Garden Warbler
Encyclopedia
The Garden Warbler, Sylvia borin, is a common and widespread typical warbler
which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe
into western Asia
. This small passerine
bird
is strongly migratory
, and winters in central and southern Africa
. It is fairly common and widespread in England and Wales; in Ireland it is largely confined to the midlands where it breeds on the shores of small lakes.
This is a nondescript bird
, 13-14.5 cm long, mainly brown-grey above and whitish below. It has no obvious distinctive features. Like most "warblers", it is insectivorous. It is a species
of shady woodlands with ground cover for nesting. The nest is built in low shrub or brambles, and 3-7 egg
s are laid.
The Garden Warbler's is a pleasant chattering with many clearer notes like a Blackbird. The song can be confused with that of Blackcap
, but is more melodious and lacks the warbling end-phrase found in Blackcap songs. Indeed, despite their dissimilar colour pattern, these two species are probably more closely related to each other than to any other typical warbler (The Sylvia Monograph, A & C Black, London; Jønsson & Fjeldså 2006). The composer Olivier Messiaen
, who admired birdsong, used the song of S. borin as basis for his 1971 work La fauvette des jardins, the title being the French name of the species.
The beccafico, or fig-eater, a much prized delicacy in Italy, is not as sometimes thought the Garden Warbler but the closely related Orphean Warbler
.
Typical warbler
The typical warblers are small birds belonging to the genus Sylvia in the "Old World warbler" family Sylviidae. There are 28 species currently included in the genus, including five species formerly treated in the genus Parisoma, a treatment which left Sylvia paraphyletic...
which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
into western Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. This small passerine
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
is strongly migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
, and winters in central and southern Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. It is fairly common and widespread in England and Wales; in Ireland it is largely confined to the midlands where it breeds on the shores of small lakes.
This is a nondescript bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
, 13-14.5 cm long, mainly brown-grey above and whitish below. It has no obvious distinctive features. Like most "warblers", it is insectivorous. It is a species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of shady woodlands with ground cover for nesting. The nest is built in low shrub or brambles, and 3-7 egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s are laid.
The Garden Warbler's is a pleasant chattering with many clearer notes like a Blackbird. The song can be confused with that of Blackcap
Blackcap
The Blackcap is a common and widespread sylviid warbler which breeds throughout temperate Europe, western Asia and northwestern Africa, and winters from northwestern Europe south to tropical Africa...
, but is more melodious and lacks the warbling end-phrase found in Blackcap songs. Indeed, despite their dissimilar colour pattern, these two species are probably more closely related to each other than to any other typical warbler (The Sylvia Monograph, A & C Black, London; Jønsson & Fjeldså 2006). The composer Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen was a French composer, organist and ornithologist, one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex ; harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations...
, who admired birdsong, used the song of S. borin as basis for his 1971 work La fauvette des jardins, the title being the French name of the species.
The beccafico, or fig-eater, a much prized delicacy in Italy, is not as sometimes thought the Garden Warbler but the closely related Orphean Warbler
Orphean Warbler
The Orphean Warbler, Sylvia hortensis, is a typical warbler of the genus Sylvia. This species occurs in summer around the Mediterranean, through Turkey and the Caucasus and extending into Central Asia. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa...
.