it looks like a juvenile Starling to me.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Paul.
http://theblackgrouse.blogspot.com
That's a very odd bird - my first reaction was wren with a deformed bill. I don't think it's redstart (think the reddish is the reflected light from the grass coming through the feathers), and I see why PS suggests starling but the jizz just doesn't sit right for me. Did you get any further on the scale/size?
ReplyDeleteJulian
Hi Paul,
ReplyDeleteThe vast majority have voted in favour of Wren, including Lee Evans himself.
See here - http://surfbirds.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6959
and here -
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=171831
All the best