Appearance:

Small member of the thrush family, with erect posture and large head. Distinct white or buff supercilium in all plumages. Base of primaries shiny white in adults, especially adult male. Coarsely spotted buff rump. Base of tail with white triangular patches. Juveniles with white speckles on upperparts and whitish throat. Lacks the white base of primaries, but supercilium bold.

Sound:

Contact call resembles many of it relatives. A short, soft "peeu", followed by a hard "check" (like hitting two rocks together). The "peeu"-sound is depper and more resonant than similar sounds by Wheatear and Stonechat. Song variable with lots of mimicry. The short phrases starts with dry, rattling or sneering trills, followed by clear whistling notes and expert mimicry. More varied, both in tone and tempo, than both Stonechat and Wheatear.

Song:

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

Appearance:

Green upperparts and yellow underparts. Sides of bill yellowish, legs slate grey. Short yellow supercilium which connects to yellow lore. Long wings and relatively short tail. The flat crown and long bill gives it a different head profile from Sylvia warblers. Often raises crown feathers. Very similar to Melodious Warbler, but differs from this in pale wing-panel and longer wings. Folded wings reaches tip of under tail coverts, and primary projection is as long as tertials. Juveniles paler than adults, with whitish supercilium. The pale wing-panel extends to fringes of greater coverts in addition to secondaries. Alert and agile bird. Usually hidden in foliage, also when singing.

Sound:

Contact call distinct. A hard, trisyllabic "che-che-fink" , or "che-che-weet" with upward inflection. Song very virtuous and varied. Most similar to Marsh Warbler, but timbre and attack harder and more powerful. Tempo varied with many pauses, but includes longer, and more flowing sequences than Marsh Warbler. Song frequently interrupted by characteristic, nasal, high-pitched squeaks unlike Marsh Warbler. Master of mimicry. Imitations are often repeated several times before changing to melodious motifs or more "noisy" phrases.

Song:

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC