Blyth's Reed Warbler
Encyclopedia
The Blyth's Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus dumetorum) is an Old World warbler
in the genus Acrocephalus
. It breeds in temperate Asia
and easternmost Europe
. It is migratory
, wintering in India
and Sri Lanka
. It is one of the most common winter warblers in those countries. It is a rare vagrant to western Europe
.
This small passerine
bird
is a species found in scrub or clearings, often near water, but it is not found in marshes. 4-6 eggs are laid in a nest in a bush.
This is a medium-sized warbler, in length. The adult has a plain brown back and pale underparts. It can easily be confused with Reed Warbler
, Marsh Warbler
and some of the Hippolais warblers. It is most like Reed Warbler but is greyer on the back, the forehead is less flattened and the bill is less strong and pointed. The sexes are identical, as with most warblers, but young birds are yellower below.
The habitat is different from the reed beds favoured by Reed Warbler or the rank vegetation of Marsh Warbler, this species choosing trees or bushes as songposts. Like most warblers, Blyth's Reed Warbler is insectivorous, but will take other small food items including berries.
In the breeding season, the best identification feature is the song, which is slow and repetitive, with much mimicry of other birds, punctuated with scales and typically acrocephaline whistles.
This bird is named after the British zoologist Edward Blyth
.
Old World warbler
The "Old World Warblers" is the name used to describe a large group of birds formerly grouped together in the bird family Sylviidae. The family held over 400 species in over 70 genera, and were the source of much taxonomic confusion. Two families were split out initially, the cisticolas into...
in the genus Acrocephalus
Acrocephalus
The Acrocephalus warblers are small, insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus Acrocephalus. Formerly in the paraphyletic Old World warbler assemblage, they are now separated as the namesake of the marsh- and tree-warbler family Acrocephalidae...
. It breeds in temperate Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and easternmost Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. It is migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
, wintering in 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...
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 one of the most common winter warblers in those countries. It is a rare vagrant to western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
This small passerine
Passerine
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 a species found in scrub or clearings, often near water, but it is not found in marshes. 4-6 eggs are laid in a nest in a bush.
Reed Warbler
The Eurasian Reed Warbler, or just Reed Warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus, is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It breeds across Europe into temperate western Asia. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa....
, Marsh Warbler
Marsh Warbler
The Marsh Warbler, Acrocephalus palustris, is an Old World warbler currently classified in the family Acrocephalidae. It breeds in temperate Europe and western Asia and winters mainly in south east Africa...
and some of the Hippolais warblers. It is most like Reed Warbler but is greyer on the back, the forehead is less flattened and the bill is less strong and pointed. The sexes are identical, as with most warblers, but young birds are yellower below.
The habitat is different from the reed beds favoured by Reed Warbler or the rank vegetation of Marsh Warbler, this species choosing trees or bushes as songposts. Like most warblers, Blyth's Reed Warbler is insectivorous, but will take other small food items including berries.
In the breeding season, the best identification feature is the song, which is slow and repetitive, with much mimicry of other birds, punctuated with scales and typically acrocephaline whistles.
This bird is named after the British zoologist Edward Blyth
Edward Blyth
Edward Blyth was an English zoologist and pharmacist. He was one of the founders of zoology in India....
.
Identification
- Golley, Mark and Richard MillingtonRichard MillingtonRichard Millington is a British birder and bird artist. He lives in Cley-next-the-Sea, Norfolk with his wife Hazel.He is assistant editor of Birding World magazine. His contributions to that journal include many articles on bird identification. He also runs Birdline, a telephone information service...
(1996) Identification of Blyth's Reed Warbler in the field Birding WorldBirding WorldBirding World is a monthly birding magazine published in the United Kingdom. It is the magazine of the Bird Information Service, based at Cley next the Sea, Norfolk....
9(9): 351-353 - Vinicombe, Keith (2002) Identification matters: Agrocephalus BirdwatchBirdwatch (magazine)Birdwatch is a British monthly magazine for birdwatchers, established in 1992 by Solo Publishing. Distributed by subscription and also through newsagents, it has a cover price of £4.10...
124:27-30
External links
- Avibase Links in turn to Flickr Handguide.