Finsch's Wheatear

Very surprised to find this Finsch's Wheatear in the carrot fields this morning. This is a really nice patch bird for me and not one I expected to see in this habitat.

White band running down back. Pale flight feathers and even tail band, not extending up the sides as in Black-eared.

  
Looks a bit mottled - 1st year male?

Update: Lanner Falcon, a fantastic adult Eastern Imperial Eagle and Northern Lapwing - now I know winter is here.

Yellow-browed Warbler and an interesting Cetti's

Rather quiet in the pistachia patch this morning - a few Bluethroats, Redstarts, Stonechats, couple of Sardinian Warblers etc. Darren and I were saying we needed quality over quantity if the birds were slow and certainly the birds we ringed were more colourful and a lot more interesting (to me) than Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs. On our final round and as we were putting the nets away we spotted a tiny warbler. The first Yellow-browed Warbler for Sde Boker!

Beautiful little bird. There have been a reasonable number this year - Meidad Goren saw three this morning in Nafcha alone - let's hope they follow the increasing westward trend as seen in the UK.

Bluethroat interlude.

And now for some controversy. Cetti's Warbler - looks like a classic Cettia cetti nominate.

 

Ten tail feathers - the only species with this number I think.

Unusual enough for Sde Boker but this individual from 10 days ago looks very different. Note the lighter, greyer tones and, strikingly, the white eye stripe. Cettia cetti albiventris? 

The 'ventris' looks more 'albi' than on the standard Cetti's and without the white feather tips.

If this is C.c. albiventris this would be a very rare migrant from Kazakhstan so all comments welcome.