Print 10/05 Octoberq5

Taiga Flycatcher in East Yorkshire: new to Britain P. Andrew Lassey ABSTRACT A first-summer male Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albicilla at Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire, on 26th April 2003 represented the first record for Britain and only the third or fourth in Europe to the west of the breeding range.A second bird, in first-winter plumage, was discovered at Sandgarth, Shetland, on 12th October 2003.This individual was trapped and the identification confirmed in the hand; an account of the Shetland bird is presented in a subsequent article.The occurrence of two individuals in Britain in 2003 suggests that others may have been overlooked in the past, when Taiga Flycatcher was treated as a subspecies of Red-breasted Flycatcher F. parva, which it closely resembles.A brief review of identification criteria likely to be of use in the separation of these two species is presented. ollowing a night of light rain and south- the southern side of Flamborough Head, East easterly winds, the morning of 26th April Yorkshire, and, at 06.55 hrs, discovered an F2003 started dry with strong sunshine. apparent adult male Red-breasted Flycatcher I decided to forego my normal early morning Ficedula parva. While enjoying close views, seawatch and concentrate my efforts on the down to 10 m, using 10× binoculars, I became bushes in the hope of finding newly arrived rather puzzled by the odd appearance of this migrants. I began searching the hedgerows on individual. The most striking feature of the bird Andrew Lassey Andrew Andrew Lassey Andrew 333 & 334. First-summer male Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albicilla, Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire,April 2003. Unlike Red-breasted Flycatcher F. parva, which moults into an adult-male plumage in its third calendar-year,Taiga Flycatcher shows a red throat with grey surround following the pre-breeding body moult in its second calendar-year. 542 © British Birds 98 • October 2005 • 542-546 Taiga Flycatcher in East Yorkshire: new to Britain was the limited extent of red, it being restricted Description to just the throat area, unlike on male Red- Structure breasted Flycatcher in which it typically extends Gave a distinct impression of being stouter than parva onto the upper breast. Other features which and overall more substantial, lacking the delicate caught my eye were an obvious brown cap to appearance so often noticed in parva. The bill looked rather short for parva, and thicker. the head, conspicuous pale tips to the greater- coverts and fairly broad fringes to the tertials; Upperparts none of these features were consistent with my Forehead, crown and nape medium brown, in sun- experience of adult male Red-breasted Fly- light suggesting the colour of the cap of a female catcher. Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla. An eye-stripe effect was The flycatcher generally showed well, as it caused by the extension of the blue-grey sides to the frequently perched halfway up the 5-m-high breast and sides of neck onto the lores and over the eye to form a paler supercilium. Ear-coverts pale Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna bushes, and brown, encircled with grey. Mantle and back colder periodically dropped to the ground to feed. It brown than the cap, merging into the pale brown- struck me as a somewhat clumsy bird, lacking grey rump. Greater coverts brown, tipped paler, giving the finesse of Red-breasted Flycatcher. It never the effect of an indistinct wing-bar, which was visible made aerial sallies, as most flycatchers typically at distance. Flight feathers dark brown with paler do, and tail-cocking and -flicking were kept to a fringes. Tertials blackish-brown with neat, pale grey minimum. fringes to the outer webs ending in a blob on the feather tip. Uppertail-coverts black, with several I took several digital photographs for record feathers showing a small pale tip. Central and distal purposes and, after some 20 minutes, Ian Mar- portion of the tail was blackish with paler tips to the shall approached me to enquire what I was pho- feathers. Basal area of the outer four rectrices white, tographing. After a short discussion outlining this extending to just over half the length of the tail. my concerns over the bird, I suggested that he telephone Mike Pearson and ask him to bring Underparts mist-nets so that we could try to catch it. It was Chin and throat rich orange-red, narrowly bordered dark grey, the entire throat area being encircled by a quickly caught and subsequent examination in broad blue-grey band. This band was broadest at the the hand revealed the full extent of the grey sur- centre of the lower throat and extended onto the round to the throat, a feature that was surpris- breast, where it was equivalent in width to the orange- ingly difficult to confirm in the field. The bill red throat. The