Appearance:

Olive green upperparts, yellowish chest with gradual transition to off-white belly. Very similar to Chiff-chaff, and most field characters are subtle and often hard to see. Distinguished by (usually) pale, yellow-brown legs, dark framing to ear-coverts, stronger supercilium. Long primary projection (often 3/4ths the length of tertials) with irregularly spaced tips (visible when wing folded). Wings slightly more pointed than in Chiff-chaff, and not so fan-shaped. Juveniles often with whole underparts yellow. Frequently flicks tail, but not sideways (unlike Chiff-chaff). Generally also more calm when moving among the foliage.

Sound:

By far most easily identified by it's call or song. Contact/alarm call a soft, plaintive ascending "hoo-eet". Similar to Chiff-chaff, but first part more drawn, giving it a disyllabic feel. Song: A 3-5 second, falling phrase of soft, rippling "svi-svi" sounds, starting high with some attack, and then falling in a mellow manner. The phrase lacks any conclusion, and diminishes both in strength and tempo.

Song:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

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:

Slightly more compact than Yellowhammer, with shorter wings and heavier bill. In all plumages note; olive to grey rump, greyish lesser coverts and finely streaked flanks. Male unmistakable with black throat and eye-stripe. Female and immature lacks black throat, but have more contrasting eye- and moustache-stripe than Yellowhammer.

Sound:

Song variable, but can generally be described as a Yellowhammer phrase with no ending, or an Arctic Warbler with bunting timbre. Tempo also variable, but rhythm always even. Alarm call a thin "tseeep", similar to Rock Bunting, but more drawn out.

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

CC-photo:janofonsagrada, Licence,Link.

CC-photo:Le No, Licence,Link.

CC-photo:fra298, Licence,Link.

CC-photo:fra298, Licence,Link.

CC-photo:Marianne Wustenhoff, Licence,Link.