Whitethroat (Curruca communis)
Blyth's Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus dumetorum)
Fairly large warbler with long tail, giving the whole bird an elongated look. Tertials, secondaries and coverts with rufous fringes in contrast to greyish brown back. Underparts pale with buff flanks. Outer tail feathers white. Steep forehead and white throat. Males with slate grey head.
Sound:Variable. Usually recognized by fairly concise phrase, usually with three ascending and descending parts. Often ends with more indistinct mimicry, or subsong. May omit characteristic phrase and sing more cryptic for periods of time, and may be more difficult to identify. Warning call a harsh, drawn "weeet", usually with accented ending, sometimes rising abruptly in pitch.
Alarm call, song:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCSimilar to Reed Warbler but note very short primary projection, evenly coloured wings with dull tertials. Under tail-coverts almost white, with very little buff tinge. Legs overall darker than congeners. Immature birds with slightly paler legs and warmer upperparts and fringes to flight-feathers. Leaves a slimmer impression than Reed- and Marsh W., with flatter forehead and tapering bill. Posture often Sylvia-like with frequent cocking, flicking and fanning of tail.
Sound:Contact call a short and sharp Lesser Whitethroat-like "tek", different from Mars W. Alarm call a dry, rolling "krrrreet", often with a register break splitting into high register overtones. Song recalls Marsh Warbler in timbre but is generally diagnostic. Tempo slow and deliberate, pace recalling that of Song Thrush, with marked pauses. Typical articulate, arpeggio-like whistling motifs alternated by mimicry are often repeated many times. Daytime song less typical than normal song at night, with faster pace and less repetition.
Song:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCSound recording:Recorded by Edmunds Racinskis