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Case Summary for:
Submission No 264: Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea, Simpson’s Gap National Park, NT 15-17th March 1999. Submitted by Jane Bannister. Verdict: Accepted A case that relates to the sighting of a bird observed at a waterhole situated at the bottom of a deep gorge in a sandy dry river bed at Simpson’s Gap National Park which is part of the MacDonnell ranges, NT. The bird was observed on a number of occasions for periods of up to 2 ½ hours between the 15th and 17th March 1999 allowing ample opportunity to note salient characters. Important features were noted that help to safely eliminate similar wagtail species including: The pale legs and feet, predominantly grey upperparts, olive-yellow rump, bright yellow undertail coverts, long white supercilium, very long tail and the call described as a “double stacatto tchik - tchik”. The committee has no hesitation in unanimously accepting this bird as a Grey Wagtail of unknown age, commenting further (as with Case 234), that on the basis of distribution they are most likely of the East Asian subspecies M. c. robusta, which apparently cannot be separated from nominate cinerea in the field (Cramp 1988). This sighting represents the 7th confirmed record for Australia. References and Bibliography:
Tony Palliser |