Lesser Grey Shrike

23rd September 2016 - Jennycliff, Plymouth

 

I do like a nice shrike so a bit of off-patch twitching was in order to see the rather nice Lesser Grey Shrike at Jennycliff. Norbert Lefranc and I have a revised edition of 'Shrikes of the World' in progress - can't believe it's been 20 years since we finished the 1st - so I thought I'd do a little field research.

Easy to find and relatively unperturbed by people, it was a bit mobile and had a habit of perching just half in sight and half obscured by bushes. The solution was to find a spot with a reasonable view and wait as it moved around. After a couple of hours and a few hundred 'record shots' it circled around, moved up the cliff and perched for a minute or two on a hawthorn only a few metres away.

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

Lesser Grey Shrike - 23/9/2016 Jennycliff, Plymouth

So, no prizes for saying it's an adult - a juvenile or 1st winter would not have that blackish forehead and would still have obviously pale-fringed wing coverts even if a little worn by now. It's moulting, or may have interrupted moult during migration. Like most shrikes, Lesser Greys have a partial post-breeding moult involving head and body and often, as in this bird, a tertial or two; the grey feathers on the forehead are new non-breeding plumage. It seems to be also missing a central tail feather, possibly moult, possibly accidental loss.

It's hard to say for sure what sex it is but, given the width of black on the forehead and the completely white T5 (just visible on the bottom photo), my money's on it being a male.

Weekend Patch Birding

16th-18th September 2016 - Topsham

 

I'll start with a couple of dreadful photos of Friday evening's Lesser Yellowlegs, found on Goosemoor by the indefatigable Keith Birchall - pure jam or real talent, take your pick. A nice bird which showed well while the light lasted, sadly iso800 and 1/80 sec didn't really do it justice.

 

Lesser Yellowlegs juv - 16/9/2016 Topsham

Lesser Yellowlegs juv - 16/9/2016 Topsham

  Saturday I worked (apart from and hour or so pottering around to see if the Lesser Legs was still about - it wasn't) so on Sunday I indulged myself with a bike ride down the Exminster side of the estuary. My normal cycling speed of just fast enough to avoid falling over is perfect for birding, not that I found much, just a few Chiffchaffs and Meadow Pipits and one each of Wheatear and Whinchat. Just past the Turf I noticed this Osprey hunting, it eventually caught one - Mullet, I think - and headed off towards Powderham for breakfast.

 

Osprey juv - 18/9/2016 Exe Estuary

Osprey juv - 18/9/2016 Exe Estuary

Osprey juv - 18/9/2016 Exe Estuary

Osprey juv - 18/9/2016 Exe Estuary

 

The outer primaries are a little tatty but, amongst other things, the dark streaks on the crown and the pale fringes/tps to all the upper wing coverts make this a juvenile.

 

Later, back at Topsham Rec the gulls assembled for their daily ablutions. Something over 300 were bathing, preening and loafing (sounds like general idleness but it's vital to keep feathers in usable condition) when a couple of numpties in a canoe sent the lot flying. A few resettled, the rest were gone for good, including this intriguing bird.

Yellow-legged Gull? - 18/9/2016 Topsham

Yellow-legged Gull? - 18/9/2016 Topsham

The grey is obviously darker than argenteus and the legs are sort of yellow - but are they yellow enough? Certainly michahellis often do seem to show duller, less saturated yellow legs after the breeding season and this is probably about as weak as it gets. The fine head streaking, bill shape and the red gonydeal spot bleeding into the upper mandible are supportive but not diagnostic; the orbital colour is just not discernible unfortunately. A look at the primary pattern on the spread wing would have really helped but I missed it as the whole lot took flight when the canoists disturbed them. 

 

I see nothing in this bird to rule out Yellow-legged Gull, on the other hand, I'm not entirely happy about calling it such without seeing a good black band on P5 and the amount of black on P8 and 9.

 

19/9/2016 - Update

More photos of the Yellow-legged Gull - untypically it reappeared for a second chance the next day: 

Yellow-legged Gull adult - 19/9/2016 Topsham

Yellow-legged Gull adult - 19/9/2016 Topsham

There's a nice solid black band on P5, this mark is often weak and broken on apparent hybrids. It didn't fly but I suspect views would not have been helpful, P8 and P9 are growing and still too short to show the extent or pattern of black.

To show just how washed out yellow legs can get post-breeding, here's an adult Lesser Black-backed, same place and time.

Lesser Black-backed Gull adult - 19/9/2016 Topsham

 

Yellow-legged Gull once more

12th September 2016 - Topsham

Just a few dreadful photos of another 1st winter michahellis from Topsham Rec. Definitely different to the previous two this autumn. Quite a large individual, long legs, long primary projection and deep bill; showing almost complete replacement of juvenile scapulars. As with most Yellow-legged Gulls, a lot of more or less subtle structural and plumage characters, none 100% diagnostic, which add up to a pretty distinctive bird.

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

 That michahellis tail pattern: clean white T6 with neat black band, much more striking than on a Herring or Lesser Black-backed.

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

 Underparts basically white with fairly discrete dark spots and chevrons particularly on the flanks.

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

 Standing out a mile with a couple of 1w Herring Gulls.

Yellow-legged Gull 1w - 12/9/2016 Topsham

Another tasty Yellow-legged Gull at The Rec

4th September 2016 - Topsham

If walking the dog and staring at gulls counts as effort, I've been putting some in and seeing good numbers of big gulls at the Rec in recent weeks - someone's got to do it. The resident hybrid, a couple of colour-rings and a nice intermedius Lesser Black-backed have helped to pas the time but there's been no more michahellis since my first juv of the year on 13th August. I thought it was about time I had another and today was the day. This particular stunner behaved impeccably, preening, flying around and loafing; generally showing off and shouting; "look at me, I'm special!"

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

It stood out immediately: a slim, long-winged and small-headed bird and so presumably a female; a striking white head with a strongly-marked neck, breast and flanks on a white background; at the back end a clean white vent and undertail and it's obvious from just this view that the outer tail feathers are largely white. There's a lot of new moulted scapulars while the wing coverts and the tertials are quite worn - in contrast Herring and Lesser Black-backed juvs are still looking pretty fresh.

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

Classic michahellis tail pattern and arguably quite safely identifiable on this view alone.

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

 A better view of those moulted scapulars with thin dark anchor subterminal anchor marks, just a few juvenile scaps left and contrasting with the dark wing - thin fringes to coverts mostly worn off now.

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

 That classic tail pattern again - sharp black band narrowing at sides contrasting with stark white base and upper tail coverts and rump. The inner primaries only a little paler than the outers and solidly dark outer greater coverts.

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

 Tail pattern just as marked from below.

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

Yellow-legged Gull 1st winter - 4/9/2016 Topsham Rec

I don't expect it will reappear, they hardly ever do, and without a colour ring there's no way of telling where it came from - the Med, Central/Eastern Europe or perhaps it's a lusitanius from Portugal?

OK, it's not a rarity (but a lot scarcer in Devon than 'up country') but it'll do til the real rarity gets here.