Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Iduna pallida
Small, pallid olive-gray warbler. Very similar to other Iduna and Acrocephalus species. Note its long and slender bill and faint pale wing panel (most prominent when plumage is fresh, sometimes not noticeable). Pumps its long tail continuously as it flits around in bushes and trees after small insects, a behavior which separates it from very similar Acrocephalus warblers. Found in open woodlands, riparian forest, as well as dry and semi-arid zones; strong connection with Tamarix bushes. Call is a dry and harsh “chack.” Song is a repeating scratchy sequence.
Identification
It is a medium-sized warbler, more like a very pale reed warbler than its relative the melodious warbler. The adult has a plain pale brown back and whitish underparts. The bill is strong and pointed and the legs grey. The sexes are identical, as with most warblers, but young birds are more buff on the belly. It has a characteristic downward tail flick.<p>The western olivaceous warbler differs from this species in being larger and having a browner tinge to the upperparts; it also has a larger bill. The eastern olivaceous warbler sometimes has a greenish tinge to its upperparts, and can be very difficult to separate from Sykes's warbler, Iduna rama. The song is a fast nasal babbling.
Taxonomy
The eastern olivaceous warbler (Iduna pallida) is a "warbler", formerly placed in the Old World warblers when these were a paraphyletic wastebin taxon. It is now considered a member of the acrocephaline warblers, Acrocephalidae, in the tree warbler genus Iduna. It was formerly regarded as part of a wider "olivaceous warbler" species, but as a result of modern taxonomic developments, this species is now usually considered distinct from the western olivaceous warbler, Iduna opaca.
- Scientific name
- Iduna pallida
- Authority
- (Hemprich & Ehrenberg, 1833)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Acrocephalidae
- Genus
- Iduna
Range and habitat
It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa or Arabia. It is a rare vagrant to northern Europe.
- Breeding range
- PAL, AF : sc PAL, n AF
- Non-breeding range
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Saffron-crowned Tanager
Tangara xanthocephala
Small tanager found in Andean subtropical zone from Venezuela to Bolivia. Mostly bluish-green with darker wings and streaked back. Head is mostly bright yellow or orange with small black mask, throat, and nape. Buffy undertail coverts and vent only visible at some angles. Sexes alike. A fairly common member of mixed flocks from around 1,200–2,400 m, in cloud forest and edges.
Geelvink Imperial-Pigeon
Ducula geelvinkiana
A large, stocky pigeon of islands in Geelvink Bay, West Papua. Gray head, yellow eye, emerald-green back and wings, blue tail and rusty vent. Found in lowland rainforest, and some wander between islands, rarely even to the mainland. Voice a deep, gravelly, 2-note “grrr-waw”, with the second note higher than the first. Distinctive within its small range.
Dark Chanting-Goshawk
Melierax metabates
A tall, long-tailed, slaty-gray hawk with pink-orange legs and bill base. The flight feathers and wing tips are dark on both the upper and under wings, creating a uniformly dark wing pattern in flight. Pairs inhabit broadleaved woodland and well-wooded savanna. Chanting-goshawks give a strong, gull-like “kleeeu” call, hence their name. Dark Chanting-Goshawk always has a gray-barred rump, while other chanting-goshawks are paler, prefer drier habitats, and have unbarred white rumps. Eastern Chanting-Goshawk has yellow skin at the base of the bill. Pale Chanting-Goshawk has pale inner flight feathers and dark wing tips, creating a very contrasting wing pattern.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.