Songbird Duo

I've combined blips of a Cetti's Warbler and a Yellow Wagtail, taken in the Mas d'Agon area of the Camargue in southern France. Very special, even though the birds are small.

Neither bird is especially rare, but neither is easy to photograph (putting it mildly). Cetti's (on the left) is far easier to hear than see--it hides in clumps of bushes, singing an explosively loud song with an irregular series of metallic notes--often so close it's startling, but it virtually never shows itself for more than a few seconds. This morning's opportunity was an extraordinary exception.

Yellow wagtails are much easier to see, and this one was amazingly cooperative--our car flushed it to this reed by by the road where it stayed for at least a couple of minutes, almost saying "Like that position? Well try this!", shifting every so often. It sang as well, but with a much more "modest" voice, to quote our Collins bird guide. Its bright yellow breast is unfortunately only partly visible.