Sylviid warblers · Perching birds
Lesser Whitethroat
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Curruca curruca
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Voice
Song
Sonothèque ADVL
Call
Jochem verweij
Song
Grégoire Chauvot
How to recognize it
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Small, a bit smaller than Common Whitethroat
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Grey head with a dark bandit mask through the eye
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Brownish back, paler underparts; dark brown wings
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Song: fast rattling series of tet/che notes
About the species
The lesser whitethroat keeps low in bushes and hedges, moving quietly through tangled cover. Its head looks dark against a pale throat, and the rest of the plumage stays fairly plain and brownish.
It is often hard to pick out because it stays hidden in the undergrowth. The song is a quick, rattling run of "tet" and "che" notes, and the call is a sharp "chek".
Look for it in open country with shrubs, gardens, and older parks with plenty of cover. It eats insects, spiders, berries, and other soft fruit, and European populations spend the winter south of the Sahara, in Arabia, and in India.
Where to find
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In dense shrubs and hedges around yards, allotments, and front gardens — the male gives itself away with a fast, rattling song from deep in the cover.
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On the edge of mature city woodlands with thick undergrowth — it stays low and half-hidden, moving through the bushes rather than the treetops.
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Along drainage ditches, stream banks, and overgrown floodplain thickets on the outskirts — look for quick, low feeding movements among twigs and berry bushes.
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In weedy vacant lots and scrubby rail or tram margins — it flickers between stems and brambles instead of sitting out in the open.
You might also see
Sources
- eBird — Curruca curruca Sightings map and full description on eBird
- Wikipedia — Lesser whitethroat Encyclopedia article