Almeria Spain 21-10-2021
[order] Passeriformes | [family] Sylviidae | [latin] Acrocephalus scirpaceus | [UK] Reed-Warbler | [FR] Rousserolle effarvatte | [DE] Teichrohrsänger | [ES] Carricero Común | [IT] Cannaiola | [NL] Kleine Karekiet
Measurements
spanwidth min.: 19 cm
spanwidth max.: 22 cm
size min.: 12 cm
size max.: 14 cm
Breeding
incubation min.: 9 days
incubation max.: 12 days
fledging min.: 10 days
fledging max.: 12 days
broods 2
eggs min.: 3
eggs max.: 6
Physical characteristics
Medium-sized, compact, robust, and skulking but inquisitive warbler. Plumage varies from brown olive to grey in adult and to rufous-brown in juvenil. Shows few features at any age except for rufous rump, with supercilium and eye-ring less distinct than any other Acrocephalus. Sexes similar, no seasonal variation.
Habitat
Breeds in middle latitudes of west Palearctic, mainly in lowlands with continental climate. Spreads into oceanic climatic zone in western France, England and Wales. Stands of reeds used for nesting may be quite small, often by margins of sluggish rivers, ponds, or shallow lakes, or in narrow lines along ditches. Broader reedbeds in fresh or brackish waters tend to be less favoured, especially if dense and exposed to waves.
Other details
Acrocephalus scirpaceus is a widespread summer visitor to much of Europe, which constitutes >50% of its global breeding range. Its European breeding population is very large (>2,700,000 pairs), and was stable between 1970-1990. The species remained stable overall during 1990-2000, with the majority of national trends stable or increasing—including sizeable populations in Romania and Sweden.
Feeding
Chiefly insects and spiders, some small snails, occasionally some plant material. An opportunist, able to tame advantage of local, variable, and short-lived sources of abundant food supply. Feeds mostly at middle height in reeds and rushes and in centers of bushes, and occasionally on ground.
Breeding
Breeds late May mid August in western and central Europe. Nest site is built in vegetation over water, especially reed, also in other tall vegetation and low shrubs over dry ground. Nest is a deep, cylindrical cup of grass and reed stems and leaves, plus plant down and spiders' webs, woven round plant stems, lined with finer material including hair. 3-5 eggs are laid, incubation 9-13 days, by both sexes in roughly equal proportions during day.
Migration
Common and widespread summer migrant of western Palearctic, from central and southern British Isles and southern Scandinavia east across central Russia, and south to Northwest Africa, Mediterranean region, Near East, southern Russia, and western China. Winters in tropical Africa. (Baker K 1997) A.s. scirpaceus: Summer visitor much of Europe (absent northern regions; more local in south), west, central and south European USSR, locally north-west Africa; winters tropical Africa. Migrant Libya, Chad, Mauritania. Vagrant Iceland, Faroe Is. (6), Canary Is., Madeira. A.s. fuscus: Local summer visitor Transcaucasus, Caspian shore, east Turkey, Cyprus, south-west Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, north-east Egypt; winters tropical Africa. Recorded in winter (sub-species uncertain) Turkey, Jordan, Egypt. Migrant (sub-species uncertain) Iraq, Kuwait, north Saudi Arabia. (Parmenter T Byers C 1991)
