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Aquatic Warbler

Aquatic Warbler

Acrocephalus paludicola

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The Aquatic Warbler is a small, streaky, pale warbler that breeds in wet sedge fens in eastern Europe and western Asia. It is the rarest and only globally threatened songbird of mainland Europe, with most of the remaining birds concentrated in the Polesie marshes of eastern Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. A long-distance migrant, it winters in West African wetlands, notably in Senegal. Drainage and overgrowth of its specialised habitat have driven its decline.

Did you know?

  • It is the rarest and only globally threatened songbird breeding in mainland Europe.
  • Its long-sought wintering grounds were discovered in 2007 at Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary in Senegal.

Voice

Call

About the species

Identification

Resembles Sedge Warbler but is paler and more strongly patterned. It has a distinct yellowish-buff central crown stripe and two clear pale stripes along the back, and the rump is dark-streaked. Voice and song are close to Sedge Warbler's, so reliable plumage features are essential.

Family

Acrocephalidae

Size

Tiny (goldcrest)

Colours

brown, white, black

About the habitat

Open, wet sedge fens with very short vegetation (under about 30 cm) and shallow water. Drainage and invasion by reeds, bushes and trees make these fens unsuitable. Winters in marshy grasslands and reed wetlands in West Africa.

Diet

Mainly insects and spiders gleaned low in sedge vegetation; occasionally other small food items and berries.

Behaviour

A migrant that moves south-west through western Europe to West Africa. It nests low in wet sedge beds and lays 3–5 eggs. Notably promiscuous: both males and females mate with several partners, and the female raises the young alone. The song is a fast, chattering “ja-ja-ja” with whistled notes.

Sources

Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aquatic Warbler (Acrocephalus paludicola) (14363772751).jpg

Sound: Sonothèque ADVL, XC931388, CC0 1.0 https://xeno-canto.org/931388

Text: Wikipedia (English), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_warbler

See also