What am I?

[sue-o]

I have a feeling this one will be too easy for everybody, but I'll post just for the fun of it.
Sue

[Bobolink44]

Hi sue-o, nice shot. Looks like a Cory's Shearwater. Best, Bob

[AndyB]

Yes, nice shot of a Cory's.

[sue-o]

Right you are. You guys are too good, but I'll try another. Maybe while I'm out birding from now on, I'll deliberately get mystery photos.;)

[sue-o]

A new one.

[Graham Etherington]

Red-shouldered Hawk?

[sue-o]

Red-shouldered Hawk?

I took me longer to crop and shrink than it did for the right answer to be posted. :) Well done Graham.

Red -shouldered Hawk, seen in Huntington Beach, California.

[sue-o]

Here's another.

[Graham Etherington]

I took me longer to crop and shrink than it did for the right answer to be posted. :) Well done Graham.

Red -shouldered Hawk, seen in Huntington Beach, California.

Eyes like a hawk:laugh:


First impression of your latest one would be Least Sand.

[sue-o]

Eyes like a hawk:laugh:


First impression of your latest one would be Least Sand.

You know what they say about first impressions. Very good, Graham. I really thought this one was pretty difficult. Guess I'm going to have to up the ante.;) In the words of Cal's governator: I'll be back.:biggrin:

Least Sandpiper, seen at Bolsa Chica, Huntington Beach, CA.

[sue-o]

Ok, here we go again.

[Bobolink44]

Cretzschmar's Bunting?

[sue-o]

Cretzschmar's Bunting?

Did you even have to pause for thought on Ortolan or anything else? :) I guess I'll have to start posting toe shots.;)

Sorry for the blurry photo.


Cretzschmar's Bunting, seen on the island of Tilos in Greece.

[sue-o]

Ok. How about this one?

[Graham Etherington]

Eleonora's Falcon after a bit of Pigeon Pie?

[sue-o]

Eleonora's Falcon after a bit of Pigeon Pie?
Definitely Eleonora's, but it didn't seem interested in the pigeons and pigeons weren't the least bit nervous. I'm afraid that this photo enlarged will have to be the 'proof'. The other Eleonora's with this one were not dark phase so they would obviously look different than the one I posted. I do have another good shot of a dark phase but it was taken on the other side of this island. It could have been the same individual, but I don't know. I will post the shot here anyway.

Eleonora's Falcon, seen on Naxos Island, Greece.

[sue-o]

Here's the cropped photo of the Eleonora mystery bird. Sorry, I didn't think it would be so unclear.

[AndyB]

nice photos sue-o

[sue-o]

Thanks Andy. The C. Bunting is especially good.:laugh: The only decent shots I got of if were of the back. Ok, here we go.

[Nathan Kipling]

I wonder if this is what it looks like to me which is O. h. melanoleuca - a black-eared wheatear of the eastern race.

:smile:

[sue-o]

I wonder if this is what it looks like to me which is O. h. melanoleuca - a black-eared wheatear of the eastern race.

:smile:

I wondered the same thing for months, Nathan. I was unsure about this bird after I saw it because the two small guide books I had at the time were not meant for in depth explanations. I had seen a black-throated Black-Eared Wheatear in Turkey, but it looked like it was supposed to and was easy for me to id. ;) (attached photo#2) I figured this bird had to be a Black-Eared (black-throated) because of the white back, but I was a stranger in a strange land and knew there could be another species I wasn’t aware of, or another race of the Black-Eared (black-throated) that I was unaware of. We were on passage at the time and I was unable to search the net. I saw the bird in Turkey (and again on Tilos in Greece) and had to wait until we sailed through Greece and up the coast of Italy to verify my thoughts about it. When we finally got to our winter berth in Italy, I got a Collins Bird Guide and it mentions regarding the race melanoleuca “crown often blotched grey in heavily worn summer plumage”. This bird seemed more than blotched! However, I listed it as Oenanthe hispanica melanoleuca.

Photo 1—mystery bird unveiled Photo 2—Thank G*d for the easy i.d.s!
Sue

Black-Eared Wheatear (black-throated), seen at Bozuk Buku, Turkey on June 28, 2007.

[AndyB]

Yes, a Black-eared Wheatear. Agree sue-o, quite a messy looking bird in photo 1.

[sue-o]

Yes, a Black-eared Wheatear. Agree sue-o, quite a messy looking bird in photo 1.

The funny thing is I saw another bird with a very dark head on Tilos Island in Greece. I'll post the photo, but it was taken from a great distance and isn't good, still it shows what I mean. Sure doesn't look like the picture in the book.:wink:
Sue