Tenerife Blue Chaffinch by Mark Woodhead

There aren't many all-blue songbirds in the Western Palearctic, but the very smart Tenerife Blue Chaffinch is one of them. Endemic to its namesake island, this smart bird inhabits high-elevation pine forests on the island, where it can be found with relative ease and is also rather photogenic at times. However, it is often observed hopping around on the ground as it feeds, so Mark Woodhead's excellent photo of a bird perched in profile on a branch with a clean, green background certainly stood out. Well exposed in soft, neutral light conditions, Mark has very much nailed the shot of this desirable speices.

Other notable images

Short-toed Snake Eagle and Yellow-legged Gull, Gibraltar, Gibraltar (Robert Perez).

Mute Swan, Hill Head, Hampshire (Peter Honeysett).

Black-billed Gull, Queenstown, New Zealand (Neil Loverock).

Egyptian Goose, Beckenham, London (Mark Phillips).

Mallard, Ham Wall RSPB, Somerset & Bristol (Carl Bovis).

Myrtle Warbler, Kilwinning, Ayrshire (Raoul Chandrasakera).

Coal Tit, Loch Garten RSPB, Highland (Robert Kitchen).

Blackbird, Forres, Moray & Nairn (Graham Larrington).

Waxwing, Lyme Regis, Dorset (Tim White).

Waxwing, Gedling, Nottinghamshire (Glyn Sellors).