Hi Birdo 's
It's in the size of the bird ? Marsh Sandpiper is a lot smaller than a Greenshank , but the Wood sandpiper is about the same size. One would think it could be a Greenshank by the slightly upturn bill.
Anyway merry christmas to all
The first bird in this thread is no doubt a Common Greenshank. Marsh Sandpiper has a much thinner needle-like & straighter bill.
And pacman your bird is also a Common Greenshank, it's too big for a Marsh Sandpiper.
Common Greenshank has a similar (only slightly less) body size/length to a Black-winged Stilt, thou Greenshank has much shorter legs.
Marsh Sandpiper is significantly smaller than a Greenshank & a Black-winged Stilt. Marsh Sandpipers look tiny when standing beside a Stilt which could easily walk over the top of them.
Hi Peter, your lastest photo had me thinking, it does appear to be much smaller in that photo & if I only saw that photo I would be thinking Marshie, but I wouldn't want to make a call on that photo alone. But I haven't changed my mind about the birds in the other photos. In both your first 2 photos you can see a faint dark line coming away from the bill towards the eye, with a break in the dark line just before the eye, indicating Greenshank. A Marshie in non-breeding plumage(this time of year) would normally be clean white around the bill area. Also if it was a Marshie there should be evidence of a white eyebrow going past the eye, which is not evident in either of your photos. To me the bills just seem all wrong for Marshie. In my opinion when you look at a Marshie bill from side-on, it appears as though the majority of the decrease in thinkness(top to bottom) is in the first half of the bill, whereas with Greenshank there is not as much decrease in bill thinkness at the start of the bill, it's more apparent towards the end. Hope that makes sense.
I'm definitely no wader expert, far from it. Happy to hear other opinions.
Shorebird ID is not my forte and I have not seen a Marsh Sandpiper but this looks good to me.
(I had to email someone on the weekend to check my ID of a non-breeding Red-necked Stint)
Peter
Nor mine but a look in Morcombe's Field Guide to Australian Birds suggests that it is.
Hi BareFootDuck
I do search images, dont trust them!
Regards Alan
Hi Birdo 's
It's in the size of the bird ? Marsh Sandpiper is a lot smaller than a Greenshank , but the Wood sandpiper is about the same size. One would think it could be a Greenshank by the slightly upturn bill.
Anyway merry christmas to all
See it! Hear it!
Mid-North Coast NSW
I should make this type of statement more frequently because at Pitt Town Lagoon today I saw and photographed
My ID points are - lightly barred tail, streaking on head, size
Peter
btw I have not yet seen an Australian Painted Snipe
Peter
The first bird in this thread is no doubt a Common Greenshank. Marsh Sandpiper has a much thinner needle-like & straighter bill.
And pacman your bird is also a Common Greenshank, it's too big for a Marsh Sandpiper.
Common Greenshank has a similar (only slightly less) body size/length to a Black-winged Stilt, thou Greenshank has much shorter legs.
Marsh Sandpiper is significantly smaller than a Greenshank & a Black-winged Stilt. Marsh Sandpipers look tiny when standing beside a Stilt which could easily walk over the top of them.
Cheers, Steve
thanks Steve
my recollection is that the Greenshank/Sandpiper was a lot smaller than the Stilt, I will attach another pic
my Guide also referred to a black line form the beak through the eye, I cannot see this on my bird
further comments please
Peter
Hi Peter, your lastest photo had me thinking, it does appear to be much smaller in that photo & if I only saw that photo I would be thinking Marshie, but I wouldn't want to make a call on that photo alone. But I haven't changed my mind about the birds in the other photos. In both your first 2 photos you can see a faint dark line coming away from the bill towards the eye, with a break in the dark line just before the eye, indicating Greenshank. A Marshie in non-breeding plumage(this time of year) would normally be clean white around the bill area. Also if it was a Marshie there should be evidence of a white eyebrow going past the eye, which is not evident in either of your photos. To me the bills just seem all wrong for Marshie. In my opinion when you look at a Marshie bill from side-on, it appears as though the majority of the decrease in thinkness(top to bottom) is in the first half of the bill, whereas with Greenshank there is not as much decrease in bill thinkness at the start of the bill, it's more apparent towards the end. Hope that makes sense.
I'm definitely no wader expert, far from it. Happy to hear other opinions.
Cheers, Steve
thanks Steve
Peter