delhibird - The Northern India Bird Network

SPECIES GUIDE >> WARBLERS PART II

Smoky Warbler Phylloscopus fuligiventer

Smoky Warbler Phylloscopus fuligiventer
copyright Lt. Gen R.K.Gaur

Another rare wintering warbler to North India is the Smoky Warbler, which breeds above the treeline in the eastern Himalayas. This is a very small ground-dwelling species with a rather short-tailed appearance, which winters near water, in rather dense vegetation close to the water’s edge. It will be found skulking under cover, but will sometimes come out to take small insects by hovering over the water surface. Overall it looks very dark dull olive, with a yellowish or whitish supercilium and dark eyestripe. The underparts are dusky on the sides, with buffy yellow in the centre from the throat downwards. The lower mandible is pale pinkish near the base and the legs are dark. The call is low tchup. Its secretive manner means that it is probably under-recorded.

Dusky Warbler Phylloscopus fuscatus

Another skulking and rare winter visitor, also usually found close to the ground and often near water, is the Dusky Warbler which is brownish above, whitish below and with a long, broad buffish-white supercilium and prominent dark eye-stripe. It can told from the chiffchaffs by its rather longer supercilium, pale legs and base to lower mandible and much more secretive habits. It is paler and browner than Smoky Warbler, with whiter underparts. The call is a hard teck.

Radde’s Warbler Phylloscopus schwarzi

Radde's Warbler Phylloscopus schwarzi
copyright Bjorn Johansson

Much rarer is the superficially similar Radde’s Warbler. This is slightly larger bird, with a stouter, blunter bill, paler legs, a rather paler supercilium, especially behind the eye, and which tends to rather smudged in front of the eye (whereas in Dusky Warbler it is better defined there), and often rather warm rich buff undertail coverts. This is a vagrant to India, wintering in South-east Asia.

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