grey gave way to cold, pale grey-white was wholly dark and the uppertail-coverts were belly, flanks and undertail-coverts. black. At this stage I was totally convinced that we had a Taiga Flycatcher F. albicilla. Bare parts Both mandibles were blackish, and even in the hand The bird was ringed, measured, pho- there was no indication of a paler base to the lower tographed and a full description was taken. mandible. Legs dark. Brett Richards and others were informed, and arrangements were made to release it in an area with open public access before notifying the pager and bird- information services. It was agreed by all present to release the flycatcher in nearby South Landing, the most suitable area in terms of habitat and feeding potential. Upon release, it flew into thick cover and, for three hours, proved extremely elusive, but it eventually showed well in the late afternoon and evening to the increasingly large gathering of observers. It Reszeter George 335. First-summer male Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albicilla, Flamborough remained loyal to this area, where Head, East Yorkshire,April 2003. One of the highlights of the it was last seen on 29th April. exceptional spring of 2003. British Birds 98 • October 2005 • 542-546 543 Taiga Flycatcher in East Yorkshire: new to Britain Biometrics and wing formula the outer feathers were worn and broken). This wing 70 mm apparent ageing anomaly was resolved by reference to tail 50.5 mm Cederroth et al. (1999), who stated that albicilla bill length 12.0 mm (from skull) assumes advanced plumage more quickly than parva bill width 4.8 mm (measured at the distal and that, unlike male parva, male albicilla are in edge of the nostrils) superficially adult appearance in their second bill depth 3.5 mm (measured at the distal calendar-year. It can be safely concluded, therefore, edge of the nostrils) that the Flamborough bird was a first-summer male. weight 11.3 g Discussion P1 = PC +6.5 mm I had seen nine Red-breasted Flycatchers during P2 = WP – –6.5 mm the spring in East Yorkshire over the previous P3 = WP P4 = WP 20 years, and none had shown any indication of P5 = WP –1.5 mm male plumage. Furthermore, all spring Red- P6 = WP –4.0 mm breasted Flycatchers I had seen had occurred in P10 = WP –16.5 mm the last two weeks of May, so by comparison this bird was virtually three weeks early. primary projection (from tips of secondaries) 17.0 mm It has long been appreciated that ‘red- emarginated primaries P3, P4, P5, P6 (slightly) breasted flycatchers’ breeding to the east of the [Note: PC = longest primary covert Ural Mountains, Russia, differ consistently in WP = wing point (i.e. longest primary) their appearance from birds breeding in primaries numbered ascendantly]. Europe. In the early 1980s, it was established that the songs and calls of the two forms were Ageing of the Flamborough bird quite different. Studies in recent years have At the time of its discovery, limited literature on the shown that the two forms – parva in the west criteria used to age albicilla was available. Based upon and albicilla in the east – are best treated as full criteria valid for Red-breasted Flycatcher, which I am familiar with in the hand, the bright red throat and species, and this treatment was adopted by grey surround initially suggested that the bird was an BOURC in December 2003 (see also pp. adult male. However, other features, including the 538–541). It has been proposed that the eastern pale tips to the greater coverts and the clear pale bird be known as Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albi- fringes to the tertials, pointed towards it being an cilla, a name reflecting its preferred breeding immature. Examination of the tail showed that the habitat. central feathers were sharply pointed, a feature also suggesting that the bird was an immature (the tips to Given that the breeding range of Taiga Fly- catcher extends west to the Ural Mountains, the likeli- hood of vagrancy to western Europe seems high. Although only a few birds were recorded in western Europe prior to the Flamborough bird, all referred to first- winter birds in mid to late autumn. It is, therefore, remarkable that the first example to occur in Britain should be a male in spring. This was, however, quickly followed by a first-winter bird that appeared in Shetland in October 2003 (see pp. Graham Catley Graham 547–550). As the field charac- 336. First-summer male Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albicilla, Flamborough ters that define these similar Head, East Yorkshire,April 2003. Note the head pattern, with brown tones to the crown and ear-coverts contrasting with the grey supercilium and throat species become better known, surround.These features appear unique to Taiga Flycatcher, and are more occurrences can be apparently not found in adult male Red-breasted Flycatcher F.

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