Avalus took some good photos of this little guy, but he hasn’t been able to identify what type of bird this is. My bird guides are North American, so not really useful to identify a European species, but I bet that one of you can help us figure this out. Leave us a comment with your ideas.
©Avalus, all rights reserved
©Avalus, all rights reserved
©Avalus, all rights reserved
©Avalus, all rights reserved
As a start, looks like a thrush in the genus Turdus.
Looking more, maybe Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris)?
Definitely a fieldfare
Youp, a fieldfare.
Hi,
Nice bird! Yes, a Fieldfare -- being from the wrong side of the pond, as it were, I’ve almost never seen one.
By the way, not such a “little guy” really -- as thrushes go, more or less mid/upper-mid sized (25 cm body length).
Judging from its expression, it appears to be an undercover bird and does not want to be recognized.
In German it’s a Wachholderdrossel. Nice find, I only ever spotted one here, though they must live in the woods.
Cool, thanks to all you people!
I like Marcus answer xD
Apparently, fieldfares mainly breed in northern areas, and breeding season (summer) is also when they come to raid gardens and strawberry farms for soft fruit. Here in Finland fieldfare is a well known garden pest, and generally considered one of the least “pretty” birds. It’s the only thrush species I can identify on sight.
A few years ago, there was a fieldfare nest in shrubs right under my university office window. There were three chicks that suddenly disappeared well before they were fully grown. Probably eaten by a smart and attentive crow that found the nest because humans kept looking at it. OTOH, the nest wasn’t very well hidden to begin with.