To all you bird experts........

[kas]

I didnt think it was the same one, I just think the bird looks a bit worse for wear as did this one.

[dafi]

Auldtimer have a look in the Collins bird guide and compare pg 357 common crossbill to pg359 common rosefinch and pg 349 for linnet and common redpoll and see what you think of those for a comparison.

I would still go for the crossbill.

[Aaldtimer]

Sorry dafi, I don't have that book. I'm going by this site:- http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/bird...bill/index.asp

and a Readers Digest birdbook.

[dafi]

Oh well here you go then , lets see if this works. the left is the crossbill and the right is the rosefinch. You can see how the grey is more defined in these ilustrations on the crossbill. And the light belly of the rosefinch. Ithink its easyer to start to pull them apart with these pictures for clues.....see what you think.

[nirofo]

The beak on the Rosefinch is much finer than a Crossbill as is easily seen on the photograph in question! Also the crossed mandible is quite discernable if you increase the size and enhance the photo.

nirofo.

[Aaldtimer]

So nirofo, you are of the opinion it's a Rosefinch yes?
I'm not sure by your post.
Personally, I don't have the expertise to enhance the pic, and I don't think any positive ident can come from those pics.
It's a pity they weren't taken against a different background, such as grass, where we might have got a better idea of the overall bird, the notch of the tail for instance. It just looks too "round" for me.
Maybe it's just these old eyes of mine!
The Jury is still out for me!

[nirofo]

No, what I'm saying is the beak of the Rosefinch is finer than that of the Crossbill, the bird in the photo has a much heavier bill than the Rosefinch, which can quite easily be seen if you blow up the picture and enhance it. You can also see that the bill is crossed over!

nirofo.

[Humerous Vegetable]

It's a pity they weren't taken against a different background, such as grass, where we might have got a better idea of the overall bird, the notch of the tail for instance. It just looks too "round" for me.

Silly me! I should've just shot it and stuck it in a wee chair on the lawn, with a cocktail umbrella and sunglasses.
I would like to thank the real experts on here for their help and information on this bird - I think I have learned quite a lot, which was the point of asking the question in the 1st place.

[Aaldtimer]

I didnt think it was the same one, I just think the bird looks a bit worse for wear as did this one.

Ah, sorry Kas, I thought you were going in another direction. Didn't realise you were talking about the original bird.

[Aaldtimer]

No, what I'm saying is the beak of the Rosefinch is finer than that of the Crossbill, the bird in the photo has a much heavier bill than the Rosefinch, which can quite easily be seen if you blow up the picture and enhance it. You can also see that the bill is crossed over!

nirofo.

OK, thanks nirofo for that, just a wee bit confused.
Could you perhaps do the enhancing and re-post the pic as I don't have that expertise.
I'm having a wee bit of a problem with my eyes at the moment, cataract prob in one eye, and it's a struggle !

[Aaldtimer]

Silly me! I should've just shot it and stuck it in a wee chair on the lawn, with a cocktail umbrella and sunglasses.
I would like to thank the real experts on here for their help and information on this bird - I think I have learned quite a lot, which was the point of asking the question in the 1st place.

Oh well, hush my mouth for trying to help at all!

Sorry, I never claimed to be a real expert, just an enthusiast of 50+ years standing!

Don't think I'll bother with any of your queries in future!

Not very humorous at all!