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| Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe
- Male |
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| Photographer : | © Ribish Thomas |
| Location : | Vellanathuruthu Road, Alappad, Kerala, India |
| Date : |
31 October 2015 |
| English synonyms: | Common Wheatear, Eurasian Wheatear, European Wheatear, Greenland Wheatear, Seebohm's Wheatear, Wheatear, Black-throated Wheatear |
| Bird Family : | Saxicolini - Robins, Nightingales, Chats, Shamas, Redstarts, Grandala, Forktails, Cochoas & Wheatears |
| Bird Group : | PASSERIFORMES |
| Red Data Status : | Least Concern |
| Remarks : | Peter Clement comments:
"No problem with the id or that its a male (grey showing through on the nape and the black face) but I'm a bit confused that it seems to be in a very advanced state of wear for a 1st winter or even an adult for late Oct/early Nov. The mantle and back feathers look worn (variably brownish to grey-brown in differing photos) and the fringes to the wing coverts and tertials are very uneven and ragged, i.e. also worn and for a bird at this time of year they should (since most of the coverts are replaced in early autumn) be much broader and largely obscure the black centres and (irrespective of age) the paler fringes form a noticeable brown panel across the edges of the flight feathers (mainly the secondaries).
I would expect a bird that looked like this with the grey showing through on the nape, the black face mask well-developed and the pale fringes on the coverts and flight feathers worn down (i.e. mostly black) to be much later in the winter probably January onwards as a precursor to how some look (with grey-brown upperparts and remnant/vestigial fringes to the wing coverts) when they arrive in Europe in mid-March.
I can only assume that this is an adult that moulted early (mid-summer) as all the tertials appear to be in the same state of wear (instead of only 1 or 2 being replaced) and the wings are in an advanced stage of completion, losing their pale fringes earlier than most, and certainly a lot earlier than a 1st winter would."
Ref:
Clement, P. & Rose, C. (2015) Robins and Chats. Christopher Helm: London. |
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