Japanese Bush Warbler
Horornis diphone
A small, plain brown warbler of dense undergrowth. Note the narrow dark line through eye and the narrow white line above the eye. Occurs in forest understory, dense shrubland, bamboo thickets, and forest edges. Usually secretive and hard to see well, but males sometimes sing from an exposed perch. Song is a long introductory tone followed by a rapid warble, “uuuuuu-guisu,” from which the Japanese name is derived. Introduced to the Hawaiian Islands where it occurs on all of the main islands.
Identification
The Japanese bush warbler is olive brown above and tending toward dusky colors below. It has pale eyebrows. It has a beak that curves up making it look like it is smiling. The bird is typically 15.5 centimetres (6.1 in) in length.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Horornis diphone
- Authority
- (Kittlitz, 1830)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Cettiidae
- Genus
- Horornis
Range and habitat
The Japanese bush warbler is a common year-round resident throughout Japan (except Hokkaidō) and the northern Philippines. In summer the Japanese bush warbler can also be found in Hokkaidō, Manchuria, Korea, and central China. In winter, the bush-warbler can also be found in southern China and Taiwan.<p>It was introduced to Oahu between 1929–1941 and has since spread throughout the main Hawaiian Islands.<p>In summer, it ranges from low hills to high mountains, preferring bamboo thickets and black pine trees. In winter it seeks cover at lower elevations.
- Breeding range
- PAL : Sakhalin Is. to Japan and Ryukyu Is. and e, c China
- Non-breeding range
- s, se China, Taiwan and se Asia
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Stercorarius longicaudus
Slender gull-like seabird; the smallest of the three jaegers. Breeds on Arctic tundra; spends the rest of the year at sea. Difficult to separate from other jaegers, especially Parasitic. Breeding adults have an exceptionally long, pointed tail. Also note uniform brownish back contrasting with dark flight feathers, limited clean black cap, and pale yellow on the side of the neck. Immature birds have an attractive scaly pattern on wings and vary from dark brown to a pale grayish white. At all ages, note buoyant, tern-like flight. Typically shows white shafts only on two outermost wing feathers (fewer than other jaegers). Bill is shorter and proportionally thicker than other jaegers. Jaegers chase other birds and steal their food.
Rufous-breasted Spinetail
Synallaxis erythrothorax
Small, long-tailed, rather wrenlike bird of scrubby second-growth thickets and overgrown clearings. Typically rather skulking and heard much more often than seen. Distinctive song is a sneezy “whit’chew” or “whi-whi whit’chew” (“pleased to MEET you!”). Bright rusty breast blends into bright rusty wings and sets off black collar at base of throat. Long, spiny tail and wings lack the dark barring shown by wrens.
Negros Striped-Babbler
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A fairly small bird of lower-elevation montane forest and degraded habitat on Negros. Warm brown above and cream-colored below with fine black streaks. Note the white throat, the small white area around the eye bordered black, and the black line through the eye. Often found in mixed-species flocks. Somewhat similar to Stripe-sided and Visayan Rhabdornises, but smaller, with a white face rather than a broad black band through the eye. Voice includes high-pitched chipping notes.
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