FIELDFARE
FIELDFARE – (Turdus pilaris) – (See images below)
DESCRIPTION: The Fieldfare adult male head and nape are grey, back and wings are grey-brown, and belly is white. Throat is cinnamon with fine brown streaks. Breast and flanks are cinnamon with brown spots. Eyes are black, legs and feet dark grey. Bill is yellowish. Female is similar to male but with duller colors. Juvenile is duller than the female. Bird length is about 25 cm (9 inches).
VOICE: https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Turdus-pilaris
NAME: The English name ‘Fieldfare’ would date back to the Middle Ages and would have meant ‘travelling through the fields’. Latin genus name ‘Turdus’ means ‘thrush’. Latin species name ‘pilaris’ means ‘to deprive of hair’. This misnomer stems from a confusion between two Greek words: ‘trikhas’ (thrush), and trikhos (hair) (from Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names).
HABITAT: Mixed forest near wetlands. Also seen in inhabited areas such as farmlands, parks and gardens.
DIET: Omnivorous – insects, worms, snails, berries, fruit, seeds and grain.
NESTING: Nests in loose colonies. Nest is an open cup structure built in a tree or on the ground. Usually five or six light blue eggs are laid, incubated by female. Young fed by both parents.
DISTRIBUTION: Breeds in Scandinavia and Russia (except east Siberia), winters in southern Europe. Year-round resident in the regions between breeding and wintering grounds.
Distribution Map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fieldfare – /media/File:Turdus_pilaris_map.svg
ON PEI: Does not breed on Prince Edward Island, sightings listed as ‘accidental’ so far. See note below on bird vagrancy.
CONSERVATION: Numbers in the 70 million, population widespread, not currently at risk.
NOTES: This Old World species is part of the Thrush family.
Vagrancy: In biology this means an animal going way outside its normal range. For birds, this can happen when there are storms and they get blown off course. On other times, the bird simply wanders in a different direction than usual. Here’s an article about vagrancy in birds.
SIMILAR SPECIES: Hermit Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, Dusky Thrush
REFERENCES: http://fieldguide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=ABPBJ20040 (Montana Field Guide)
https://identify.whatbird.com/obj/753/behavior/Fieldfare.aspx
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/fieldfare (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds)
http://www.garden-birds.co.uk/birds/fieldfare.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fieldfare
http://www.luontoportti.com/suomi/en/linnut/fieldfare (Nature Gate Finland)
https://www.bto.org/understanding-birds/species-focus/fieldfare (British Trust for Ornithology)
DESCRIPTION: The Fieldfare adult male head and nape are grey, back and wings are grey-brown, and belly is white. Throat is cinnamon with fine brown streaks. Breast and flanks are cinnamon with brown spots. Eyes are black, legs and feet dark grey. Bill is yellowish. Female is similar to male but with duller colors. Juvenile is duller than the female. Bird length is about 25 cm (9 inches).
VOICE: https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Turdus-pilaris
NAME: The English name ‘Fieldfare’ would date back to the Middle Ages and would have meant ‘travelling through the fields’. Latin genus name ‘Turdus’ means ‘thrush’. Latin species name ‘pilaris’ means ‘to deprive of hair’. This misnomer stems from a confusion between two Greek words: ‘trikhas’ (thrush), and trikhos (hair) (from Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names).
HABITAT: Mixed forest near wetlands. Also seen in inhabited areas such as farmlands, parks and gardens.
DIET: Omnivorous – insects, worms, snails, berries, fruit, seeds and grain.
NESTING: Nests in loose colonies. Nest is an open cup structure built in a tree or on the ground. Usually five or six light blue eggs are laid, incubated by female. Young fed by both parents.
DISTRIBUTION: Breeds in Scandinavia and Russia (except east Siberia), winters in southern Europe. Year-round resident in the regions between breeding and wintering grounds.
Distribution Map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fieldfare – /media/File:Turdus_pilaris_map.svg
ON PEI: Does not breed on Prince Edward Island, sightings listed as ‘accidental’ so far. See note below on bird vagrancy.
CONSERVATION: Numbers in the 70 million, population widespread, not currently at risk.
NOTES: This Old World species is part of the Thrush family.
Vagrancy: In biology this means an animal going way outside its normal range. For birds, this can happen when there are storms and they get blown off course. On other times, the bird simply wanders in a different direction than usual. Here’s an article about vagrancy in birds.
SIMILAR SPECIES: Hermit Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, Dusky Thrush
REFERENCES: http://fieldguide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=ABPBJ20040 (Montana Field Guide)
https://identify.whatbird.com/obj/753/behavior/Fieldfare.aspx
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/fieldfare (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds)
http://www.garden-birds.co.uk/birds/fieldfare.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fieldfare
http://www.luontoportti.com/suomi/en/linnut/fieldfare (Nature Gate Finland)
https://www.bto.org/understanding-birds/species-focus/fieldfare (British Trust for Ornithology)
 |
| Fieldfare, Poland, Adam Kumiszcza |
 |
| Fieldfare, by Grzegorz Golebiowski |
 |
| Fieldfare flock, Germany, by N p holmes |