ID Keys: Gray upperparts with greenish tinge, very pale buffy
underparts, plain wings with no wingbars, pale eyebrow and
indistinctive darker eye stripe
The
Willow Warbler is a common "leaf warbler" species that is found throughout
much of Europe and Asia. The breed from the United Kingdom on the west all
the way eastward through Siberia. In North America, they are rare
vagrants in two locations, with a number of sightings on both St. Lawrence
island and the Pribilofs in the Bering Sea.
Habitat
Found in a variety of open woodland
habitats, as well as forest edges and clearings, tree plantations, and
wooded park land. A common attribute of many habitats is an understory
component of scattered thickets and shrubs.
Diet
Feeds on insects and spiders. They will also
feed on berries, particularly in the fall.
Behavior
Actively forages in the woodland
understory, moving through foliage in search of insects. Food items
are gathered through direct gleaning from vegetation, or by flycatching in
short flights.
Nesting
The nest of a Willow Warbler is a dome
made of mosses, lichen, grasses, and other vegetative material, with an
entrance placed on the side. It is placed on the ground or very low in
vegetation. The female lays 5 to 7 eggs, which she alone incubates.
The young hatch after about 14 days, and both parents help raise and feed
the young. The young fledge about 2 weeks after hatching.
Song
The song of a Willow Warbler is a repetitive
descending warbling.
Migration
Strongly migratory. Birds breed
throughout much of Europe and northern Asia. In winter, the species
migrates to central and southern Africa. Birds that summer in Siberia
make one of the longest distance migrations of any bird of a similar size,
up to 8,000 miles.
