The last two days, between 4.30 and 5.30 (later than I see most birds) I have seen a solitary visitor to my peanut feeder. The bird appeared to have a grey head, brown back and then black and white Vs leading down to the tail. I had a quick look in my RSPB guide and the possible contenders are:
Jay - but these are normally ground feeders if I'm correct
Female chaffinch - but I can't tell from the pic if these have a grey head or not? And the guide says they are rarely seen on feeders.
What do you guys reckon?
Hi,
it sounds like a female chaffinch - they DO feed on feeders.
Some books say Robins don't either, but they do :)
S
For advice about Birding, Identification,field guides, binoculars, scopes, tripods, etc - put 'Birding Tips' into the search box
Yes I have seen both chaffinches and robins on feeders
Sarah
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bramble67/
A jay is very much bigger than a chaffinch (about the size of a dove) and has a prominent white rump.
A female chaffinch is a small brownish garden bird with some pretty pale/white markings. Very different from the male.
Hot tip: go to Google Images:
http://www.google.com/advanced_image_search
Search for any bird and you are likely to get a wide range of free photos which will give you a clearer idea than a single "reference shot" in a spotter's book. "Jay" is a bad example, though, because there are several birds called jays, and it is also the name of various singers, actors, sports stars, etc. You may have a similar problem with "Robin".
Chaffinch:
http://www.google.com/images?as_q=&hl=en&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=chaffinch&as_oq=&as_eq=&imgtype=&imgsz=&imgw=&imgh=&imgar=&as_filetype=&imgc=&as_sitesearch=&as_rights=&safe=images&as_st=y