12-1-2015 BARX, VALENCIA - DARTFORD WARBLER (Sylvia undata)

The Dartford warbler (Curruca undata) is a typical warbler from the warmer parts of western Europe and northwestern Africa. It is a small warbler with a long thin tail and a thin pointed bill. The adult male has grey-brown upperparts and is dull reddish-brown below except for the centre of the belly which has a dirty white patch. It has light speckles on the throat and a red eye-ring. The sexes are similar but the adult female is usually less grey above and paler below.

Its breeding range lies west of a line from southern England to the heel of Italy (southern Apulia). The Dartford warbler is usually resident all year in its breeding range, but there is some limited migration.

The species is naturally rare. The largest European populations of Curruca undata are in the Iberian peninsula, others in much of France, in Italy and southern England and south Wales. In Africa it can be found only in small areas in the north, wintering in northern Morocco and northern Algeria.

It inhabits open fields with degraded scrub brush and is common in heather. In winter it may visit urban areas, but always feeds within shrubs in these areas. It nests in bushes with thorns and near the ground. These warblers are mostly insectivorous, eating caterpillars, butterflies, beetles and spiders.

The song of the Dartford warbler is a distinctive rattling warble.