Siberian Accentor
Prunella montanella
The Siberian Accentor (Prunella montanella) is a rare accentor found in 22 countries, weighing about 17 g. The Siberian accentor is a small passerine bird that breeds in northern Russia from the Ural Mountains eastwards across Siberia.
About the Siberian Accentor
The Siberian accentor is a small passerine bird that breeds in northern Russia from the Ural Mountains eastwards across Siberia. It is migratory, wintering in Korea and eastern China, with rare occurrences in western Europe and northwestern North America. Its typical breeding habitat is subarctic deciduous forests and open coniferous woodland, often close to water, although it also occurs in mountains and spruce taiga. It inhabits bushes and shrubs in winter, frequently near streams, but may also be found in dry grassland and woods.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The Siberian accentor is on average 14.5 centimetres (5.7 in) long and weighs 17.5 grams (0.62 oz). The adult of the nominate race has brown upperparts and wings, with bright chestnut streaking on its back and a greyish-brown rump and tail. There are two narrow whitish bars on the folded wings. The head has a dark brown crown, a long, wide pale yellow supercilium, a blackish patch behind the eye and grey sides to the neck. The underparts are ochre yellow, becoming strongly buff on the flanks and greyish on the lower belly. Voice: The call of the Siberian accentor is a trisyllabic ti-ti-ti. The male's song, given from the top of a bush or tree, is a loud, high chirichiriri, variously described as similar to that of the Japanese accentor, the dunnock or the black-throated accentor. Breeding birds sing most vigorously early in the season, particularly at dawn, and some individuals may also sing on migration.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in United States, Canada, Finland, Netherlands, Germany, Taiwan, Luxembourg, Belarus, Latvia.
When to see it
Best months: January, February, March, October, November, December, with peak activity in October. It is a variable species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Siberian Accentor?
- The Siberian accentor is on average 14.5 centimetres (5.7 in) long and weighs 17.5 grams (0.62 oz). Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Siberian Accentor?
- The Siberian Accentor is a small sized bird weighing about 17 g.
- Where can you see a Siberian Accentor?
- The Siberian Accentor occurs in 22 countries, including China, Sweden, South Korea, Mongolia and Russia.
- What birds look similar to a Siberian Accentor?
- The Siberian Accentor is most easily confused with the Robin Accentor, the Brown Accentor and the Black-throated Accentor.
- Is the Siberian Accentor endangered?
- The Siberian Accentor is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Siberian Accentor 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.
Play BeakBrainEvery photo and recording on this page is credited to its author under the licence shown. Spotted a problem with this page, or have a better photo? Contribute.