Grasshopper Warbler
The Grasshopper Warbler is a medium-sized Old World warbler in the genus Locustella. The genus name Locustella is Latin and it is a diminutive of locusta, meaning "grasshopper". Like the English name, this refers to the characteristic insect-like song of the Grasshopper Warbler and some other birds in this genus.
The Grasshopper Warbler is a very secretive bird which skulks in the undergrowth, creeping through bushes and low foliage, and it is seldom seen although its presence is easily detected because of its characteristic song. The upper-parts are pale olive-brown, each feather having a central darker brown streak. The cheeks are greyish, the irises are brown and there is a faint eye streak behind the eye. The underparts are cream-coloured or yellowish-buff with a few dark brown spots and streaks on the breast and flanks. The wings are brown with the outer edge of the feathers rimmed with paler brown. The tail feathers are reddish-brown with faint transverse bars being visible in some individuals and the under-tail coverts are streaked. The slender legs and the feet are pale yellowish-brown.
The Grasshopper Warbler’s song is an unmusical, monotonous, high-pitched, reeling trill performed with beak held wide open and the whole body vibrating. It lasts for a few seconds to 2 or 3 minutes with hardly a pause for breath. It varies in volume from a faint hum to a sound resembling a distant mowing machine. It is performed at any time of day from early morning until after the sun has set and is constantly to be heard from the arrival of the bird in its breeding areas in spring until late July.
The Grasshopper Warbler breeds in north and west Europe and parts of west Asia. The range includes Spain, France, central Italy, Romania, Yugoslavia, the UK, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Denmark, southern Sweden, southern Finland, the Baltic States and western parts of Russia. In late summer, it migrates to north and west Africa where it overwinters.
In the breeding season, it is found in damp or dry places with rough grass and bushes such as the edges of fens, clearings, neglected hedgerows, heaths, upland moors, gorse-covered areas, young plantations and felled woodland. In the winter, it is usually found in similar locations but information is scarce on its behaviour and habitat at this time.
The Grasshopper Warbler is insectivorous and feeds on a wide range of invertebrates. Its diet includes flies, moths, beetles, aphids, dragonflies and mayflies and their larvae. Spiders and woodlice are also eaten.
Date: 17th May 2016
Location: Aardla polder, Estonia
The Grasshopper Warbler is a very secretive bird which skulks in the undergrowth, creeping through bushes and low foliage, and it is seldom seen although its presence is easily detected because of its characteristic song. The upper-parts are pale olive-brown, each feather having a central darker brown streak. The cheeks are greyish, the irises are brown and there is a faint eye streak behind the eye. The underparts are cream-coloured or yellowish-buff with a few dark brown spots and streaks on the breast and flanks. The wings are brown with the outer edge of the feathers rimmed with paler brown. The tail feathers are reddish-brown with faint transverse bars being visible in some individuals and the under-tail coverts are streaked. The slender legs and the feet are pale yellowish-brown.
The Grasshopper Warbler’s song is an unmusical, monotonous, high-pitched, reeling trill performed with beak held wide open and the whole body vibrating. It lasts for a few seconds to 2 or 3 minutes with hardly a pause for breath. It varies in volume from a faint hum to a sound resembling a distant mowing machine. It is performed at any time of day from early morning until after the sun has set and is constantly to be heard from the arrival of the bird in its breeding areas in spring until late July.
The Grasshopper Warbler breeds in north and west Europe and parts of west Asia. The range includes Spain, France, central Italy, Romania, Yugoslavia, the UK, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Denmark, southern Sweden, southern Finland, the Baltic States and western parts of Russia. In late summer, it migrates to north and west Africa where it overwinters.
In the breeding season, it is found in damp or dry places with rough grass and bushes such as the edges of fens, clearings, neglected hedgerows, heaths, upland moors, gorse-covered areas, young plantations and felled woodland. In the winter, it is usually found in similar locations but information is scarce on its behaviour and habitat at this time.
The Grasshopper Warbler is insectivorous and feeds on a wide range of invertebrates. Its diet includes flies, moths, beetles, aphids, dragonflies and mayflies and their larvae. Spiders and woodlice are also eaten.
Date: 17th May 2016
Location: Aardla polder, Estonia
|
Also in: Estonia
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |