Jonathmartinez

Wagtail also migrate well in Hunan, and after read this interesting post, i've spent time this afternoon to spot group of wagtail.
I find pretty different kind of individual, no one matching exactly the bird from Po Toi, but some ressembling closely. I've find two bird with breast patch reaching into throat and not well cut as on the Po toi bird, on most of evident "leucopsis" the patch have a clear limit just under the throat. ALso on both birds there is a link from the rear ear-covert to the breast patch. All of them have a medium dark grey mantle with a blackish cap and white forecrown. I found a other bird with a small  breast patch but showing some blackish coming into the throat and also few blackish on ear-covert and thin blackish mallard stripe.
May be i'm totally out of subject, i don't know if there is a link between this birds and the one from Po Toi but seems there is a lot of variation in this migrating group.
At the same place, was 3 "lugens" on 30/08 and a intergrade alboides x leucopsis on 02/09 (thanks again Paul for help on ID), and a 1 cy Citrine Wagtail today...
Below the pics of the 3 birds i speak above.

Jonathmartinez

Hi Geoff,

Less 1 h, Jonathan
Yes i also was thinking about this black splodges and that should indicate that this bird have more chance to belong to "leucopsis".
But it's interesting to see the variation of the breast patch on this different birds.
I spend time again this morning, on wagtail watching,on near fifty birds spotted i found only one with such black patch coming into the troat but also not so clear cut. I join the photo below, also showing the rump.
The feature of the rump is interesting.
I've find a link showing well the rump of a "baicailensis", looks greyish with some feather with black edge.
http://www.biolib.cz/en/taxon/id686829/

I've check all the pictures of my birds, and they all show well black rump, include this morning bird. So i like the supposition of 1stW "leucopsis", assuming there adulte plumage, that could explain why all of them have so unclear breast patch border, looks like this patch is reducing into a normal adulte "leucopsis" patch.My third bird in my past post, is maybe a first winter with more advanced moulting, more black spodges on back and more reduce breast patch with some few blackish rest in the throat and ear-covert.

Have you the date of the bird of 2006-07.
On your bird the proportion of black on the head and breast patch is more important than on all of my birds, but is also not so well cut, so i don't know what think about. As you said maybe the rump feature is the key to identify this bird. Hope you can get some pics of it.

I will post the pics late over my authorized poor limit file's size per day!

Jonathmartinez

here are the two pics :