Common Grasshopper Warbler
A species of Grasshopper-warblers and allies Scientific name : Locustella naevia Genus : Grasshopper-warblers and allies
Common Grasshopper Warbler, A species of Grasshopper-warblers and allies
Botanical name: Locustella naevia
Genus: Grasshopper-warblers and allies
Content
Description General Info
Description
The adult common grasshopper warbler (the name is the IOC recommended English name) has a length of about 12.5 cm (5 in). It is a very secretive bird and seldom seen, but 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 upper mandible of the beak is dark brown and the lower mandible yellowish-brown. 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 song is an unmusical long, high-pitched reeling trill performed with beak held wide open and the whole body vibrating. It lasts for from a few seconds to two or three 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 spring until late July. The alarm call is a repeated ticking noise that has been rendered as "twkit-twkit-twkit". The song is similar to that of its congeners: the lanceolated warbler (Locustella lanceolata), Savi's warbler (Locustella luscinioides) and the river warbler (Locustella fluviatilis). 
Size
13 cm
Colors
Brown
Black
Yellow
Bronze
White
Life Expectancy
5 years
Nest Placement
Shrub
Feeding Habits
Common Grasshopper Warbler preys primarily on insects such as flies, moths, beetles, and spiders, including their larvae. This bird typically forages in dense vegetation, adeptly using its bill to extract prey. It displays a preference for feeding chicks aphids and caterpillars.
Habitat
Common Grasshopper Warbler's habitat spans dense, low vegetation areas, including damp grasslands, scrublands, and woodland clearings, adaptable from sea level to high altitudes across Europe, Africa, and Asia. Breeding habitats feature nettles and scrubby bushes, while non-breeding environments include agricultural landscapes with tall grass. This species demonstrates wide ecological tolerance from upland moors to grassy slopes.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Sounds
Song
Recording location: Belgium
Song
Recording location: Netherlands
Behavior
This bird seldom takes to the wing but spends its time scurrying through dense vegetation, flitting from twig to twig or running along the ground. It has a peculiar high-stepping gait and long stride as it moves along horizontal stems, looking slender and tapering. It seldom flies, soon diving back into cover, and when it alights it often raises and flares its tail to show its streaked under-tail coverts. It has been known to feign injury in order to distract a potential predator.
Distribution Area
The common grasshopper warbler breeds in north west Europe and the western Palearctic. The range includes Spain, France, central Italy, Romania, Yugoslavia, the British Isles, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, southern Sweden, southern Finland, the Baltic States and western parts of Russia. Further east it is replaced by related species. In late summer, it migrates to north west Africa, India and Sri Lanka where it overwinters. In the breeding season, the common grasshopper warbler 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.
Species Status
The common grasshopper warbler is assessed by the IUCN in their Red List of Threatened Species as being of "Least Concern". This is because it has a large total population and an extensive range. The population in Europe is estimated to be between 840 thousand and 2.2 million breeding pairs with a total of 2.52 to 6.6 million individuals. As Europe amounts to about two thirds of its total range, the world population is estimated to be in the region of 3.41 to 13.2 million individuals. The total number of birds may be on the decline because of habitat loss, but not to an extent that would warrant listing the bird under a higher risk category. In a study examining the possible effects of global warming on the range of various species of bird, it was estimated that the breeding range of the common grasshopper warbler would be displaced several hundred miles northwards and would cover the British Isles and the whole of Scandinavia but that it would cease to breed in much of its present range in mainland Europe.
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Perching birds Family
Grassbirds and allies Species
Common Grasshopper Warbler 
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