c30 Common Swift round + 4 Sand Martin, 6 House Martin & c10 Swallow also there.
Earlier after completing a Twite survey in the area I came across this particular bird near Deanhead Reservoir, I emailed Nick Dawtrey the photograph and he suggested that I post it on the blog, any comments would be appreciated.
5 comments:
The head pattern, dark back and shorter bill suggest Whimbrel rather than Curlew.
my initial thought was whimbrel but having had a closer look i'd say curlew. The head markings are not as defined is i'd expect from a whimbrel and i think the bill is deceptive in it's length, suggesting a first year curlew. Without access to a book till i get home tonight but it's a first summer curlew for me. Anyone else care to comment. Another good one for debate i suggest.
Curlew for me No real crown stripe and the bill is strait then curved rather than curving from the base as Whimbrel
Thanks to Jeff & Andrew for putting their 'necks on the block' on this one, what struck me first and foremost was the bill, by my calculation it was appoximately no more than 9cm long which dependent on the sex of the bird is just about at the extreme range of both Whimbrel and Curlew considering the time of year.
The size of the bill automatically rules out female Curlew as the size of it's bill is between 12-15cm at this time of year (ie breeding and not moulting or wintering) therefore if it is this species it can only be a male.
The accepted range of bill size for male Curlew at this time of the year (ie between late April-July) is 9-13cm.
Looking at Whimbrel the accepted bill sizes are 7-8cm for male birds and 8-9.5cm for female birds at this time of the year.
The real clincher here though is the head shape of the bird which appears 'rounded'.
Whenever I have seen and photographed Whimbrel previously they always appear to have a much flatter looking headshape and in addition the median crown stripe is always prominent.
The eye-stripe although prominent in this bird extends to the ear coverts which is also not a characteristic of Whimbrel.
My conclusion therefore is that this bird is an adult male Curlew with a particularly short bill!!!!!
If anyone has anything further to add I would be more than happy to continue the debate.
Even at my advanced age it just goes to show you're never too old to learn! Never knew that a curlew and whimbrel's bill changes length depending on season so many thanks to David for this info. I'll do more research into this one.
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