Subalpine Warbler (Curruca cantillans)
Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)
Medium small Sylvia with short tail, slender body and steep forehead. Bill slim,fairly short and pointed. Male with rufous breast and conspicuous, broad, white moustache stripes. Upperparts lead grey. Female with slightly more brownish upperparts and buff white below. Immature birds has greyish brown upperparts, and are prone to confusion with Spectacled Warbler due to broad, brown fringes of tertials. The colour is however less rufous, and the dark centre ends in a rounded, not pointed tip. Pale legs in all sexes and ages, but some variation. Eye-ring colour variable, but generally red in male and very pale in female and immature (rules out other Sylvia except Tristram and Sardinian). Colour of upperparts more uniform than in confusion species in both male and female. May cock tail, but does not keep it raised like Dartford Warbler. Taxonomy much discussed. Western Italian population now accepted as a separate species (Moltoni's Warbler, S. subalpina), while S. c. inornata has species status in Svensson, but not in Clements (2018) .
Sound:Alarm call a short, hard "tuk", but softer and fainter than Blackcap and Sardinian W. Song a rapid, vivid stream of squeaks and clearer notes, with timbre similar to Whitethroat. May be confused with Sardinian W., but lacks that species interwoven hard and rolling contact call.
Alarm, song:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCCC-photo:adrien2008, Licence,Link.
Resembles a big, black Curlew, but can only be confused with Bald Ibis. Differs from this by longer, slender neck, rounded and feathered head, long legs (trailing in flight) and heavier bill. Bare parts greyish, not red. Adults with glossy green wings. Immatures and birds in winter plumage with white-speckled head and neck. Head and legs droops slightly below horizontal plane in flight, leaving a "hunched" impression. Wing beats faster than herons of same size. May glide longer distances, but does not soar like Bald Ibis. Flight formation loose, diagonal or in single file with undulating movements.
Sound:Generally silent away from breeding ground. Dry, crow-like "garr garr", may be heard occasionally in flight. At breeding ground various guttural grunts, and piping, hissing sounds.
Flightcall:
Distribution:
Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CC