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Birding Report: Sep 2008

A Syke's Warbler (Hipolais rama) in Eilats Bird Sanctuary

On the morning of the 21/9/08, I noticed a little brown bird in one of our mist nets. Arriving at the bird it looks confusing with a Phyloscopus jizz but the color of an Acrocephalus. Out of the net it became clear that this is a Hipolais Warbler, but nothing like an Olivacious Warbler that I catch all the time. It looked very much like the Booted Warbler (Hipolais caligata) that I saw last March in Eilat's mountains, but the head and bill were longer, the tail looked somewhat longer too and the shape was not as strikingly Phyloscopus like. After years of examining short winged Olivaceous Warblers that we occasionally catch at the IBRCE Ringing Station it was clear to me that this bird was actually a Syke's Warbler, very different from all the Elaeica  Eastern Olivaceous Warblers I saw before.

The general color was more yellow brown than an Olivaceous Warbler with silky white underparts. The head shape was round, resembling an Upcher's Warblers. Ringers also know to check the Throat color of Hipolais Warblers – it was yellower than an Upchers but more orange than an Olivaceous. Legs looked short and had a horn pink color (Olivatios has grey blue legs). Eye color that was brown and the worn tail and partially worn primaries made me think it was an adult bird.

The bill was slenderer and shorter than of an Olivaceous, but longer than Booted Warbler's.

The head pattern also differed from an Olivaceous by broader supercilium before the bill and some darkening above it (hard to see). The ear coverts were whiter than the rest of the cheek. In addition, the outer tail feathear had a broad outer whitish shaft all the way from bottom to top. Wing was rather rounded with 2^nd primary reaching the 7/8^th. The 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and the 6^th primaries were emarginated (the 6^th had a faint emargination but it was clear it didn't lack one).

Measurements taken and wing formula:

 Data taken from: http://www.portlandbirdobs.org.uk/bi_hippolais_rama.htm

Other measurements:

Tarsus 19.3

2^nd P ---^ 7/8 P

2^nd P to tip of wing 5.5

Primaries projection 14

ID discussion:

The round head shape and the shortish and slender looking bill, head pattern with a supercilium broad at base, general brown color and semi Phyloscopus like appearance, leg color and Tarsus length and tail pattern, in addition to the rather round wing formula all eliminate Olivaceous Warbler. T he emarginated 6P, the  2^ndP that "falls" between 7/8 P (should be 5/6/7 on Olivaceous), and the 1P>2P, 2P>tip, 6P>tip, 10P>tip are all too short.

Separating it from Booted Warbler was done by the head pattern (no clear dark edge to upper supercilium), the paler area at ear coverts and the "not very Phyloscopus like" appearance but mainly based on the length of bill.

An odd measurement was t 1^st P > pc which was 5.7,  0.3mm short of the minimum mentioned by The Portland Bird Observatory.  This could partly be a result of the difficulty to get this small feather strait, or the rather worn condition of the 1^st P.

I would like to thank Rami Mizrachi, for the help with identification and Miguel Rouco and Antonio Seballos for the pictures taken.  

Other good birds:

On a night tour to Neot hakikar, on the 21/9 -22/9 night with Miguel Rouco and Antonio Seballos , out of the usual Nubian Nightjars (3), 1 Egyptian Nightjar and 1 very interesting unwini type European Nightjar (virtually almost as pale as the Egyptian), all in one field.

Noam Weiss and the IBRCE Team