Here’s another pale phase Booted Eagle seen a few days ago on the coast near Nice. Like the one I saw in January, (below), it seems a little out of range to be a resident, although it was circling and appeared to be hunting.

Typically a few dozen migrate along the coast towards Spain and Africa, so it may have been migrating. In 2004, exceptionally, 500 Booted Eagles were seen travelling up the coast from Spain, through the Pyrenees, along the Côte d’Azur eastwards and then presumably heading down through Italy to Africa.

Since then a few have still been coming this way. Although this is not the “normal” migration direction, this year, which is the first year I have observed migrating birds, quite a few birds appeared to be migrating “the wrong way”, including wood pigeons and birds of prey.

Other observers noticed similar behaviour, though whether the birds in question really were heading down Italy or were just flying back to the mountains for a thermal or another reason before continuing their journey to Spain, we had no way of knowing.

Booted Eagles can be much darker than these two individuals but always have pale patches around the inner primary feathers. Notice 6 “fingers” on wing tip, compared to buzzards 5.


Photos copyright: monacoeye • Vaugrenier - October • Camargue - January • France

Bird name: Booted Eagle
Latin: Aquila pennata
Other: Hieraaetus pennatus • Aigle Botté
Family: Accipitridae • Eagles, Birds of Prey

I have it on good authority this was a Booted Eagle… Unusual for this area in the winter.More photos...

© monacoeye • Camargue, France • May 2009 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Greater Flamingo
Latin: Phoenicopterus roseus
Other: Flamingo • Phoenicopterus ruber
Family: Phoenicopteridae • Flamingos

Surprisingly perhaps, the Greater Flamingo is native to France and can be seen quite easily in certain areas such as the Camargue. Flamingos are unmistakeable.

Juveniles have the brown and white colouring. Adults have reddish pink legs and yellow irises, reddish wings with a black border of primary feathers.

There are six flamingo species in the world, four in the Americas and two in the Old World. It's not clear if Greater Flamingos themselves are a separate species, P. roseus, or a subspecies of P. ruber.

The outstretched wings and necks form part of their courtship display. Flamingos are well known for sleeping on one leg, but never toppling over.



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Photos copyright: monacoeye • Cote d’Azur, France • 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Blackcap
Latin: Sylvia atricapilla
Other: Fauvette à tête noire
Family: Sylviidae • Sylviid Warblers

Blackcaps are nice small birds, not overly shy, with an attractive song. They are conveniently colour-coded, black caps are male and red-brown caps are female or juveniles.

They can have sleek plumage or be very chubby and fluffy. The latter are often juveniles. There are a couple of similar birds on the coast here. The Sardinian Warbler is easily differentiated, as its cap runs below the eye, whereas the Blackcap's runs through the eye. The Marsh Tit has a black bib, below the beak, which the Blackcap lacks.

The Blackcap is not uncommon in Monaco and especially visible in the winter.

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Photos copyright: monacoeye • Nice, France • August, 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Ruddy Duck
Latin: Oxyura jamaicensis
Other: Erismature rousse
Family: Anatidae • Ducks

The Ruddy Duck is not originally European but American. Having been introduced in Britain it is now colonising the continent and threatening the endangered White-headed Duck, with which it is hybridizing. Apparently the Ruddy males are "sexually aggressive".

However moves are afoot to "remove", or extirpate, the Ruddy Duck from the ecosystem, in order to save the White Headed Duck, which can be found in southern Spain and a few other small colonies in southern Europe.

In Britain the Ruddy Duck has been labelled a pest by the RSPB and the hunting ban has been lifted on it. This refugee was seen in Nice, presumably working his way down to Grenada to check out the White Headed señoritas!More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Mercantour, France • October, 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Water Pipit
Latin: Anthus spinoletta
Other: Pipit spioncelle
Family: Motacillidae • Pipits

This presumed Water Pipit was seen in the Mercantour at an altitude of about 2000 metres, in a waterlogged meadow with a mountain stream running through it, which is a typical location.

Water Pipits have dark legs whereas Meadow and Tree Pipits have light pinkish legs.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Cote d’Azur, France • Summer 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Whinchat
Latin: Saxicola rubetra
Other: Tarier des prés
Family: Muscicapidae • Old World Flycatchers

Whinchats and Stonechats although not that rare, are very hard to photograph, as they tend to keep their distance and are very small. Hence the poor images … The male (top) gets quite colourful in the spring. The presumed female below - is more monochrome.More photos...

© monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Great Crested Grebe
Latin: Podiceps cristatus
Other: Grèbe huppé • Somormujo Lavanco
Family: Podicipedidae - Grebes
Range:
Similar:

This poor fellow was caught in a fishing net when we found him, and was exhausting himself thrashing around trying to escape. Fortunately we were able to release him with no apparent damage to himself - or ourselves from that sharp beak!

After a minute or two he seemed to regain his composure and swam off, away from the net this time. He looked as if he would be OK…



Below a shot of another individual, on Lake Como, in Italy, showing the familiar crest.

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© monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Red Necked Grebe
Latin: Podiceps grisegena
Other:
Family: Podicipedidae - Grebes
Range:
Similar:

A Red Necked Grebe with chick seen in the Danube Delta. This Grebe does not live in the western Mediterranean.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Europe • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Eurasian Coot
Latin: Fulica atra
Other: Coot • Foulque Macroule • Focha Común • Blässhuhn • Folaga • Galeirão-Comum
Family: Rallidae - Rails, Coots

The Coot is probably the bird you are most likely to see near a lake or slow waterway in Europe, after the Mallard.

Easy to identify from its bobbing head movement and white shield that extends from the bill, which on closer inspection can be slightly pinkish. Plumage generally appears black.

There are about 11 Coot species worldwide, mostly in South America. The Eurasian Coot is the only one you are likely to see in Europe, though the Red Knobbed Coot can be found in southwest Spain.

The Coots are parts of the Rail family, which includes the larger Moorhen, which has a red bill with yellow tip, and is often seen in the same riverside habitat.

Notice the long lobed toes, even on the Coot chick, seen in Geneva, in June. The photo of several hundred on a lake was taken in the Camargue in January.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Nice, France • May June 09 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Hooded Merganser
Latin: Mergus cucullatus
Other:
Family: Anatidae • Mergansers • Ducks

Although native to North America, these Hooded Mergansers are from a park in Nice, presumably captive, though there are many escapes.More photos...

© GW monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Pygmy Cormorant
Latin: Phalacrocorax pygmaeus
Other: Cormoranul mic (Romanian)
Family: Phalacrocoracidae • Cormorants
Range:
Similar:

The Pygmy Cormorant is the smallest of all 40 odd Cormorant species. It is about 50 cm long - in comparison the Great Cormorant is about 80 cm.

Its main breeding area is the Danube Delta and it is classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN list due to loss of habitat.

There are currently an estimated 4000 breeding pairs in the Delta of a total of about 7000 in Europe.

The Pygmy Cormorant is mostly black with small white tufts during breeding season.

It can be distinguished from the Great Cormorant by size if both are seen together (pic below, Pygmy on right of tree). Its bill is much smaller, its tail is proportionally longer due its small body size, and it has no yellow markings on its face. It can also have a brownish neck and looks generally more like a duck or crow than the Great Cormorant does.


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Photos copyright: monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Eurasian Hoopoe
Latin: Upupa epops
Other: Huppe fasciée • Upupiformes
Family: Upupidae • Hoopoe

In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy the Hoopoe gets its own order, Upupiformes. Otherwise it falls into Coraciiformes, the same general grouping as Rollers, Kingfishers and Bee-Eaters.

A great looking crested bird - I saw several in my stay in the Danube Delta and recently one in the local park.

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Photos copyright: monacoeye • SE France • Jan 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Wallcreeper
Latin: Tichodroma muraria
Other: Tichodrome échelette
Family: Sittidae • Nuthatches & Wallcreeper

The Wallcreeper is quite a small bird, related to nuthatches and treecreepers, which when combined with his predilection for hanging off rock faces above 1000m can make him very difficult to photograph.

Fortunately they migrate down to the south coast in the winter and can even be found on town walls - although this one was quite high up.

It has the most spectacular markings of any European bird, but oddly enough, when I took this photo I didn't actually see the red wings.

That's because he only opens his wings while fluttering from one spot to another - so without a scope or binoculars he's very difficult to recognise.
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© GW - monacoeye • All rights reserved • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009

Bird name: Eurasian Golden Oriole
Latin: Oriolus oriolus
Other: Golden Oriole. Loriot d'Europe (Fr)
Family: Oriolidae • Orioles
Range:
Similar:

The only Golden Oriole I've ever seen, as he flitted across a canal in the Danube Delta for about 3 seconds.

