The icterine warbler (Hippolais icterina) is an Old World warbler in the tree warbler genus Hippolais. It breeds in mainland Europe except the southwest, where it is replaced by its western counterpart, the melodious warbler. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.
Description
A fairly big warbler with a large head, broad-based bill and long wings with a quite short square-ended tail. The upperparts are greyish-green and the underparts are uniformly light yellow. It has pale lores and a rather vague yellowish supercilium with a pale eye ring. Other distinguishing features include a panel on the folded wings formed by pale edges to the secondary feathers and tertiary feathers and the grey, sometimes bluish legs.
Habitat
The icterine warbler is a bird of woodland rather than forest, preferring woodland edge or glades, favouring the crowns of well-spaced trees with tall undergrowth. It prefers broad-leafed trees, but may be found in conifers mixed with broad-leafed trees. It will use copses, orchards, parks, gardens, shelterbelts and tall hedges interspersed with trees.
Voice
The song is a fast nasal babbling incorporating mimicry of other species. The call is described as teck or tec, tec, tec. There is a 2022 record of the icterine warbler from Gambell, Alaska, and it was also documented in the state the following year.
It is a migratory species and the entire population winters in sub-Saharan Africa, mainly south of the equator. It begins its southward migration from late July, peaking in early August and then returns to the breeding range in late May. It is colloquially referred to by birders as icky.
thumb|Eggs of icterine warbler [[MHNT]]
The scientific name was also spelt as Hypolais icterina.
References
External links
- Icterine warbler from BirdGuides
- Icterine warbler/ - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds.