Basic Principles

Pipits, often dismissed as ‘small brown streaky birds’, can cause real identification difficulties, but close attention to structure, plumage and, particularly, calls should enable most to be readily identified. Four species are dealt with here, two common – Meadow and Tree Pipits – and two much rarer – Red-throated and Pechora Pipits.

Meadow Pipit

This species breeds from eastern Greenland to north-west Russia, with many wintering around the Mediterranean. It is a regular breeding bird in Britain, particularly in the uplands of the north and west. It is also present in winter and is a common migrant too, with good numbers passing through the country in spring and autumn. These include birds from Greenland, Iceland and the Faeroes.

This is very much the ‘default pipit’, and intimate familiarity with its unique character is essential before attempting to identify any of the rarer species. Meadow Pipit is a ‘jizz’ bird: readily recognisable by the combination of its familiar high-pitched seet seet call, distinctive jerky and weak-looking flight action and rather ‘loose-looking’ tail. In flight the overriding impression is one of frailty and hesitancy.

On the ground, concentrate first on its behaviour, noting the slightly nervous, even neurotic, demeanour, walking jerkily through the grass with an alert, often ‘head-up’ profile. Next look at its structure and note the fine bill, small, rounded head, slim body and, on the closest views, a strikingly long hind claw. The plumage can appear anything from a fresh slightly olive-brown through grey-brown to a pale faded fawn, but the upperparts are always strongly streaked. Meadow

Pipits have a striking plain and ‘open’ face, mainly the result of a prominent eyering.

Tree Pipit

Tree Pipit breeds from western Europe (though not Iceland or Ireland) to Siberia. Unlike Meadow Pipit this is a long-distance migrant, wintering in Africa south of the Sahara and on the Indian subcontinent. It is a scarce breeding bird in Britain, mainly in the west, but it also occurs in eastern Britain as a migrant from the Continent.

Although Tree Pipit resembles Meadow Pipit in plumage, the similarities are superficial. This is in reality a rather different bird. If flushed from the ground it generally rises silently and flies low for a short distance before dropping into cover once more. In wooded habitat it is likely to escape to the safety of a tree where it may walk with ease along the branches.

A good flight view reveals a rather distinctive shape, with broad-based wings, a plump body, a deep chest and a tightly closed tail. The flight is smooth and bounding, not jerky and hesitant. High-flying migrants tend to call, but are often so high that they are invisible. The call is totally unlike Meadow Pipit – a distinctive single buzzing peeezzz.

When observed on the ground its demeanour is very different, too. It creeps low on flexed legs, moving stealthily and deliberately through thick grass with a smooth fluid motion quite unlike the

jerky progress of Meadow Pipit. It also has a distinctive habit of gently ‘pumping’ the rear body and tail. Note also the heavier, deeper-based bill, more solid-looking head, more ‘neckless’ appearance, plumper, longer body and, on the closest views, a short hind claw (an adaptation to its arboreal lifestyle).

It has a slightly stronger face pattern, with a more prominent supercilium and a thin dark loral line, the whole face being less dominated by the eyering. The upperparts are often more softly streaked than Meadow Pipit and there is normally a beautiful goldenbuff wash across the throat and breast and a contrast between heavy black streaking across the breast and finer lining along the flanks.

Red-throated Pipit

This is a tundra-breeding species which nests in the northernmost parts of Scandinavia and Russia. It too is a long-distance migrant, wintering widely in Africa, the Middle East and south and South-East Asia. In Britain it is a rarity, with around 10 records per year, split fairly evenly between May and September/October and is mostly found in the Northern Isles, down the east coast and in the far south-west.

Red-throated Pipits are almost always located by call – a very distinctive long, hissing psseeeee. The species is very vocal, and flushed and over-flying birds will usually give this call. In structure it is most similar to Meadow Pipit.

On the ground, focus on the plumage. The species is unusual in that adults have a distinctive bright orangered wash across the face and upper breast, which is more extensive on males than females. First-winter birds lack this colour, however, and so closely resemble the other small pipits. On such birds look for rather solidly coloured ear coverts, heavy black streaking right down the flanks, distinct whitish ‘tramlines’ at the sides of a very strongly streaked mantle and, on close views, a streaked rump.

Pechora Pipit

Breeding in north-west Russia and Siberia and wintering mainly in the Philippines and parts of Indonesia, Pechora Pipit is a true rarity in Britain. There are just two or three records each year, almost always in mid-autumn on Shetland. Away from here, it is an exceptional find.

