The Tree Pipit Captured in Stunning Photos by Peter Lengyel on the Igniș Plateau

On May 6, 2026, on the Igniș Volcanic Plateau, north of the Pleșca area in Câmpul Ștefan, Peter Lengyel photographed a tree pipit (Anthus trivialis). He identified the bird himself, and the identification was confirmed on iNaturalist by Ville Räihä, a long-time birder with over 30 years of experience and an interest in identification, taxonomy, and migratory bird monitoring. Räihä is also a former member of the local rarities committee in Southwestern Finland.

In English, the species is called the tree pipit; in Hungarian, it is known as erdei pityer; and in Romanian, it is called fâsă de pădure.

On iNaturalist, the species has been recorded at approximately 100 locations across Romania, from the Danube Delta and Dobrogea to the Carpathian Mountains. In Maramureș, two records come from east of Budești, on the plateau where giant boulders are quarried, while another observation was documented at Prislop Pass, on the border between the Rodna Mountains and the Maramureș Mountains.

Although relatively common in open mountainous habitats dotted with shrubs and woodland, the tree pipit can be found in mountain ranges such as Igniș, Gutâi, Țibleș, Rodna, and the Maramureș Mountains.