Warblers - Samarkand, Uzbekistan (1 Viewer)

[rylirk]

A collection of warblers from Samarkand over the past few days, with my best guesses:

1. Chiffchaff?
2. Eastern Orphean?
3. Lesser Whitethroat (terrible photo I know, I do have a short video as well if that would help. It called several times, and it was a raspy whitethroat/Dartford-like 'chair' call)
4. Chiff?
5. Chiff?
6. Chiff?
7. Hume's?
8. Hume's?
9. Asian Desert I believe

I also have this video of a 10th warbler making a call I'm not familiar with... maybe another Hume's??

 

[KenM]

Last image looks like a Desert Warbler.

Image 2. looks like an Orphean, stout bill and a seemingly pale iris (when heavily exposed).

Image 3. clearly a Sylvia, but bill not looking robust enough imo for Orphean, probably Lesser Whitethroat.

Image 4. appears to show a buff pink wash to the chest, am thinking possible Mountain Chiffchaff as are possibly 5 and 6?

Images 7/8 might well be Humes, although how you’d separate one from tother in worn Spring plumage…I wouldn’t know.








Cheers

 

[Butty]

9. Asian Desert I believe

👍🏻

 

[James Eaton]

You're correct with all with following exception:

2. Lesser Whitethroat - lacks the bill size + iris colour of Eastern Orphean
10 - to confirm, yes, Hume's Leaf Warbler, just getting a bit excited as they frequently do at this time of year, before they start uttering full song.

 

[rylirk]

@KenM I'm not sure how much I trust eBird on Uzbek birds, but it reckons mountain chiff would be significantly out of range in Samarkand.

@James Eaton I'm surprised by #2 being Lesser Whitethroat, it behaved very differently to bird #3 and, to me, looks quite different too. I have a couple more photos showing a different angle on the bill, as well as a black 'masked' appearance which I thought was present in Orphean but not in LWhitethroat?

 

[KenM]

@KenM I'm not sure how much I trust eBird on Uzbek birds, but it reckons mountain chiff would be significantly out of range in Samarkand.

@James Eaton I'm surprised by #2 being Lesser Whitethroat, it behaved very differently to bird #3 and, to me, looks quite different too. I have a couple more photos showing a different angle on the bill, as well as a black 'masked' appearance which I thought was present in Orphean but not in LWhitethroat?

rylirk, ranges a bit like descriptions, are not necessarily set in stone.
Image 2 might suggest a paler iris, having said that I’ve got images of LW with the same.
Image 1 of the new set does appear to show not insubstantial tertials…not what one might expect to see on LW? 😮

 

[kuzeycem]

Both are still Lesser Whitethroats

 

[Grahame Walbridge]

@KenM I'm not sure how much I trust eBird on Uzbek birds, but it reckons mountain chiff would be significantly out of range in Samarkand.

@James Eaton I'm surprised by #2 being Lesser Whitethroat, it behaved very differently to bird #3 and, to me, looks quite different too. I have a couple more photos showing a different angle on the bill, as well as a black 'masked' appearance which I thought was present in Orphean but not in LWhitethroat?

As James commented earlier it is a Lesser Whitethroat, bill way too slight and not long enough, underparts not clean/white enough and, crucially, lacks grey centers to undertail coverts of EOW.

Grahame

 

[Muppit17]

@KenM I'm not sure how much I trust eBird on Uzbek birds, but it reckons mountain chiff would be significantly out of range in Samarkand.

@James Eaton I'm surprised by #2 being Lesser Whitethroat, it behaved very differently to bird #3 and, to me, looks quite different too. I have a couple more photos showing a different angle on the bill, as well as a black 'masked' appearance which I thought was present in Orphean but not in LWhitethroat?

There are 2 different (sub)species of LW in Uzbekistan. The mountain breeding althaea, and the lowland breeding halimodendri.

They are separable in the field, albeit tricky, and both are present around Samarkand. I wouldn't be surprised if this accounts for the differences you have seen.