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Melodious Warbler
Hippolais polyglotta
Identify the Melodious Warbler by sound or photo and log your sightings with Birdpass.
The Melodious Warbler is a small warbler of open, bushy woodland that breeds in south-western Europe and north-west Africa and winters in West Africa south of the Sahara. It resembles the Icterine Warbler but has browner upperparts, shorter wings and no pale wing panel. Its song is a fluent, pleasant babbling, sustained but less varied than the Icterine's and without real mimicry.
Did you know?
- Its species name polyglotta means “many-tongued”, yet its song contains little mimicry.
- Its range has expanded north-east over recent decades.
Voice
About the species
Identification
A yellowish tree warbler, olive-brown above and yellow below, with a rounded head and a fairly long, broad-based bill. It is very like Icterine Warbler but has shorter wings with a short primary projection, lacks the pale wing panel and often looks browner above; the legs are brownish. The song is faster and more even, without the harsh mimicry of the Icterine.
Family
Acrocephalidae
Size
Tiny (goldcrest)
Colours
brown, yellow, green, white
About the habitat
Bushy woodland, forest edges, thickets and riverside vegetation, as well as orchards and gardens.
Diet
Mainly insects, as well as other small invertebrates and berries.
Behaviour
A migratory warbler that forages actively in shrubs and trees. It sings a flowing, chattering song and gives sparrow-like chattering and quiet “tuk” calls. It nests in a tree or bush, laying three to five eggs.
Sources
Photo: Alexis Lours, CC BY 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Melodious Warbler 2025 05 23.jpg
Sound: Sonothèque ADVL, XC730590, CC0 1.0 https://xeno-canto.org/730590
Sound: Sonothèque ADVL, XC730592, CC0 1.0 https://xeno-canto.org/730592
Sound: Joost van Bruggen, XC432210, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://xeno-canto.org/432210
Text: Wikipedia (English), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melodious_warbler
