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Blyth's Leaf Warbler - Pakistan ? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Himalaya
- Start date
Deb Burhinus
Used to be well known! 😎
Deb Burhinus
Used to be well known! 😎
Nice view of the median crown stripe
Would BLW be a good record for Western Pakistan ?
Would BLW be a good record for Western Pakistan ?
johnallcock
Well-known member
I have no experience of warblers in this region, but what would be the difference from Western Crowned Warbler?
The long bill and head pattern look closer to online photos of WCW to me, and WCW also seems more likely than BLW based on range.
The long bill and head pattern look closer to online photos of WCW to me, and WCW also seems more likely than BLW based on range.
Deb Burhinus
Used to be well known! 😎
Hi John, I have no experience in Pakistan either, hence my reluctance to comment but thought the links http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=1805&Bird_Image_ID=25386 may have been helpful to rule in or out. I’m struggling to see the differences based in online images so this is really where someone with local knowledge would be helpful (Blyth’s has been split as you know, so any images I could find still filed under ‘Blyth‘s on the OBI look very variable to me)
The OP looks very deep greenish/yellow on the cheeks and supercilium with greenish/yellow on the underparts - also looking at online images (assuming they are correctly labelled) and description references - Western Crowned Warblers should have a duller overall appearance with clean whitish underparts (no yellow tones) and contrasting greyer heads and neck, so not sure where to go with that? Are there structural differences we should look for that would be more helpful apart from the bill as some of the BWs also look long billed?
http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=1805&Bird_Image_ID=182235&Bird_Family_ID=
Are flattened forehead feathers and wear making the bill look a bit long in the OP?
Structurally, Blyth’s looks short-tailed and a small compact warbler to me (?) cf to Western which looks comparatively larger/rangier and longer tailed ...(?)
While Western winter in Western India, are there any records of Western wintering further North in Pakistan? The only range maps I could find on ebird and xeno only showed both Blyth‘s and WC sympatric in their breeding range with WC seen on passage to the Western Ghats. Since being caught out with Indian buteos recently, I have no trust in these maps anymore.
The OP looks very deep greenish/yellow on the cheeks and supercilium with greenish/yellow on the underparts - also looking at online images (assuming they are correctly labelled) and description references - Western Crowned Warblers should have a duller overall appearance with clean whitish underparts (no yellow tones) and contrasting greyer heads and neck, so not sure where to go with that? Are there structural differences we should look for that would be more helpful apart from the bill as some of the BWs also look long billed?
http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=1805&Bird_Image_ID=182235&Bird_Family_ID=
Are flattened forehead feathers and wear making the bill look a bit long in the OP?
Structurally, Blyth’s looks short-tailed and a small compact warbler to me (?) cf to Western which looks comparatively larger/rangier and longer tailed ...(?)
While Western winter in Western India, are there any records of Western wintering further North in Pakistan? The only range maps I could find on ebird and xeno only showed both Blyth‘s and WC sympatric in their breeding range with WC seen on passage to the Western Ghats. Since being caught out with Indian buteos recently, I have no trust in these maps anymore.
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Grahame Walbridge
Well-known member
A very tricky bird but on balance, and having seen the 2nd image, I would say it's a Western Crowned Warbler. The 1st image is misleading due to harsh lighting but it looks too long-billed for Blyth's IMHO and, BTW Deb, yellow streaked underparts are perfectly OK for WCW. The pale grey crown stripe, nape and mantle + rather narrow tips to gc's are more consistent with WCW, western population Blyth's have much brighter, yellow-grey uppers.
There are winter records of Western Crowned from Gujarat which is not too far away while a record of BLW would be quite extraordinary.
Grahame
There are winter records of Western Crowned from Gujarat which is not too far away while a record of BLW would be quite extraordinary.
Grahame
Deb Burhinus
Used to be well known! 😎
Thanks Graham - A tricky photo indeed, both in lighting and in posture imo. (I think on my image search, I came across some rather dubiously/variable? labelled Blyth’s)
macaulaylibrary.org
https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/181169131
Appreciate the clarity re. range and relative likelihood - I guess though, WCW is still very good record for this part of Pakistan!
ML252586581 - Blyth's Leaf Warbler - Macaulay Library
Macaulay Library ML252586581; © Sayam U. Chowdhury; Sylhet bibhag, Bangladesh
Appreciate the clarity re. range and relative likelihood - I guess though, WCW is still very good record for this part of Pakistan!
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I think the Bangladesh bird is OK - the location is pretty close to the Shillong area (Meghalaya) and the checklist features a number of submontane species. It's quite a remarkable checklist, actually. Is that really a Whistler's Warbler though?
The Yunnan bird looks a bit odd. It has some dark centres to the gcs, although no sign of white edges ot the tertials and the bill looks odd.
No doubt about the Nepal bird (photographed by James Eaton!) but the Bhutan bird has a narrow gc wingbar, not much sign of a crownstripe, a weakly-marked head and a long, heavy, slightly bulbous bill, so I'm wondering if it's WCW too.
The Yunnan bird looks a bit odd. It has some dark centres to the gcs, although no sign of white edges ot the tertials and the bill looks odd.
No doubt about the Nepal bird (photographed by James Eaton!) but the Bhutan bird has a narrow gc wingbar, not much sign of a crownstripe, a weakly-marked head and a long, heavy, slightly bulbous bill, so I'm wondering if it's WCW too.
Grahame Walbridge
Well-known member
All the birds in your links are Blyth's Leaf IMO, albeit the Nepalese and Bhutan birds are in very worn plumage which help explain the anomalies.Thanks Graham - A tricky photo indeed, both in lighting and in posture imo. (I think on my image search, I came across some rather dubiously/variable? labelled Blyth’s)
https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/181169131ML252586581 - Blyth's Leaf Warbler - Macaulay Library
Macaulay Library ML252586581; © Sayam U. Chowdhury; Sylhet bibhag, Bangladesh
Appreciate the clarity re. range and relative likelihood - I guess though, WCW is still very good record for this part of Pakistan!
And yes Deb, WCW is a very good record for Karachi. I also found this documented winter record from Sitamata W.S in south Rajasthan.
http://indianbirds.in/pdfs/IB7.2_SanghaEtal_WesternCrownedWarbler.pdf
Grahame
Deb Burhinus
Used to be well known! 😎
Thanks for looking at those links Graham - and for the finders report from Sitamata Wildlife Sanctuary.
Congratulations Himalaya - nice find one, for the records! 👍
Congratulations Himalaya - nice find one, for the records! 👍
Grahame Walbridge
Well-known member
That is one helluva bold statement and potentially very misleading considering WCW is a migrant, probably as unlikely as a Blyth's Leaf turning up in Karachi. Where is your evidence?
Grahame
