Autumn cometh…
…and with it the opportunities for some scarce and rare bird hunting. So here, 3 ‘Mystery Birds’; the kind of thing I might be looking for. I had to identify some of them, so will let you know how I got on, later.
There are 3 birds and 6 questions. They are not easy! First person to get all 6 questions correct- or first to highest number of correct answers e.g. 4 or 5- gets a Birding Frontiers memory stick and the rest of us learn stuff! (P.S. apart from the few I may have told answers to who are excluded!)
So go ahead and give it a go:
BIRD ONE
a) What species?
b) What age?
bird one- what species and age is this sea-going bird?
BIRD TWO
a) What species?
b) What age?
Bird two- what species and age is this long-billed thing?
BIRD THREE
a) What species
b) What subspecies?
Bird Three: What species (and if you are very clever or good at guessing), what subspecies does this tail and undertail coverts belong to?
1. Arctic Skua juvenile 2. Common Snipe juvenile 3.Palla’s Grasshopper Warbler, rubescens
1. Whale bird 2. Gallinago gallinago 3. No clue
1) Juv LT Skua
2) ad Jack Snipe
3) PG Tips- no idea about any subspecies !!
1: Pomarine Skua, 1cy, 2. Pin-tailed Snipe, 1cy, 3. Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler, ssp rubercens
pommarine 1cy, swinhoe’s, adult and pallas’s grashopper, rubescens!?
Sorry could I correct last one to white-spotted Bluethroat?
Ross
Pomarine Skua juvenile; Pintail Snipe adult, Pallas`s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens (pale tips to longest utc`s)
Hi, my guesses 2cy Pom Skua, Pintail Snipe adult, rubescens PG Tips
Long-tailed Skua 2cy, Pintail Snipe 1cy, Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens
1a Lond-tailed Skua 1b 1cy 2a Snipe 2b 1cy 3a Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler 3b rubescens
long tailed skua 1cy, pintail snipe 1cy, pallas’s gropper certhiola
Juv lt skua
Ad pintail snipe
Rubescens pgtipt
Long t skua juv
Pintail snipe ad
Pgtips rubescens
Pom 1CY, Swinhoes ad, PG tips 1w
Long tailed skua, 2nd cal
Pintail Snipe ad
PGTips – rubescens
Pom Skua 1CY
Common Snipe Adult
Pallass’s Grasshopper-rubescens
longtailed skua 1cy – pintail snipe 1cy – pallas’s grasshopper rubescens
1. pom skua 4cy
2. pin-tailed snipe ad
3. PG tips – rubescens
Pomarin skua, 1 cy
Pintail snip ad,
Pallas grasshopper rubescens
Long-tailed skua, meant to say 1cy (not 2cy) dark morph(?)
Pintail Snipe ad
PGTips – rubescens
How about:
Pomarine 1cy
swinhoe’s adult
middendorff’s grashopper subcerthiola
Pom 1cy
Pintail adult
Pallas GW ssp rubescens
1. Pomarine Skua – 1 CY
2. Pin tailed Snipe Adult
3. PG Tips rubescens
OK no outright winners. However all the right answers have been said- just not by the same person! Its a great set of 3 birds- and much to learn from them.
So I am leaving it over the weekend. Same birds, same questions. I think all 3 are identifiable from the pics- and perhaps the hardest just needs more careful inspection. Voting will open again all day Monday 24th Sept up till 8:00 pm. Doesn’t matter about who is first. If more than one person gets all 6 answers correct I will pull out of a hat. Those who didn’t have go first time around can piggy back on bolder ones knowing now that all the right answers have been said. Which ones are right though? Who will score 6 out of 6?
1.Pom Skua 2cy
2.Common Snipe
3 PG Tips rubescens?
Hi there
I´ll give it a try
1-Long tailed Skua. first summer/2cy
2-Swinhoe´s Snipe. adult
3-PG Warbler. rubescens
Dani
Put me down for 1) 2cy Long-tailed Skua 2) 1cy Pintail Snipe 3) Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens
I. Long Tailed Skua 2cy 2. Great Snipe 3. Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens
1. Pomarine Skua 2cy still in juv plumage but worn
2. Pintail Snipe 1w no sign of any retained/worn ad feathers
3. Pallas’s Gropper rubescens..pale tips to longest UTC as described above
1. Arctic Skua adult dark morph; 2. Pin-tailed Snipe, adult; 3. Pallas’ Grasshopper Warbler, rubescens.
1. Arctic Skua, adult; 2. Pin-tailed Snipe, adult; 3. Pallas’ Grasshopper Warbler, rubescens
1. LT Skua, 2cy 2. Swinhoes Snipe adult, 3. PG Warbler rubescens
1. LT Skua 2cy, 2. Swinhoes snipe adult, 3. PG Warbler rubescens
I. Pomarine Skua 2cy, II. Pintail Snipe ad, III. Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens
Perhaps only one answer is allowed, but if not I make one adjustment to my first try:
Long-tailed skua 1cy
Swinhoe’s snipe adult
Pallas’s grashopper warbler, rubescens
1- Long-tailed Skua juv, 2- Swinhoes Snipe juv, 3- Pallas`s Grasshopper Warbler, certhiola.
Pomarine Skua 2CY; Swinhoe“s Snipe 1CY; Pallas`s Grasshopper Warbler rubescens
1a Long-tailed Skua, 1b Juv, 2a Pintail Snipe, 2b 1CY, 3a Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler, 3b, Rubescens
Pomarine Skua- first year
Pin-tailed Snipe adult
Middendorff’s Grasshopper Warbler (subcerthiola)
I had my first opinion ready, but noticed someone else has already suggested the same before Martin’s ‘halftime’ post, so I must have got it wrong… Here’s my second best: Longtailed Skua, 1cy; Pintail Snipe, ad; Pallas Grasshopper Warbler, rubescens.
Pomarine – juv
Swinhoe’s Snipe – ad
PGTips – rubescens
1 – Pom 1cy
2 – Snipe juv
3 – PGTips ssp Rub
What fun! I’ll join in:
1) Long-tailed Skua, juvenile
2) Swinhoe’s Snipe, adult
3) Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler, ssp. certhiola
juv Long-tailed Skua, Pin-tailed Snipe and juv PG tips
1. Juvenile Pom Skua
2. Adult Pin-tailed Snipe
3. F/W Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler ssp Middendorf
1. Juvenile Pomarine Skua
2. Adult Pin-tailed Snipe
3. Pallas Grasshopper Warbler certhiola
1. juv Long-tailed Skua
2. juv Swinhoe’s Snipe
3. rubescens Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler
Not sure if this worked first time
Try again
Juv lt skua
Ad pintail snipe
Rubescens pg tips
Second round attempt:
Long-tailed Skua, 2cy
Swinhoe’s Snipe, ad
Pallas’s Grasshopper-warbler, rubescens
2CY Pomarine Skua, ad Swinhoes Snipe, Middendorffs Grasshopper Warbler subcerthiola
1a Long-tailed Skua 1b 1cy 2a Pin-tailed Snipe 2b 1cy 3a Middendorffs Grasshopper Warbler 3b subserthiola
Arctic Skua, 2cy
Pintail Snipe adult
Pallas Gropper, rubescens
1a, Pomarine Skua 1b, 1st summer 2a, Swinhoe’s Snipe 2b, adult 3a, Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler 3b, L. c. rubescens
Are you allowed a second guess?
Refine mine to:
juv Long-tailed Skua
ad Pin-tailed Snipe
juv Pallas Gropper subsp. rubescens
All good fun!
1cy Pom Skua
1cy Swinhoes Snipe
Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler – rubescens