Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) | Photos, Calls and ID

LCLeast ConcernInvertebrates

WetlandCup nestTiny · 12 g

What the Sedge Warbler sounds like

Sonogram of the Sedge Warbler: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.

Recorded by Noé Ferrari · Song · Arrondissement d'Abbeville (near Cambron), Somme, Hauts-de-France, France · CC BY 4.0 · via xeno-canto

Recorded by Sonothèque ADVL · Aberrant, alarm call · Miniac-Morvan, Ille-et-Vilaine, Bretagne, France · CC0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

This is a medium-sized warbler, 11.5–13 cm (4.5–5.1 in) long and weighing around 12 g (0.42 oz). It has a streaked brown back and wings, and pale underparts. The rump is warm brown and unstreaked, contrasting with the duller wings. The forehead is flattened, the crown is streaked with black, and the bill is strong and pointed. There is a prominent whitish supercilium. The legs are greyish. The plumage of the sexes is identical, although they can be told apart when caught for ringing by the presence of a brood patch or cloacal protuberance. Juvenile birds have dark spots on the breast.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Sedge Warbler

One bar for each month. Filled bars are the 6 months with records; pale bars are months with none. The wide bar is August, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Sedge Warbler

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 106 countries with regular records, and 7 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

Finland Sweden United Kingdom France Norway Belgium Spain Israel Poland Germany Netherlands Luxembourg Czechia Ireland Portugal South Africa Russia Hungary Türkiye Greece Austria Estonia Ukraine Slovakia Denmark Lithuania Belarus Italy Serbia Slovenia Zimbabwe Bulgaria Botswana Cyprus Egypt Romania Morocco Croatia Senegal Switzerland Latvia Isle of Man Zambia Kenya Namibia Georgia Ethiopia Nigeria Uganda Gambia Kuwait Armenia Iran Palestinian Territories United Arab Emirates North Macedonia Tanzania Jordan Kazakhstan Malta Kosovo Saudi Arabia Benin Moldova Mozambique Bosnia & Herzegovina Lebanon Cameroon Jersey Montenegro Ghana Mauritania Azerbaijan Congo - Kinshasa Malawi Rwanda Burkina Faso Tunisia Albania Congo - Brazzaville Guinea-Bissau Oman Algeria Niger Guernsey Guinea Somalia Côte d’Ivoire China Iraq Eswatini Angola Libya Central African Republic Chad Gabon Sierra Leone Syria Yemen Liberia South Sudan Sudan Bahrain Qatar Uzbekistan Togo

Recorded as a rare visitor in India, Iceland, São Tomé & Príncipe, United States, Burundi, Djibouti, Andorra.

About the Sedge Warbler

The sedge warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara to get from their European and Asian breeding grounds to spend winter in Africa. The male's song is composed of random chattering phrases and can include mimicry of other species. The sedge warbler is mostly insectivorous.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Common Reed WarblerAcrocephalus scirpaceusThis is a medium-sized warbler, 13 cm (5.1 in) in length with a wing-span of 17–21 cm (6.7–8.3 in).

Marsh WarblerAcrocephalus palustrisThis is a medium-sized warbler.

Blyth's Reed WarblerAcrocephalus dumetorumBlyth's reed warbler is between 12 and 14 cm (4.7 and 5.5 in) in length and weighs between 8 and 16 g (0.28 and 0.56 oz).

Side by side: Common Reed Warbler vs Sedge Warbler · Marsh Warbler vs Sedge Warbler · Blyth's Reed Warbler vs Sedge Warbler

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