Migrating warblers

Photo: Sedge warbler at RSPB Ouse Fen by Tracey Graves – a shortlisted entry to our Summer Photography Competition.

As the migratory warblers head back to warmer climes, we look back at the warblers we’ve seen and heard in the NLOW project area this spring and summer.

This spring and summer we have been lucky to hear and see a range of warblers in the New Life on the Old West project area. We’ve heard chiffchaffs signing along the Aldreth causeway in April and spotted sedge warblers and willow warblers at RSPB Ouse Fen on one of our birdwatching for beginners walks with local wildlife guide David Chandler. On a guided walk with Nick Davies in June, we got to see up close a reed warbler chick as well as eggs in a reed warbler nest, which had managed to escape parasitism by cuckoos so far!

Some species of warbler are resident in the UK and can be seen all year round. However, the majority arrive in early spring and migrate back to warmer climes in late August or September. Below are some of the warblers you might have seen or heard in the NLOW patch this summer.

 

Reed warbler

Usually arriving in mid-April, the reed warbler is a plain brown, medium-sized warbler, with a pale throat and a short, pale stripe in front of the eye. The reedbeds of the Cambridgeshire fens provide an ideal habitat for the species. It has a complex song with many phrases and a distinctive monotonous call. It begins its migration in early autumn some 5,000 km back to West Africa.

 

Sedge warbler

A small, plump warbler, similar in size to a great tit, it is largely brown with blackish streaks on its’ mantle (upper back plumage), a blackish cap and a distinctive cream supercilium (stripe above the eye). It often has a lively song and rarely repeats the same phrase twice. One of the easier warblers to spot, you may see one perched atop a reed stem. Males may also be seen performing elaborate display flights. It is also a summer visitor, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.

 

Grasshopper warbler

Another small summer migrant, unsurprisingly this warbler has a high-pitched, insect-like trilling song much like a grasshopper. It is secretive and rarely seen, and the movement of its head during calling makes it even trickier to pinpoint its location. It is now a Red List species having declined in population significantly in recent years.

 

Cetti’s warbler

Resident all year round, this is a species that you’re also much more likely to hear than see. They have a distinctive loud and fast song. They like wetland habitats with dense reed cover, so the wet Fens are perfect for them. Although they are most likely to be heard during the breeding season, you may hear snatches of song in winter.

 

Chiffchaff

A small olive-brown warbler, so named because of its repetitive “chiff chaff” call. It can be seen all year round but most arrive in the spring. It will often flit between trees and shrubs, with a distinctive, quick tail-wagging movement.

 

Willow warbler

Very much like the chiffchaff in habits and appearance, it can be distinguished by its song. The legs of a willow warbler also tend to be lighter than those of a chiffchaff. They tend to leave the UK quite early between July and September to spend the winter in Africa, south of the Sahara.

 

Blackcap

Males of this species have a black cap, whereas females have a chestnut brown one. Their song can be confused with the garden warbler but is louder, higher and shorter. It is a summer visitor but they are increasingly choosing to overwinter in the UK. Scientists are predicting that as the UK experiences milder winters due to climate change, more warblers will spend their winters here.

 

Garden warbler

A secretive summer visitor, it is fairly inconspicuous with its plain, brown plumage. It prefers dense scrub understorey and woodland edges – not so much gardens as its name might suggest! Its song is a beautiful low warble, longer and sweeter, though similar, to that of the blackcap.

 

Whitethroat

Another summer visitor that may be distinguished from other warblers by its conspicuous white throat, which is especially noticeable when it swells when the bird is singing. It can be found in hedgerows and scrubland. Its song is a short, harsh warble, often sung excitedly as the bird flutters up from a hedge and drops back sharply into it again.

 

To listen to the different species’ songs and calls, you can find them on https://xeno-canto.org/

 

Why not take a walk in the NLOW project area and let us know if you see or hear any warblers that are still about?

Take a bird guide out with you, such as this one, download the Merlin app on your smartphone to help with identifying by calls and songs, or use xeno-canto to help with ID.

We love receiving your records and we’ll submit them to CPERC (the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Environmental Records Centre) to contribute to building a better understanding of biodiversity in the area.

You can email us at info@newlifeoldwest.org.uk or tag us on social media @newlifeoldwest #newlifeoldwest