Name that Bird- Round 1!

To finish off my summer recap how about a quick round of ‘Name that Bird’? Scroll down for discussion!

No. 1



No. 2



No. 3

No. 4



I’d love to claim that photo no.1, showing a Red-rumped Swallow (left) and two Swifts, was snapped here in London but that’s not the case. While ‘common’ Swallows (Hirundo rustica) are a familiar sight around the UK in spring and summer, Red-rumped Swallows (Hirundo daurica) only occasionally turn up as rare spring migrants. This was taken much closer to their natural Mediterranean range- in a small village in central Portugal at the beginning of September. There was a lot of hirundine activity in the air at the time but it was only when this one landed that I was able to be sure Red-rumped Swallows were among them. The key identifier is its rufous collar and a similarly coloured rump that is visible in flight.

Same time, same place, I spotted bird no.2 furtively busying itself in a patch of scrub and olive trees. Female Blackcap was my instinctive reaction at distance but on closer inspection it’s less obvious. The brown head, pale breast and dark legs are characteristic of females but the darker colouration on the wing, coupled with the visible white patches perhaps less so? What do you think?!

Birds 3 and 4 come courtesy of my sister who spent the summer in Costa Rica. Knowing that the best way to appease her envious brother was with a few photos of birds that she happened to spot she delivered the goods here! But I have to confess I don’t know what they are yet- I’m still working my way through my ‘Birds of Britain and Europe’ book! Any guesses?