11-10-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR - EURASIAN REED WARBLER (Acrocephalus scirpaceus)

The Reed Warbler is a plain unstreaked warbler. It's warm brown on top and beige underneath. A summer visitor to breed in the UK, the largest concentrations are East Anglia and along the south coast. There are relatively few breeding in Scotland and Ireland. It spends winters in Africa.

The Reed Warbler is a bird of reedbeds, where its rhythmic song can be heard from April to September.

A recent colonist to southern Scotland, the Reed Warbler is largely confined to reedbeds and riverside reed fringes of England, Wales and eastern parts of the island of Ireland. The Reed Warbler is double brooded, laying two clutches of eggs during late spring and midsummer. It is a common host species of the Cuckoo.

UK Reed Warbler numbers increased in the latter part of the 20th century, stabilising in the early-2000s. Most Reed Warblers leave the Britain & Ireland by mid September to spend the winter in Africa, south of the Sahara Desert.