We drove up the Adriatic coast from Shkodër, Albania to the picture-postcard town sea-side of Budva, Montenegro yesterday, and I set out early this morning to see who I could see. There hasn’t been much sun yet this trip, and today definitely did not break that trend.
One of the first birds I spotted, way before there was enough light for my camera, was this bold, curious, or oblivious European robin, who posed nice and still for me. “Good morning, Cutie!”
There were a bunch of common chaffinches foraging in a lawn, and they were far too busy to stand still for a second, but I must have lucked out and caught this one right between hops.
I got all excited when I saw this black-and-white mystery bird, which I was sure I had never seen before. Things got even more exciting when google image search suggested that it was a Nilgiri flycatcher, which has “a very restricted range in the hills of southern India,” or a White-sided Flowerpiercer, which is found only in the Andes of South America. In reality, however, it has turned out just to be the first black redstart of the western male persuasion that I’ve seen. Thus, it appears that all the black redstarts I’ve seen so far have been female. Oh well. Live and learn, eh?
Speaking of female black redstarts, look who gave me one of the nicest poses yet. “Thanks, Sweetie!”
Finally, there’s a little stream that runs through town, and I found both a grey wagtail, which we just saw in Vienna, and the first white wagtail of the trip.
Tomorrow is forecast to be just as cloudy as today, but at least the precipitation should wrap up before dawn, and we’re getting a late start to sight-seeing, so I hope to get another crack at this. Wish me luck!
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 