Description I did for Cyprus rarities commiteee. 1st Summer bird! Turn away if you're bored.
"On 21st April 12 I was birding Cape Korucam and there seemed to be a little more migration. A trickle of raptors was evident (mainly Pallid Harriers). I drove to the tip to see if these were picking up thermals over the barren, stony ground there, thereby allowing me to study plumage.
At about 12.30pm, I spotted a black and white wheatear on bare ground north of the road. I stopped to check it through the car window, but another bird flew up from next to the car. I thought it was a Green Sandpiper. I got out and found the latter bird perched c100 yards away. As soon as I saw its plumage and, especially its jizz, I knew it was a Hooded Wheatear, having seen several in Israel. I knew these were quite rare in ‘Cyprus’ so studied it carefully down to c30 yards. It behaved impeccably showing plumage, jizz, behaviour and habitat preferences that clinched the ID.
I don’t use cameras. I knew a birder with a camera had gone to a nearby cafe. So I drove there. He'd gone. A group of birders was there. One asked if I’d seen anything. I told him about the bird. It was amusing to see his failed attempts to hide his disbelief (I didn’t blame him). I showed him my field sketch. As he quizzed me I learned he was Steve Cale whose site guide I was using. I returned to the tip, followed by Steve and his group. The bird was gone. Oh dear! Steve set off with his group. I spotted what looked like the bird at distance (nearer the group in fact).  I set off, calling for the group to check the bird. Steve got his scope on it. He gave me the thumbs up. Only then did he reveal it was a lifer for him and a first for N. Cyprus. The group watched the bird for quite a while and got photos and video. The following is based on what was written prior to the group’s arrival.
Habitat the tip is barren, rocky and arid. Very like the places I have seen the bird in Israel.
Size little available for immediate comparison. About as Northern Wheatear, a tad larger and very different shape.
Behaviour the bird sat around a lot between short, low flights. Once, it suddenly took off flying high and chased a butterfly/moth before returning to the ground. I had forgotten this was an ID feature.
Jizz a ‘long’ wheatear with an almost horizontal, not upright, stance. Long-billed and long-tailed with a shallow crown and long, sloping nape and forehead. Whole shape remind me of Asian Starling species. Later, Steve Cale said its jizz was like a Rock Thrush which was apt cf Blue Rock.
Soft Parts
Bill an immediately arresting feature. It was long and spindly. Measured as at least 1 ¼  times the loral distance (front of eye to base of bill). It tilted upwards slightly from the face. It was all dark – black. Eyes and legs were black.
Plumage
Immediately clear this was a 1st summer male. The retained, juvenile wing feathers were very obviously faded brown. The bird looked black, brown and white in consequence. Not black and white. See detail below.
Tail I knew this was crucial and checked it carefully. Tail was all white apart from two central tail feathers, which looked black except through the ‘scope when they were seen to be a faded tan-brown.  There were black tips somewhere on the outermost tail feathers. Overall, it looked white with a dark central stem and dark outer corners at the tip. Only White-crowned Black Wheatear shares this tail pattern but has a different jizz and plumage otherwise. I’ve seen many.
Head a white cap above the eye line extended, roughly, from forehead to nape. It was partly suffused with grey. In profile, it was deepest in mid-crown, narrowing as it dropped down the nape. The rest of the head was black but peppered with brown-grey where ‘winter plumage’ pale feather tips remained.
Upperparts
Mantle and scapulars black but with some peppering as above.  Back/rump was hard to judge as at times the bird fluffed up this area.The whole area looked white from about level with the base of the innermost tertials to the tail.   
Underparts
The black of the head continued down onto the breast as an unbroken black bib, peppered with crescentic pale tips. This bib was measured in the field as falling beyond the tips of the longest median coverts on the closed wing. The rest of the underparts were white.
Wings
At rest, the carpal bend presented as an isolated faded brown area, presumably owing to retained juvenile lesser (and possibly marginal) coverts, contrasting with median coverts which were a dull black, tipped grey (presumably new?). The greater coverts were a more solid, deeper black. Some  with grey tips, some with rusty brown tips. At a distance, the greater coverts presented as a solid ‘bloc’. It is assumed these were, mostly, new adult feathers - no moult contrast was noted in the field. Primary coverts and all flight feathers were worn, brown retained juvenile feathers. NB notes are unclear, but imply this included the tertials. The innermost tertial tip fell a long way short of the base of the middle tertial which was, by contrast, much closer to the outermost tip.
Primary projection was noted as about 100% and 70% . Not sure which was right! There were at least five and, probably, six exposed primary tips in the folded wing. Spacing not noted.
Tail:long for a Wheatear,measured in the field as about  ¼  as long as the primary projection

