River Warbler
Locustella fluviatilis
The River Warbler (Locustella fluviatilis) is a uncommon grasshopper warblers, grassbirds, and alli found in 47 countries, weighing about 16 g. The river warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Locustella.
About the River Warbler
The river warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Locustella. It breeds in eastern and central Europe and is migratory, wintering in inland southern Africa, from around the Zambezi River south to the vicinity of Pretoria in South Africa.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
This is a largish warbler. The adult has an unstreaked grey-brown back, whitish grey underparts, and a darker undertail, which has white feather tips giving a contrasting pattern. The sexes are identical, as with most warblers, but young birds are yellower below. Some birds can show reduced dark markings on the undertail coverts (caused by more extensive than usual white tips) and thus are closer in appearance to Savi's warbler than typical river warblers. However, they typically still have a streaked breast and more olive colouration on the upperparts.
What the River Warbler sounds like
Where it lives
When to see it
Best months: May, June, July, with peak activity in June. It is a summer visitor species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a River Warbler?
- This is a largish warbler. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a River Warbler?
- The River Warbler is a small sized bird weighing about 16 g.
- Where can you see a River Warbler?
- The River Warbler occurs in 47 countries, including Sweden, Finland, Poland, Norway and Germany.
- What does a River Warbler sound like?
- You can listen to 3 field recordings of the River Warbler on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a River Warbler?
- The River Warbler is most easily confused with the Taiwan Bush Warbler, the Lanceolated Warbler and the Russet Bush Warbler.
- Is the River Warbler endangered?
- The River Warbler is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the River Warbler for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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