LESSER WHITETHROAT 



Sylvia curruca 



the British Islands the Lesser Whitethroat is a some- 

 what locally distributed species, though in some districts 

 it is quite a common bird. It seems to be rare in Wales 

 and in the western counties of England. In Scotland 

 the Lesser Whitethroat is also very locally distributed. 

 It is sparingly met with in Ayrshire, Renfrewshire, and 

 Dumbartonshire, and as far north as Perthshire ; I have 

 myself seen its nest in Stirlingshire. It has been observed on the Shetlands, 

 but does not seem to reach the Hebrides. In Ireland there is little reliable 

 evidence of its occurrence. 



The Lesser Whitethroat is a regular summer visitor to Great Britain, 

 and arrives about the end of April. Its haunts are the tangled copses, 

 shrubberies, small plantations, and thick hedgerows where there is plenty of 

 concealment and seclusion. It is a restless, shy little bird, and does not 

 frequent the open, preferring the shelter of the thick undergrowth or the 

 dense foliage in the tops of the trees. Unlike its larger relative, the Common 

 Whitethroat, it is frequently seen at a considerable distance from the ground, 

 sometimes hiding under the leaves or gliding from branch to branch in pursuit 

 of insects, every now and then sallying into the air to capture some passing 

 gnat. When crossing from one tree to another, its flight is very undulating, 

 but it seldom flies any distance at a time. 



The food of the Lesser Whitethroat is principally composed of insects, 

 which it seeks under the leaves of the trees and shrubs; but it also eats 

 green flies and caterpillars, and is very partial to cherries and currants. 



Its song is a rather monotonous trill, preceded very often by a few notes, 

 which remind one rather of the twittering of the Swallow. Its call-note is 



'55 



