The Lesser Whitethroat. 65 



Family— Tl 'RDID.^. Sub/aviilySYL VIIN^. 



The Lesser Whitethroat. 



Sylvia curruca, LiNN. 



THE European race of this species ranges northwards almost to the limit 

 of forest-growth ; southwards it breeds throughout nearly the whole of 

 temperate Europe, to Southern Europe it is chiefly a summer visitor, but 

 Howard Saunders states that " a few pass the winter to the east of Malaga." 

 Its usual winter quarters are Northern and Central Africa, Arabia, Palestine, 

 where it is also said to breed, and Persia. 



In Great Britain its distribution is decidedly local, being especially so on 

 the east and west coasts and in Scotland, whilst in Ireland it is not known 

 to occur. 



The adult male has the crown smoky grey, the nape, back and upper tail- 

 coverts brownish slate- grey, the wings greyish brown with paler margins to the 

 innermost secondaries, the tail-feathers dark brown excepting the outer ones, 

 which are greyer and have white outer webs ; lores and ear-coverts dark brown. 

 Under surface white, slightly tinged with yellowish brown on the breast and 

 flanks; bill dark slate-grey inclining to black, the under mandible with pale base; 

 feet slate-grey ; iris pale brown. The female is slightly smaller and duller- 

 coloured than the male. Young birds are browner, with better defined pale 

 margins to the wing-feathers ; bill and feet paler ; iris hazel. 



The Lesser Whitethroat reaches us late in April or early in May and usually 

 leaves us again late in September, but stragglers remain nearly a month later, 

 and Mr. Swa3-sland even obtained an example at Brighton in November. 



This species is more skulking in its habits than its larger relative, it 

 frequents the margins of dense woods, copses, plantations, shrubberies, rural 

 uncultivated hedges, especially those which border little frequented lanes and 

 thickly planted gardens. When disturbed it either slips away into the dense 

 scrub or flies up into the branches of some lofty tree where it hops restlessly 

 from twig to twig uttering an excitable defiant note fsce, tsee, tsce, repeated rapidly 

 nine or ten times : if disturbed from its nest, however, its note is more like />/■, 



