Interesting Chiffchaff, UK (1 Viewer)

[dan houghton]

Hi folks

I came across an oddly singing Chiffchaff yesterday afternoon in the New Forest.

Manage to get some video which can be seen/heard here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApKjLD9xVWk

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQAlJsIuxVo

Any opinions welcomed!

Dan

 

[James Thomas]

Listen to the first recording of Iberian at xeno-canto

http://www.xeno-canto.org/europe/browse.php?query=or:7760.00

 

[Alan Tilmouth]

Absolutely Iberian Chiffchaff, nice find.

 

[siberian]

Be great if it is an Iberian, but I thought they were rather rare and hard to be absolutely certain of id.
This link is interesting,
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=16100&highlight=iberian+chiff
Perhaps others would like to comment?

S.

 

[CAU]

Has anyone got pictures of the bird? The song sounds really good to me, I'd twitch it if it was in Finland...

 

[dan houghton]

Thanks for the feedback so far.

The bird was still present this morning between 11:00 and 12:30 singing almost continuously and showing well.

The song basically consists of 3 sections:

1) a 'chiff' note, usually repeated 7-9 times and not differing much in pitch

2) a 'swit' note, usually repeated 3-6 time though sometimes only twice.

3) a Chaffinch like, drier, 'rattley' sequence. This was sometimes left off and sometimes repeated 2 or 3 times.

The bird would occasionally follow the third section with a couple of 'chiffs'. Occasionally it would leave out the second section. 90% of the time the song consisted of sections 1+2 or 1,2 + 3. Whether the mixed up bits are within the range of variation (if there is any) for Iberian I don't know. This afternoon it was also throwing in a bit of typical Common Chiffchaff song which hadn't been heard from it previously.

Plumage wise the bird looks quite good with a yellow wash to the throat and upper breast extending to the wing bend. Lower mandible is extensively pale with a dark tip. Primary projection did seem to be more than half that of the exposed tertials though judging this with any accuracy aws tricky due to the angle of the views. Bill looked 'spikey' and legs were a fleshy brown colour.

A friend of mine got some reasonable pics of the bird this afternoon which will hopefully be uploaded to the Hampshire goingbirding website later tonight.

www.goingbirding.co.uk/hants/photos.asp

Cheers,

Dan

 

[CAU]

Dan, AFAIK the song of Iberian Chiffchaff does vary quite much. The three sections that you have described are the basic sections of the song of an Iberian Chiffchaff. This Portugese Iberian Chiffchaff omits the third section in the second strofe:
http://www.tarsiger.com/sounds/index.php?sound_id=mp3_antero1180455420&lang=eng

Note that the Swedish bird in the link in post #2 sang much like a Common Chiffchaff at times.

 

[Jane Turner]

That looks VERY interesting!

 

[Birdspotter]

Dan, AFAIK the song of Iberian Chiffchaff does vary quite much.

I agree with CAu on this, having heard the Lothian bird.

For what it's worth I think it is one, but as you have the call on tape try and get a sonogram made up , as this will aid acceptance.

BBRC only accept singing birds, so the recording and sonagram will go a long way.

Well done:t:

 

[Birdspotter]

This afternoon it was also throwing in a bit of typical Common Chiffchaff song which hadn't been heard from it previously.

Dan

Should have mentioned the aforementioned Lothian bird did the same at times.

 

[Docmartin]

The bird is pretty good - certainly Iberian-derived, and the frequency, length and three-phase nature of the song are pretty good. The verbal description of the song in post 6 are spot on for Iberian, but in the YouTube videos the song is quite low intensity and in fact several of the songs are pretty messed up for Iberian and combine classic Iberian 'wheeps (the upward strophes) with notes that, while not ruling Iberian out, are more characteristic of Common Chiffie. It's borderline, but I am erring on the side of mixed singing, and therefore potentially with hybrid influence. In the photos, the bird has quite a long primary projection, very yellowy fore-super, and brownish legs, that are good for Iberian. The eye ring is quite weak, good for Iberian, but classically it would be more obvious below the eye than above, whereas this bird looks even above and below. Physically the bird looks OK for Iberian. Song-wise, it is not totally classic on the videos, though it may produce better songs as per the description.

Anyway, here are some sonograms taken from you Tube.

And this is the paper I did with Tim Melling
Collinson JM, Melling T. 2008. Identification of vagrant Iberian Chiffchaffs - pointers, pitfalls and problem birds. Brit Birds 101, 174-188.

I can provide pdfs of that

 

[Jane Turner]

Get more songs recorded, ideally a sif sif sif sif wheep wheep wheep br-br-br-br-br-br one!