Mick's field sketches.

Yes, it could probably do with a bit of 'shadow/highlight' adjustment in Photoshop. Contrary to common belief, it's very often necessary to do a bit of mild tinkering if you want to produce an image which most honestly and accurately depicts what was actually seen.

I presume Alf is suggesting some photographers can't be trusted? Or do I get it wrong?

back to the bird, reminds me I need to look up actual Hooded Wheat moult as, normally, I'd expect some of the outer greater covs at least to be old juv ones as with most Passerines: am wondering if species living in more southerly, warmer clines might replace some juv feathers sooner - not uncommon in Gulls for example. Saw juv Glaucous Gull this evening at Broomhead - wish we had some.

Dave - any photos of different sex/aged birds taken in HBW?

Continuing with the Wheatear theme an adult male Northern Wheatear photographed on 12 August in plumage most local birders are probably unfamiliar with, click on this image to get the full screen pic.

Thanks for that Michael!  I remember reading up on this at the time I took the photo in 2008, anyhow I am busy at the moment as one of my offspring is going back to uni today so I will either post my interpretation of what is going on either later today or tomorrow.
Can't wait for the teacher to mark it

The site does allows proxy access. It will be your proxy server, wherever you are, that doesn't allow access to certain sites. This is generally done to prevent security breaches.

First of all a bit of simplistic terminology which might be instructive for some birders with regard to moult in birds:

Pre-basic moult (resulting in basic plumage) usually occurs after the breeding season.
Pre-alternate moult (resulting in breeding plumage) is prior to the breeding season.

I consider this individual to be an adult male Northern Wheatear and more than likely of the leucorhoa race which breeds in Iceland and Greenland.

The bird would appear to have dark ear-coverts, lores, mask and has long dark wings, revealing seven primary tips, with narrow pale fringes whilst the head and mantle shows fluffy grey feathering.

The primaries and retrices appear broad and fresh and show no sign of wear which is consistent with the accepted doctrine that Northern Wheatear undergo a complete pre-basic moult on their breeding grounds in late summer.

Incidentally it is thought that the Northern Wheatear is only one of two Old World Chats, the other being Bluethroat to have very limited pre-alternate moults, which I understand is due to the fact that they breed in mostly exposed habitats, either in neartic or other high altitude regions, are mainly terrestrial feeders and in addition to that they are extremely long-distance migrants for birds of their size, so basically they have limited time to breed, day length is not a issue in the northern hemisphere in mid-summer, they are mainly ground feeders therefore it makes a lot of sense to endure a complete pre-moult on their breeding grounds before a bird weighing no more than 25 grams attempts to fly in the region of 7500 kilometres to sub Saharan Africa.

There is a fair bit of evidence out there that suggests that any limited pre-alternate moults are more extensive in male birds, however more recent scientific research would suggest that the dramatic plumage changes between autumn and spring are in fact due to feather wear and tear rather than moult.

Apparently one third of the body feathers of a Northern Wheatear wear off on their wintering grounds in order for that transformation to take place.

I find it fascinating that since I first photographed this bird in 2008 scientific research has rewritten the moult of a Northern Wheatear and proved that they have a very limited pre-alternate moult on their wintering grounds.

I have attached the following link of a similar bird to the one that I photographed that was netted on 29 August 2006 for comparison.

http://www.davidnorman.org.uk/MRG/Another%20autumn%20season.htm

I will leave it at that for now, I have purposely omitted some additional information in relation to this sighting, however I do not believe it is crucial to the identification of this bird.