Black Redstart male or female?

[Red-eyed Video]

I posted this video (http://surfbirds.com/video2/view_video.php?viewkey=42911677c739ee173448) of a local bird and intended to delete it after a week or so when any Northants birders who were interested had seen it. The sex of the bird has courted quite a bit of controversy so I'd like to ask opinion here before taking it off. Opinions so far seem to be divided between male, female & impossible to tell. Don't ask me why it's in the European common birds either!

[Nathan Kipling]

I'd say it's a probable female which the pale tone of the underparts fits a lot better although the back does look a bit slaty, it's not at all like the deep tone of a classic male that gave the species it's name.

[macrourus]

Young male or sibling-female males do appears almost alike a female...we should have it in the hand to be "almost" sure about sexing and ageing of them...the quite extensive wing panel seems to fit a male but I'm not sure, also because an old female would show such panel too

Ciao

Andrea Corso
________
AmandaBeauty (http://camslivesexy.com/cam/AmandaBeauty)

[Colin Key]

Dave, speaking as someone who is surrounded by Black Reds during the winter I would say that distinguishing between adult males and females is fairly straightforward, but this is a sub-adult (1st winter?) bird and they are not that easy. My inclination is to go for 1st winter male, but I would not put a lot of money on it. :err:

Colin

[Red-eyed Video]

Thanks all. The fact that only 3 of you have been brave enough to pass comment tell me that it's not at all straight forward. I would have gone for male but like Colin, not if I had to put my wages on it!