 

[dan houghton]

I've put another 2 minute sequence of the bird singing, on Youtube, taken yesterday morning:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNZV30n7s74

Martin - thanks for doing the sonograms and the comments. It's the somewhat messed-up nature of some of the songbursts thats been bothering me.

Dan

 

[Docmartin]

I've put another 2 minute sequence of the bird singing, on Youtube, taken yesterday morning:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNZV30n7s74

Martin - thanks for doing the sonograms and the comments. It's the somewhat messed-up nature of some of the songbursts thats been bothering me.

Dan

More and more interesting. Don't have my sonogram software at work, but the new video sounds like a classic mixed singer. When they start throwing out 4-5 phase songs with some notes sounding like Common, it's a bit of a warning flag. The possibility remains that it is a 1s Iberian that has not crystallised a final song. it may be corrupted by Common Chiffies it meets.

 

[Docmartin]

Try and get the call too. Upslurred (Common) vs downslurred (Iberian) is pretty diagnostic.

 

[dan houghton]

I have heard the call only several times and would describe it as a 'peoo', veering towards a Wood Warbler but not as 'full' or 'fluty'. Can Iberian Chiffs pick up the call of Common Chiff and vice versa? I never heard a Common Chiff call from the bird.

As for it possibly being a first-summer and having picked up some Common Chiffy - where it is is a site I had never been to before and probably isn't birded regularly and so the bird may well have been there for some time prior to Sunday.

 

[Docmartin]

There is a recording of the calls of the Iberian Chiffie at Colney on the British Birds website at http://www.britishbirds.co.uk/sounds.htm

Click on Figure 7aa - recording by Will Soar.

It's really an unanswered question, whether Iberian and Common Chiffies can learn each other's calls, but it wouldn't surprise me if birds in mixed breeding pairs copied each other. The 2007/8 Lavenham 'problem chiffie' clearly had Iberian influence, whether through genes or learning, but mated with a Common Chiffchaff and produced a Common Chiffie call.

 

[Paul Woolnough]

Iberian chiffchaff calls

Norfolk Iberian Chiffchaff called regularly.
Will Soar's short 7a recording diagnostic with the flourish in the second part.
The Norfolk bird seems to be drawing breadth, approx. 2 seconds into the 3 second recording - before completing his song.

 

[dan houghton]

I spent a bit of time looking at Common Chiffchaff today and can say without doubt that the wings and tail are definitely longer on the potential Iberian, other observers have also commented on this. The wings are often held slightly drooped.

Others have also noted that it tail-flicks far less than a Common Chiffchaff.

With regard to the song, as I understand it, it's still doing the three part song almost all of the time, sometimes missing out section 2 or 3. Occasionally it will do a burst of Common Chiffchaff. It hasn't been heard to do the low tsrr tsrr notes that Common Chiffchaff does between the chiff-chaff bursts. Still the only call heard from the bird is the 'sad' downslurred call.

It also had Common and Iberian songs played to it yesterday evening. It was attracted to the Common Chiffchaff song. When Iberian was played, it continually buzzed the guy playing the song to within two feet.

 

[Docmartin]

I spent a bit of time looking at Common Chiffchaff today and can say without doubt that the wings and tail are definitely longer on the potential Iberian, other observers have also commented on this. The wings are often held slightly drooped.

Others have also noted that it tail-flicks far less than a Common Chiffchaff.

With regard to the song, as I understand it, it's still doing the three part song almost all of the time, sometimes missing out section 2 or 3. Occasionally it will do a burst of Common Chiffchaff. It hasn't been heard to do the low tsrr tsrr notes that Common Chiffchaff does between the chiff-chaff bursts. Still the only call heard from the bird is the 'sad' downslurred call.

It also had Common and Iberian songs played to it yesterday evening. It was attracted to the Common Chiffchaff song. When Iberian was played, it continually buzzed the guy playing the song to within two feet.

I've sonagrammed the most recent YouTube video and the bird is a total mixed singer - there is not a single standard crystallised 'full' Iberian song on any of the three videos, and every single song combines elements characteristic of Iberian and Common Chiffchaff. Given the Iberian call, the Iberian appearance of the bird, the Iberian elements in the song, it's clearly either an Iberian or a hybrid. I honestly don't know how BBRC deal with non-classic singing Ibe Chiffies. I suggested the Dibbinsdale 2003 'mixed' singer was acceptable as Iberian, but it only gave a mixed song once in 10 minutes+ of recording. This bird is doing it all the time. Interesting to see how this one pans out.