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Common Whitethroat
(Sylvia communis)
: "Greater Whitethroat"
German name(s): "Dorngrasmücke"
Size: 13-15 cm; wing span 18.5-23 cm
Weight: 8-23 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Common Whitethroats are small insectivore birds. Their
plumage is
dimorphic, i.e.
males and
females
are slightly different.
Male Common Whitethroats have a grey head (frons, cap, sides)
and a brownish-grey nape and mantle. The rump is light-grey, the
tail is grey. Their most prominent feature is a large white
chin patch, below which the breast is pinkish-brown. The
belly, vent and undertail coverts are buff to off-white.
The wing feathers are near-black with broad brown edges.
Males
have narrow white eye-rings, which are less prominent
in females.
In general, female
Common Whitethroats have duller colours. In particular, they miss the
males' grey head and are more brownish-grey instead.
The irises of both sexes are reddish-ochre to yellow-brown.
The bill is dark-grey, with a lighter, yellowish base of the
lower mandible. The legs and feet are yellow.
Juveniles
resemble females.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Common
Whitethroat at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and
specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found,
based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
.
The global distribution of the Common Whitethroat is available
HERE
.
Common Whitethroats are a strongly migratory species,
of which there are four established races.
Altogether, they breed in large parts of Europe, near-coastal
north-western Africa, Asia Minor, the Tigris/Euphrates
river system and eastwards into western and central Asia.
They avoid the highest altitude
areas of major mountain ranges within that range.
At the end of the breeding season they migrate southwards,
via the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and temperate
western and central Asia, to spend the northern winters
in sub-Saharan central Africa, Arabia or Pakistan.
In Europe Common Whitethroats are found as breeding
migrants from the British Isles and parts of Iberia in
the West towards the Urals (and beyond) in the East,
and from the entire North coast of the Mediterranean
to southern Scandinavia and the Baltic states in the
North, but not the northern-most parts of European
Russia.
Most of their range in Europe is occupied by nominate race
"communis".
Race "volgensis" is found from far eastern Poland eastward.
In the far South-east, e.g. around the Bosporus and the
Caucasus, race "icterops" can be found.
Common Whitethroats have a preference for dense shrubs,
but will also use farmland with hedgerows and other more
open habitats with shrubs for nesting.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
Race "communis"
D. Wilczynska reports spotting Common Whitethroats, nominate race
"communis,
in Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, in May 2016.
A. Sarok reports finding a Common Whitethroat, race
"communis,
5 km North of Temerin, Serbia, in May 2016.
J. Pires found Common Whitethroats, race
"communis,
along the Sorraia River and also in Mora, Evora, and in Sagres, Algarve,
Portugal in the timeframe September/October 2019.
G. Normand found a Common Whitethroat, race
"communis,
20 km North of Lille, Hauts-de-France, France, in May 2020.
H. Dahlem-Senger reports finding a Common Whitethroat, race
"communis,
near Eltville, Hessen, Germany, in May 2021.
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Photos |
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Race "communis"
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ADULT |
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MALE |
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Frontal/ventral view of a male Common Whitethroat singing in the
top of a shrub - note the white eye-ring; this is the bird whose
calls
were recorded on 9 May 2016
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Near-lateral view of a male Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Lateral view of a male Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[5 km North of Temerin, Serbia, May 2016]
Lateral view of a male Common Whitethroat searching for prey
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
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FEMALE |
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Frontal view of a female Common Whitethroat - note the plain
face, with a white eye-ring
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[River Bug, near Brok, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Frontal/ventral view of a female Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Near-frontal/ventral view of a female Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Lateral view of a female Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[River Bug, near Brok, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Lateral view of a female Common Whitethroat; the distinction
between the sexes was made by behaviour, rather than physical
appearance (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[River Bug, near Brok, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Lateral view of a Common Whitethroat; the worn
plumage
suggests that this bird is a female, rather than a juvenile
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]
Dorsal view of a female Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[River Bug, near Brok, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]
Dorsal/ventral view of a female or immature Common Whitethroat
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sorraia River, near Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
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Call(s)/Song |
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For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The
interpretation of their meaning is our own; are welcome.
More Common Whitethroat sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
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These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.