GAME: name that bird!

[Galana]

I have two books of this area. One has Jackson's (latistriatus) as a race of African/Grassveldt and the other does give it separately or even as a race of Long-billed. Birders eh?

But wherever it is fitted it is not the subject of my photo. Sorry.

I am not sure if @janzin will be wide awake yet but I may as well name the Field Guide now.  Sinclair's "Bird's of Africa south of  the Sahara" although it does appear in others such as Sassol "Birds of Southern Africa".

[Soukous]

Well, I have been using the Sinclair /Ryan book up to now, simply for the wide coverage.

As has been noted before there can be significant variance between the illustrations and a photograph. Especially one cunningly posed to  show nothing of the breast. 

 But I'll have another pop and say Striped Pipit whilst waiting for Janet to wake up and put me out of my misery. 

Edited September 1, 2020 by Soukous

[janzin]

I'm up!! But I did not look at this game the moment I fell out of bed..oh no, perhaps @Soukousbeat me to it.  

 

Well since we are randomly naming pipits--and its sitting on a rock--I'll throw in African Rock Pipit.

 

[Galana]

42 minutes ago, Soukous said:

As has been noted before there can be significant variance between the illustrations and a photograph. Especially one cunningly posed to  show nothing of the breast. 

 But I'll have another pop and say Striped Pipit

Tell me abut it. Some of those Pipit and Lark paintings could hang alongside Picaso.

Well it was not so much the striped breast as the primaries.

 

Sorry Janet. You got so close. Even to the adjacent illustration on the same page 368 5 & 6 of Sinclair's.

It is of course a Striped Pipit and the rock at Mambo View in the Usumbaras. The rock might even be still there.

So over to @Soukous with a round of applause for persistence even after having had his lunch.

 

[Soukous]

1 hour ago, janzin said:

since we are randomly naming pipits--and its sitting on a rock

 

It's my favourite way of playing 

[Soukous]

37 minutes ago, Galana said:

So over to @Soukous with a round of applause for persistence even after having had his lunch.

 

Rats. I just like being the guesser, not the one seeking guesses. But then I suppose there is always the danger I might get one right. 

[Soukous]

This is easy one, so I've made it a tiny bit more difficult.

 

[Galana]

Cunning Devil!

The illustrations of Weavers are little better than those for Pipits without hiding the eye colour.

Few illustrations really depict the upper back other than a smudged wash and your birdy has definite scalloping.

Not a full mask above the bill and the upper back 'spangling' just sneaking up the nape.

Could be Heuglin's and not to take part would be unforgiven by @janzin so if I am correct may I pass the baton to her?

But if I am wrong then I take the blame.

Vitelline Masked Weaver is my call.

[Soukous]

Well, I don't think an Olympic relay team could pass the baton more efficiently than that.

 

Here it is.

I had originally marked it down as Vitteline, on the basis of distribution. I persuaded myself that the eye was pink (which counts as pale red) rather than yellow, although there really was not enough black above the bill for Vitelline either.

It was seen in Ngorongoro Crater, which means it should not be Heuglin's, but I am sure it is.

 

 

[janzin]

1 hour ago, Galana said:

Cunning Devil!

The illustrations of Weavers are little better than those for Pipits without hiding the eye colour.

Few illustrations really depict the upper back other than a smudged wash and your birdy has definite scalloping.

Not a full mask above the bill and the upper back 'spangling' just sneaking up the nape.

Could be Heuglin's and not to take part would be unforgiven by @janzin so if I am correct may I pass the baton to her?

But if I am wrong then I take the blame.

Vitelline Masked Weaver is my call.

 

Thank you @Galana but I don't think its fair that I take an "unearned" turn! Or tern   One of these days I'll get there in time (I am not locked to my PC ALL the time...) You go...

[Galana]

Well given the photos I would stick with Vitelline. It's way off course to be Heuglin's. The only other would be Speke's and the bill does not look massive enough.

I think there is enough doubt about the eye colour to not be white or yellow. Hybrids are not unknown.

OK. Do as the Lady says is always good rule.

[Dave Williams]

http://www.planetofbirds.com/yellowhammer-emberiza-citrinella

 

I'm playing by memory , well for a while. My Yellowhammer suggestion wasn't that ridiculous if you look at juveniles and I was with Fred when I saw my first ever brown one.He has a devious mind when it comes to competitions so it's a bit like doing crossword puzzles on a regular basis and trying to read his mind! Anyway the last shot are Goosanders or if not a Stork species no doubt.

[offshorebirder]

Drat - I was 26 minutes too late, I know those ducklings well. 

 

However -  they might be Common Merganser Ducklings  if the photo were taken in North America @Dave Williams

[Galana]

1 hour ago, Dave Williams said:

I was with Fred when I saw my first ever brown one.He has a devious mind when it comes to competitions

Surely that would be a Brownhammer? And I am not so devious as to photoshop an insectivorous bill on to a seed-eaters head.

Can you see the join?

1 hour ago, Dave Williams said:

Anyway the last shot are Goosanders or if not a Stork species no doubt.

Do you have any particular species of Stork in mind?

Perhaps you and @offshorebirder both need to look further afield than North America?

Abyssinia or Zambia both have swamps?

 

 

[Dave Williams]

14 hours ago, Galana said:

Surely that would be a Brownhammer? And I am not so devious as to photoshop an insectivorous bill on to a seed-eaters head.

Can you see the join?

Yes, I should have noticed!

 

14 hours ago, Galana said:

Abyssinia or Zambia both have swamps?

 

 

 

 

I'm out ! I don't have the books to look any further I'm afraid.

 

[janzin]

I'm very confused, is that foot supposed to go with the ducklings? Because that is not a duck foot and those are definitely ducks.

 

The only ducks I can find with yellow tipped bills are mergansers so I'll try Red-breasted Merganser.

 

[Galana]

42 minutes ago, janzin said:

is that foot supposed to go with the ducklings?

Not really. It was to help Dave with his search for Stork.

 

43 minutes ago, janzin said:

The only ducks I can find with yellow tipped bills are mergansers so I'll try Red-breasted Merganser.

And a good try. Well done.

Here is Mom and the kids out for a cruise.

Cute eh?

I believe the yellow tip to the ducklings bill is the growth point.

Here is the Happy couple.

 

Over to you @janzin

 

 

[janzin]

ah well you really threw everyone with that foot! And now I have to find something suitable....! Stay tuned.

 

 

 

[janzin]

Trying to find crappy shots that never made it on to my website.  I have to remember to save some of the shots I would normally delete, just for this game.

 

Anyway, here's one, at least there's no question whether it is old or new world

 

 

 

[Soukous]

16 hours ago, janzin said:

Trying to find crappy shots that never made it on to my website.  I have to remember to save some of the shots I would normally delete, just for this game.

 

Good to know we are held in such high regard 

[Galana]

I have a book with SIX pages of Hummers and it don't look like any of those. (No surprise there.) and it's not in my Sibley of NA either. My library is deficient.

A wild card would be Rufous-tailed Hummer (f) but apart from that and to help @Dave Williams all  know is it's not a Dunnock or Yellow hammer or even a Goosander/Common Merganser.

 

[michael-ibk]

 Bronze-Tailed Plumeleteer?

[Soukous]

2 hours ago, michael-ibk said:

 Bronze-Tailed Plumeleteer?

 

I've never seen one, except in pictures but shouldn't it have an emerald breast?

[michael-ibk]

Not in my book (Birds of Costa Rica, Garrigues/Dean), there female has a whitish, male a green breast.

[Soukous]

3 minutes ago, michael-ibk said:

Not in my book (Birds of Costa Rica, Garrigues/Dean), there female has a whitish, male a green breast.

 

As I said, I've never seen one, and I don't have a book for that part of the world either, I was just feeling a bit left out 

Edited September 3, 2020 by Soukous