Which lanius ssp? (1 Viewer)

[XavierVandevyvre]

Hi all,

I have a doubt about a shrike's ID

bird seen mid-september at Yasmina Hotel (Erg Chebbi Sand dunes).
The rump shows extensive pure white; also could it be ssp. leucopygos or an aberrant elegans?

No picture of the white wing pattern; but it was extensive; covering primaries and (at least partially) secondaries.

bird is ringed and the hotel owner said it was by spanish ringers...

is leucopygos on the morrocan list?

I can also send original pictures via mp...
Xavier Vandevyvre

 

[rollingthunder]

I would have thought it would have been rung as a Desert-type elegans? Location would obviously point to that, variation in Desert types rather than a clinal difference? I am no expert and just split the birds into dark, coastal types and pale interior ones.....I have lots of photos of Maroc shrikes and a lot show variation in plumage tones and wing-flashes etc and obviously the lighting conditions exert an effect.

You could contact Euring. There are 2 contacts listed for Spain or 2 for Maroc @ Rabat and El Jadida. Presumably the ringers were using Euring bracelets? If so the info pertaining to what they rung it as would be there somewhere?

Laurie:t:

 

[Acrocephalus]

I don't have experience about leucopygos because I haven't seen one. But as Laurie said, if it was me I would count it as an elegans owing to its white plumage and also location.

leucopygos race is not on the Moroccan list nor on the Algerian and Tunisian lists.

The ringers at Merzouga are mainly from these organisation: Institut Català d’Ornitologia, Societat Ornitològica de Menorca, el Grup AU d’Ornitologia.
You can contact Gabriel Gargallo (email here) for information if you want. Please keep us informed if you found something interesting.