Q&A YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Q I saw this ‘chiffchaff’ in the Manor Road Community Woodlands at Keynsham, north-east Somerset. Someone from the Avon Birds group suggested that it could be an Iberian Chiffchaff. May l ask what you think? Andrew Harrison, via email Q My husband and I have recently moved to Hampshire after spending most of our lives in the Midlands. We are excited to start seawatching – do you have any tips for where to watch in Hampshire? Are there any good weather conditions or times of year to target? Any advice would be welcome! Jennifer Rowles, via Facebook A Amy Robjohns, Hampshire birder and patchwatcher at Titchfield Haven, replies: “Seawatching in Hampshire can be a challenge due to the Isle of Wight, so it’s best to keep expectations modest or low. The two best sites are Eastoke, on Hayling Island, or Milford-on-Sea in the New Forest. The latter site generally records more birds that don’t move through the Solent.
“However, it’s also good to investigate the coastline closest to home – even the middle of the Solent has its moments! For passage birds, light to moderate south-east winds with a little murk in spring can yield skuas, terns, and other species on the move, but such conditions have become increasingly scarce. North-east or south-east winds in autumn and winter can be good for movements of auks, divers and ducks, while strong south-westerlies (but not too strong, ideally no more than force 7) can – if you’re lucky – get Kittiwakes, Northern Fulmars, Northern Gannets and anything else moving.
“Whichever bit of the Solent you try, it’s always worth scanning the sea. The entrance to Chichester Harbour, visible from Sandy Point, is good for divers and auks in winter, while Brownwich Cliffs and Hill Head is a good vantage point for the regular Common Eider and Common Scoter flock. Langstone Harbour and Lymington to Keyhaven also attract seaducks and winter grebes. Good luck! Q A few years ago while on holiday in northern France I saw several spectacular Reeves’s Pheasants in Forêt d’Hesdin. I thought nothing of it at the time, assuming them to be escapes, but later found out they were established and thus I could tick them on my Western Palearctic list. However, fast-forward several years and A David Campbell, BirdGuides News Team member, replies: “Separating Common Chiffchaff and Iberian Chiffchaff by sight is a serious identification challenge, and most birds are found in spring by their song. In dealing with just one view of this bird, from below, we’re unable to accurately gauge features such as upperpart colour and wing structure, but there are still some visible identification pointers.
“The noticeable yellow parts of this bird’s plumage are no doubt the reason why Iberian Chiffchaff was suggested. A distinctly yellow fore-supercilium is one of the main pointers for Iberian Chiffchaff, but, considering the lighting and colour saturation in the image, this bird doesn’t seem beyond variation of Common Chiffchaff.
“Looking further at the bird, the belly isn’t strikingly whitish, which fits Common Chiffchaff better. In addition, the legs appear clearly dark, whereas they tend to be slightly paler in Iberian Chiffchaff.
“The bill also points towards Common Chiffchaff, with a dark lower mandible and without the ‘pinched’ culmen noted on many Iberian Chiffchaffs. Despite the striking yellow in the plumage, and without a sound recording of any calls, it seems safe to call this bird a Common Chiffchaff.” I have read conflicting accounts about whether this population is ‘countable’. Can anyone answer my query? Mark Cook, via email
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Sam Viles, BirdGuides News Team Manager, replies: “Reeves’s Pheasant is endemic to the forests of central and eastern China. Male Reeves’s have a spectacular black, white and gold plumage – and the longest tail of all the pheasant species in the world.
“Unsurprisingly, this has made it very popular with collectors, with escapes often making their way out into the wild. In the Western Palearctic, self-sustaining feral populations have been established in two countries: France and the Czech Republic. Reeves’s Pheasant is most widespread in the Czech Republic, where a population of approximately 400 individuals has persisted in Central Moravia since the early 1800s.
“In France, there is no official decision on which populations are deemed self-sustaining and which are not, although it is widely recognised that most are regularly topped up with releases and would otherwise die out – such as those in the region of Forêt d’Hesdin.
Lots of birders instead make the trek to Île de Porquerolles to ‘tick’ the species, which is a small Mediterranean island off the coast of Toulon.”