Willow warbler

    Phylloscopus trochilus

Castilian: Mosquitero musical

Catalan: Mosquiter de passa

Gallego: Picafollas musical

Euskera: Txio horia

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Sylviidae

Migratory status: Summer resident/Passage migrant

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Near Threatened”.

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THREATS

Biogeographical and environmental limitations (humidity and temperature) are factors that explain why this species has a low reproductive capacity in Spain.

Length / size: 10-12 cm / 16-22 cm

Identification: It can be distinguished from the common and Iberian warblers because it has a pale bill and legs; its back is bright green and its underparts are yellowish. It also has more defined facial stripes and a very eye-catching stripe on its forehead.

Song: Its call is a soft "weet" whistle. Its song is a sibilant, soft verse that it repeats constantly.

Diet: It primarily feeds on spiders and small insects, and also on berries during autumn.

Reproduction: It can be a monogamous or polygamous species, and its breeding period begins in May. The female builds a small bowl-shaped nest made of leaves, branches and moss, which she places among bushes. The female is also in charge of incubation, but both parents collaborate in caring for the chicks.

HABITAT

It is a species that is dependent on forest and scrubland environments. During breeding season it prefers wet mountain forests with clearings and understories, but in migration is appears in a wide variety of habitats, as long as there is some kind of plant cover.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: When breeding, it is limited to the Cantabrian Mountains (primarily Asturias) and the Basque Country, whereas it can be seen throughout the entire peninsula when migrating.

In Castile and León: When breeding, it is found in the Cantabrian Mountains, while it can be seen throughout the entire community during migration.

Movements and migrations: It is a migratory species with wintering areas throughout almost all of Africa, from Senegal to Ethiopia to the east and reaching South Africa in the south. Central and northern European speciments cross the peninsula, Balearic and Canary Islands. The prenuptial passage takes place between March and May, and the postnuptial between August and November.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of a few dozen breeding pairs. (EN ATLAS) There is an estimated population of 60 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated maximum population of 25 breeding pairs.