Not a brilliant shot, I grant you, but I was pretty chuffed with this observation on my first day, after the tour guide, who had been visiting this area weekly for four years, admitted that to her great frustration, despite peering through binoculars for hours on end, she had never seen a single Golden Oriole!

Unfortunately for her she was at the back of the boat reading a paper when this one flew by the front end. No amount of squinting at my camera's small LCD was going to convince her that this was indeed a Golden Oriole she had just missed either.

The proof is nevertheless there, for all to see, in glorious black and yellow!

The Golden Oriole is Europe's only oriole.

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Crested Lark
Latin: Galerida cristata
Other: Cochevis huppé
Family: Alaudidae • Larks

Photo: monacoeye • Romania • May 2009

The Crested Lark is not only a slightly comical looking bird but it seems to like nothing better than to dodge the wheels of fast moving traffic on hot European roads.

I stopped my car to take a picture of this one in Romania and observed it for a while playing chicken with oncoming traffic. It doesn't fly very much, preferring to run across the road with those long legs.

Although they're completely unrelated, it's hard not to think "roadrunner" when you see one of these.More photos...

Photo: monacoeye • Cannes • September 2009

Bird name: Short Toed Treecreeper
Latin: Certhia brachydactyla
Other: Grimpereau des jardins
Family: Certhiidae • Treecreepers

The Short Toed Treecreeper is a great bird. It scurries around along tree trunks, using that needle-sharp beak of its to weedle out small insects from under the bark.

I noticed this one the other day near Cannes and I saw another last January in Hyères, which leads me to suspect they like to spend their winters down on the Cote d'Azur.

It also has a very distinctive song which is crystal clear and cuts through most other sounds.

I've identified this one by the small white line contouring the outer part of the longest feather of the alula (a small set of feathers in the shoulder region) - one of the better distinguishing features.More photos...

Photo: monacoeye • Hyères • January 2009

Bird name: Eurasian Treecreeper
Latin: Certhia familiaris
Other: Common Treecreeper • Grimpereau des bois
Family: Certhiidae • Treecreepers

Actually, I have a fair idea that the bird pictured here is another Short-Toed Treecreper, but since nobody seems to have much of an idea how tell these two types of Treecreeper apart, I thought I'd get away with using it as an illustration for the Eurasian Treecreeper until I get a better one!

Treecreepers form a small group of nine very similar looking birds, ten if you include the more distantly related Spotted Creeper. Their closest relatives are Nuthatches and the Wallcreeper. There are two species in Europe, the Eurasian and the Short-Toed Treecreeper.More photos...

Photo copyright: monacoeye

Bird name: Nicobar Pigeon
Latin: Caloenas nicobarica
Other:
Family: Columbidae • Pigeons & Doves

The Nicobar Pigeon is native from the Nicobar Islands east through the Malay archipelago to the Solomons. A popular zoo bird in Europe because of its gorgeous irridescent green plumage.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Red Backed Shrike
Latin: Lanius collurio
Other: Pie-grièche écorcheur
Family: Laniidae - Shrikes
Range:
Similar:

Female to the left and male, with black Zorro mask, to the right. The Red Backed Shrike was most common of the three shrikes I have seen so far.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Danube Delta, Romania • May 2009 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Lesser Grey Shrike
Latin: Lanius minor
Other: Pie-grièche à poitrine rose (Fr) • Lesser Gray Shrike
Family: Laniidae - Shrikes
Range:
Similar:

This Lesser Grey Shrike was right at the top of the tallest tree in the marshes, in the Danube Delta.More photos...

Photos copyright: monacoeye • Nice • May 2009

Bird name: Woodchat Shrike
Latin: Lanius senator
Other: Pie-grièche à tête rousse
Family: Laniidae - Shrikes
Range:
Similar:

Woodchat Shrikes are not the easiest of birds to spot with the naked eye around these parts - this was the only one I saw all year.More photos...

Photo copyright: TH.monacoeye • Do not copy • Images: Australia

Bird name: Singing Honeyeater
Latin: Lichenostomus virescens
Other:
Family: Melaphagidae • Honeyeaters

Lovely shot of a Singing Honeyeater in Australia.More photos...