This species is shy and elusive, favouring dense cover, and can be difficult to flush. Flying birds can be frustratingly silent, although when heard, the short, sharp dzepp call is distinctive.

On the ground it most closely resembles Redthroated Pipit, sharing that species’ boldly streaked flanks, very strongly ‘tramlined’ mantle (looking very black and white) and streaked rump. Look also, however, for very broad white wing-bars which frame a dark central panel.

There are subtle differences in the head pattern too, with Pechora having a more strongly streaked crown and nape and an attractive golden wash across the face and upper breast. The closest views will reveal that the tertial tips fall short of the wing-tip, producing a diagnostic primary projection.

TWO: Meadow Pipit (Seaforth, Lancashire, 16 February 2004). This Meadow Pipit is showing its long hind claws to perfection. This is sufficient to eliminate any thoughts of Tree Pipit, but there are plenty of other clues here too – note the relatively slim-billed, smallheaded and slim-bodied look, plain face, with a prominent eyering, and short, fine streaking on the breast and flanks.

THREE: Tree Pipit (Palencia, Spain, 4 June 2016). This Tree Pipit closely resembles the preceding Meadow Pipits, but note the typically stronger and deeper-based bill, a contrast between relatively bold streaking across the breast and weaker lines down the flanks, and an attractive golden-yellow wash across the face and breast. On such a close view, note also the hind claw, which is noticeably shorter than that of Meadow Pipit.

FOUR: Pechora Pipit (Happy Island, China, 18 May 2005). This rather boldly marked and ‘stripy’ pipit with a streaked rump closely resembles Red-throated Pipit, but there are some crucial differences. Note in particular that the tertials fall short of the wing-tip, producing a clear primary projection. Other differences include an even more strongly lined, and very black-and-white looking, mantle and a slightly more contrasting wing pattern comprising bold white wing-bars framing a rather dark ‘panel’ on the greater coverts.

FIVE: Red-throated Pipit (Buness, Fair Isle, 18 October 2014). An adult Red-throated Pipit in its brick-red summer plumage is both beautiful and unmistakable. This coloration is variable, but the richness and extent of the red hues here indicate that this bird is a male (although there is some overlap between the sexes). Other typical Red-throated Pipit features visible here include the rather crisp whitish fringes to the wing coverts and tertials and, perhaps more striking, the distinct rather heavy dark streaking in the flanks and strongly lined appearance to the mantle.

SIX: Red-throated Pipit (Grobnik, Croatia, 13 May 2010). The subtle red-orange hues in this bird’s supercilium, submoustachial area, chin and throat are sufficient to identify it as a Redthroated Pipit. The other features of the species are apparent here too, notably the boldly marked flanks and, particularly obvious on this individual, a very boldly lined mantle with very strong pale ‘braces’ at the mantle sides.

SEVEN: Red-throated Pipit (Empäälä, Finland, 31 August 2010). The very strikingly marked plumage of this first-winter Red-throated Pipit readily catches the eye. Despite the lack of any red-orange hues in the face, this bird’s very boldly marked breast and flanks, crisp whitish fringes to the wing coverts and tertials and very strongly lined mantle are all typical of this species, while the long tertials which completely cloak the primaries are sufficient to exclude Pechora Pipit.

NINE: Tree Pipit (Griendtsveen, The Netherlands, 7 May 2008). This song-flighting Tree Pipit shows the typically rather triangular wing shape, a function of broad wing bases. Other features visible here include a clear contrast between the bold breast streaking and sparsely and finely streaked flanks, and a golden-yellow wash across the face and breast. 15

EIGHT: Meadow Pipit (Texel, The Netherlands, 14 October 2018). Flying pipits give few visual clues (but listen for the calls!). In this image, the relatively slim bill, bland face, bold eyering and short, fine breast and flank streaking clearly indicate Meadow Pipit. In life, the distinctive weak, hesitant flight action of this species would catch the eye.

TEN: Red-throated Pipit (Varanger, Norway, 19 July 2008). Flying Red-throated Pipits show few identification features, but the call is highly distinctive. This bird is easily identified, however, by the orange-red coloration on its face, chin and throat. Note also the very bold blackish streaking across the breast and down the flanks.

ELEVEN: Pechora Pipit (Long Valley, Hong Kong, 10 October 2016). Flying Pechora Pipits can be frustratingly silent and pose real identification problems – try to see it on the ground! Nevertheless, some features may be discerned in photographs, as here. Note the spotted rump and, particularly striking in this image, the bold white wing-bars either side of a dark greater covert ‘panel’.