GAME: name that bird!

[janzin]

@@inyathi more than a guess, I'm sure Indeed it is a Karoo Long-billed Lark, photographed in Augrabies Falls National Park, South Africa. I thought it was time to bring the game back around to Africa!

 

Over to you again....

[Soukous]

thanks for bringing it back to Africa @@janzin

I should have got that but the last thing I expected was you posting an African bird

[fiscal shrike]

I figured it had to be Africa, but just wasn't sure where. Long-billed Larks, new to me. Thanks.

[inyathi]

When I first saw the last photo @@janzinI have to admit my mind immediately went to South America because of your many travels there and I vaguely wondered about some sort of mockingbird but didn’t get as far as looking it up, however as soon as you confirmed it was a lark then I ruled out South America and decided it must be African. The photo doesn’t give a lot away but it suggested maybe somewhere arid so I though Southern Africa would be most likely, it was then relatively easy to pick a likely candidate from the book.

 

I haven’t picked a new photo yet but I will post something when I find something suitable.

[inyathi]

Have a go at this one.

 

 

Edited April 24, 2019 by inyathi

[kittykat23uk]

Is it a yellow-browed warbler?

[inyathi]

@@kittykat23uk Good guess but no it isn't.

[Geoff]

Not a bird I've seen but I'll take a stab at Hume's leaf-warbler (Philloscopus humei) ?

[fiscal shrike]

Moustached-grass warbler....a shot in the dark.

[inyathi]

@@Geoff Another good guess close but no it isn't.

 

@@fiscal shrike No

 

This family of birds is pretty large and they are very difficult to tell apart in the field so I was hoping this would take a few goes before anyone gets it right.

[kittykat23uk]

Ok maybe greenish warbler?

[offshorebirder]

I think @@kittykat23uk got it in her last guess, but just in case she did not - I will try Brooks's Leaf-Warbler.

[fiscal shrike]

I guess I need to learn about leaf-warblers. Not a New World species and I don't think I came across them in Tanzania and Uganda - at least not as 'leaf warblers'. But I see my Shot in the Dark is a leaf warbler. Who knew?

[inyathi]

@@fiscal shrike There are a few Philloscopus leaf warblers in Africa I posted one just recently but this one is not an African species there's many more of them where this one comes from which is what makes it so difficult, @@offshorebirder, @@kittykat23uk you're on the right page but you haven't named the correct species yet.

[Geoff]

Davison's leaf-warbler (Phylloscopus Davisoni)?

[inyathi]

@@Geoff No it's not that one but I've just looked at it's distribution map and it's looks like you should be able to find that bird in the same national park on the slopes of the country's highest mountain where this photo was taken not that that really helps too much.

[fiscal shrike]

Well, between hints and ebird, I'll tr Pallas' Leaf Warbler, though references show a stronger dark eye streak...

[inyathi]

@@fiscal shrike No I'm afraid it's not Pallas's either though I'm sure you can see these birds in the same place as well, that was what makes identifying phylloscopus warblers in this part of the world so difficult, of course that's why I chose this photo, posting a photo only to have someone give the correct answer almost immediately takes all the fun out of it The trouble is finding photos of birds like this that are a real challenge for everyone to identify has itself become a real challenge.

 

There are 69 species of Phylloscopus so there's plenty more to chose from, of course that's worldwide and includes the few African ones and a fair few that live on various islands and this is not one of those if that helps at all.

[fiscal shrike]

Buff-barred Warbler?

[inyathi]

@@fiscal shrike Bullseye! well done I wasn't sure if any of my clues were that helpful but I was finding it quite difficult to think of more helpful ones, I didn't think more clues to the specific location would help much if you've not been there and you could already take a guess at the country from my previous postings.

 

This is a buff-barred leaf warbler Phylloscopus pulcher sometimes known as the orange-barred the photo was taken somewhere not far from the top of Doi Inthanon the highest mountain in Thailand, Doi Inthanon National Park is one of the most popular birding sites in Thailand.

[fiscal shrike]

Well, with eBird's distribution map I narrowed it down to Thailand and was checking the species in Doi Pha Hom Pak NP then checking the photos. It was certainly not determined by personal knowledge. SEAsia may not be on my birding list in my lifetime, but it is interesting to learn about them.

It was a good photo choice. A good number of similars.

[fiscal shrike]

Here's a mixed flock in case you want to try your skills but the 'official' submission are the 2 in the middle looking right.

[janzin]

Heermann's Gulls?

Edited February 7, 2016 by janzin

[fiscal shrike]

Janzin, I had hoped you hadn't been to the West Coast. Yes, Heermann's Gulls usually limited to North American West Coast. Taken October 2015 in Victoria, BC. Back to you

[janzin]

Haha well its a very distinctive gull, probably one of the easiest North American gulls to ID...there are no others so slaty-looking. I almost didn't say it because it seemed too easy, I figured it had to be a trick! But I also saw mallards in that photo which made me think it was definitely North American

 

oh no, now I have to pick again! I'm running out of ideas...stay tuned...