Ashy Prinia
Encyclopedia
The Ashy Prinia or Ashy Wren-Warbler (Prinia socialis), is a small warbler
. This prinia
is a resident breeder in the India
n subcontinent, western Myanmar
and Sri Lanka
. It is a common bird in urban gardens and farmland in many parts of India and its small size, distinctive colours and upright tail make it easy to identify. The northern populations have a rufous rump and back and have a distinct breeding and non-breeding plumage while other populations lack such variation.
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These 13–14 cm long warblers have short rounded wings and longish graduated cream tail tipped with black subterminal spots. The tail is usually held upright and the strong legs are used for clambering about and hopping on the ground. They have a short black bill. The crown is grey and the underparts are rufous in most plumages. In breeding plumage, adults of the northern population are ash grey above, with a black crown and cheek with no supercilium and rufescent wings. In non-breeding season this population has a short and narrow white supercilium and the tail is longer. They are found singly or in pairs in shrubbery and will often visit the ground.
In winter, the northern subspecies, P. s. stewartii Blyth, 1847, has warm brown upperparts and a longer tail and has seasonal variation in plumage. The other races retain summer plumage all year round. West Bengal and eastwards has race inglisi Whistler & Kinnear, 1933 which is darker slaty above than the nominate race of the Peninsula and deeper rufous on the flanks with a finer and shorter beak. The distinctive endemic
race in Sri Lanka
, P. s. brevicauda Legge, 1879, has a shorter tail and has the juveniles with yellowish underparts apart from a distinct call.
bird
is found in dry open grassland, open woodland, scrub and in home gardens in many cities. The northern limits of the species are along the Himalayan foothills extending into the upper Indus river system. The species is absent from the dry desert zone of the west of India and extends east into Burma. The Sri Lankan population is found mainly in the lowlands but going up into the hills to about 1600 m.
The non-migratory Prinia genus shows biannual moult which is rare among passerines. A moult occurs in spring (April–May) and another moult occurs in autumn (October–November). Biannual moult is theorized to be favoured when ectoparasite loads are very high, however no investigations have been made. Prinia socialis moults some remiges twice a year and is termed to have a partially biannual moult however some authors describe P. socialis socialis as having two complete moults.
Birds stay in pairs but roost singly on the branch of a small tree or shrub.
The breeding season varies with locality and has been recorded breeding around the year but mostly after the monsoons. In north India it is mainly June to September and in Sri Lanka mainly December to March or August to October. Breeds during May–June in the Nilgiris. The species is believed to be monogamous and both the male and the female take part in incubation and feeding though to varying extents. Parents may spend more time at the nest during cool days. The eggs hatch in about 12 days. Cuckoos Cacomantis merulinus and Cacomantis passerinus have been known to be brood parasites of this species. When the nest is threatened by predators such as cats, adults have been observed feigning injury.
Rare cases of birds reusing material from a nest to rebuild a nest at a new location have been noted.
Cisticolidae
The Cisticolidae family of small passerine birds is a group of about 110 warblers found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. They are often included within the Old World warbler family Sylviidae....
. This prinia
Prinia
The prinias are a genus of small insectivorous birds belonging to the passerine bird family Cisticolidae. They are often also alternatively classed in the Old World warbler family, Sylviidae. The name of the genus is derived from the Javanese prinya, the local name for the Bar-winged Prinia.The...
is a resident breeder in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n subcontinent, western Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. It is a common bird in urban gardens and farmland in many parts of India and its small size, distinctive colours and upright tail make it easy to identify. The northern populations have a rufous rump and back and have a distinct breeding and non-breeding plumage while other populations lack such variation.
Description
In winter, the northern subspecies, P. s. stewartii Blyth, 1847, has warm brown upperparts and a longer tail and has seasonal variation in plumage. The other races retain summer plumage all year round. West Bengal and eastwards has race inglisi Whistler & Kinnear, 1933 which is darker slaty above than the nominate race of the Peninsula and deeper rufous on the flanks with a finer and shorter beak. The distinctive endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
race in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, P. s. brevicauda Legge, 1879, has a shorter tail and has the juveniles with yellowish underparts apart from a distinct call.
Distribution and habitat
This passerinePasserine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
is found in dry open grassland, open woodland, scrub and in home gardens in many cities. The northern limits of the species are along the Himalayan foothills extending into the upper Indus river system. The species is absent from the dry desert zone of the west of India and extends east into Burma. The Sri Lankan population is found mainly in the lowlands but going up into the hills to about 1600 m.
Behaviour and ecology
Like most warblers, the Ashy Prinia is insectivorous. The song is a repetitive tchup, tchup, tchup or zeet-zeet-zeet. Another call is a nasal tee-tee-tee. It also makes a sound like "electric sparks" during the fluttery flight which is thought to be produced by the wings. (one author however suggests that it is made by the beak)The non-migratory Prinia genus shows biannual moult which is rare among passerines. A moult occurs in spring (April–May) and another moult occurs in autumn (October–November). Biannual moult is theorized to be favoured when ectoparasite loads are very high, however no investigations have been made. Prinia socialis moults some remiges twice a year and is termed to have a partially biannual moult however some authors describe P. socialis socialis as having two complete moults.
Birds stay in pairs but roost singly on the branch of a small tree or shrub.
Breeding
The song is delivered from the top of a bush and males make fluttery display flights with the tail held up. The Ashy Prinia builds its nest close to the ground in a shrub or tall grass and lays 3-5 eggs. Several types of nests have been described including a flimsy cup made by sewing several large leaves; an oblong purse like structure with grass stems in the structure; and a flimsy ball of grass. The usual nest is placed low in a bush and consists of leaves stitched together with webs, lined with hair and having an entrance on the side. The eggs are of a somewhat pointed oval form and exceedingly glossy. They vary from brick-red to rich chestnut in colour, some being paler, some darker. The broad end of the egg is generally darker than the remainder of the shell, and exhibits a cap or zone. The eggs measure from 0.6 to 0.68 inches length, and from 0.45 to 0.5 in breadth. The eggs hatch in about 12 days.The breeding season varies with locality and has been recorded breeding around the year but mostly after the monsoons. In north India it is mainly June to September and in Sri Lanka mainly December to March or August to October. Breeds during May–June in the Nilgiris. The species is believed to be monogamous and both the male and the female take part in incubation and feeding though to varying extents. Parents may spend more time at the nest during cool days. The eggs hatch in about 12 days. Cuckoos Cacomantis merulinus and Cacomantis passerinus have been known to be brood parasites of this species. When the nest is threatened by predators such as cats, adults have been observed feigning injury.
Rare cases of birds reusing material from a nest to rebuild a nest at a new location have been noted.
Other sources
- Balachandran,S; Rosalind,Lima (1992): Southern Ashy Wren-Warbler Prinia socialis socialis Sykes in Pt. Calimere Wildlife Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu.J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 89(3), 377.
- Jairamdas, Arjun (1977) Three nests of Ashy Wren Warbler - diary of one season. Newsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for Birdwatchers is an Indian periodical of ornithology and birdwatching founded in 1960 by Zafar Futehally, who edited it until 2003. It was initially mimeographed and distributed to a small number of subscribers each month. The editorial board in its early years included Salim Ali,...
. 17(2):4-6. - Subramanya, S.; Veeresh, G. K. (1998) Nesting of two insectivorous birds in the rice fields of Bangalore. Chap. 4. In: Birds in Agricultural Ecosystem. (Eds: Dhindsa,MS; Rao,P Syamsunder; Parasharya,BM) Society for Applied Ornithology, Hyderabad, 10-17.
- Ajmeri, R. M. ; Das, A. R. K. ; Sasikumar, M. (1961) An unusual nest of the Ashy Wren-warbler (Prinia socialis). Newsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for Birdwatchers is an Indian periodical of ornithology and birdwatching founded in 1960 by Zafar Futehally, who edited it until 2003. It was initially mimeographed and distributed to a small number of subscribers each month. The editorial board in its early years included Salim Ali,...
. 1(4):1.