Jump to content

ID Please


Soukous

Recommended Posts

Can anyone help with an ID for this little bird

 

captured in Golden Gate NP, South Africa

 

we suspect it's a juvenile but are struggling with positive ID

 

post-43899-0-63214100-1457165771_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think it's one of the Cisticola species. Maybe a juvenile Neddicky or Black-backed cisticola. A good one for Name That Bird.

 

Do you have any other images showing other features such as the back?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

offshorebirder

I agree with @@Geoff that it's a Cisticola and that Black-backed is a possibility.

 

But I think the visible features are more consistent with Levaillant's Cisticola.

 

The pale rufous crown, plain face with faint pale supercilium, faint rufous line behind the eye, reddish-looking tail with dark fringes, and dark streaked back are good for Levaillant's. If we could see a bit more of the wing, we could discern the presence/absence of the bright rufous wing panel...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks @@Geoff @@offshorebirder

 

I have a couple more photos but none of them are particularly good.

 

post-43899-0-76097800-1457763035_thumb.jpg

 

post-43899-0-10043500-1457763053_thumb.jpg

 

I think that @@offshorebirder is probably correct with the Levaillant's Cisticola, the black backed is not shown as being in the area where the photo was taken.

 

I had previously been looking at Prinias - in particular the Drakensberg Prinia - but the Cisticola looks a better bet

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I think that @@offshorebirder is probably correct with the Levaillant's Cisticola, the black backed is not shown as being in the area where the photo was taken.

 

 

 

@@Soukous Martin, I thought it was the other way around. The Leavaillant's is not shown in the area where the photo was taken.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am going by what is shown in the Roberts Bird Guide @@Geoff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@@Soukous When pronouncing on the identity of birds it does depend so much on which book you're looking at, there isn't a black-backed cisticola in Roberts, in Sasol there are two species that are also known as black-backed the Luapula and the rufous-winged, in Birds of Africa South of the Sahara there is a black-backed but this bird also known as the black-necked is primarily a West African species though are some small populations in Central Africa. Of these cisticolas only the rufous-winged which is endemic to South East Africa comes close to where I think Golden Gate NP is, I don't think it's this one though, I'm not great with cisticolas but I'm pretty sure this is Levaillant's after a Google image search for this species I'm sure it's the best fit unless Golden Gate isn't where I think it is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I sympathise with @@Soukous - on my recent trip to SA I saw numerous Cisticola and of those that I managed to photograph, I struggled with them all but ultimately identified them all as Levaillant's Cisticola.

 

Assuming that I'm right in my identifications I reached the conclusion that in Kwa-Zulu Natal at least, the Levaillant's is either the most common Cisticola or its behaviour of calling on top of grass stalks makes it the most prominent.

 

Garden Castle, Dec 2015

 

gallery_47987_1480_71716.jpg

 

Mooi River, December 2015

 

gallery_47987_1480_170698.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Safaritalk uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By using Safaritalk you agree to our use of cookies. If you wish to refuse the setting of cookies you can change settings on your browser to clear and block cookies. However, by doing so, Safaritalk may not work properly and you may not be able to access all areas. If you are happy to accept cookies and haven't adjusted browser settings to refuse cookies, Safaritalk will issue cookies when you log on to our site. Please also take a moment to read the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy: Terms of Use l Privacy Policy