Lemon-rumped Warbler Phylloscopus chloronotus simlaensis ranges across western Himalayas to central Shigatse Prefecture, Tibet, and P. c. chloronotus from central Shigatse Prefecture eastward. Range of chloronotus abuts Sichuan Leaf Warbler P. forresti in eastern Tibet. HABITAT Breeds mainly in forests in which conifers predominate, also oak forests, between 1800-4200 m (5,910-13,780 ft.). ID & COMPARISON Member of Pallas’s Leaf Warbler Complex; very similar to Gansu Leaf Warbler P. kansuensis and Sichuan Leaf Warbler. Race simlaensis on average brighter and more strongly marked than nominate, which in turn is paler than Sichuan Leaf Warbler. Pallas’s Leaf Warbler P. proregulus has bright lemon-yellow supercilium (anteriorly) that is usually broadest in front of eye, darker sides of crown, and blackish eye-stripe (i.e., bolder head pattern), and on average greener mantle, yellower wingbars, and whiter underparts. VOICE One song type is trill or rattle consisting of two parts and lasting 2 or 4 seconds, first part fast and slightly buzzy, second part slower, more ringing, and on a slightly lower pitch; trills often interspersed by single or double tsi calls. This song can be similar to one song type of Sichuan Leaf Warbler, but Lemon-rumped dryer and faster. Other song is prolonged series of notes and trills. Sharp dweet call shorter than Sichuan Leaf Warbler. Also more ample si-tu call, second note lower-pitched. — Craig Brelsford
THE LEAF WARBLERS OF CHINA
shanghaibirding.com has research on most members of Phylloscopus in China. Click any link below:
Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix
Buff-barred Warbler P. pulcher
Ashy-throated Warbler P. maculipennis
Hume’s Leaf Warbler P. humei
Yellow-browed Warbler P. inornatus
Chinese Leaf Warbler P. yunnanensis
Lemon-rumped Warbler P. chloronotus
Sichuan Leaf Warbler P. forresti
Gansu Leaf Warbler P. kansuensis
Pallas’s Leaf Warbler P. proregulus
Yellow-streaked Warbler P. armandii
Radde’s Warbler P. schwarzi
Sulphur-bellied Warbler P. griseolus
Tickell’s Leaf Warbler P. affinis
Smoky Warbler P. fuligiventer
Dusky Warbler P. fuscatus
Buff-throated Warbler P. subaffinis
Willow Warbler P. trochilus
Mountain Chiffchaff P. sindianus
Common Chiffchaff P. collybita
Eastern Crowned Warbler P. coronatus
Ijima’s Leaf Warbler P. ijimae
White-spectacled Warbler P. intermedius
Grey-cheeked Warbler P. poliogenys
Green-crowned Warbler P. burkii
Grey-crowned Warbler P. tephrocephalus
Whistler’s Warbler P. whistleri
Bianchi’s Warbler P. valentini
Alström’s Warbler P. soror
Martens’s Warbler P. omeiensis
Two-barred Warbler P. plumbeitarsus
Greenish Warbler P. trochiloides
Emei Leaf Warbler P. emeiensis
Large-billed Leaf Warbler P. magnirostris
Sakhalin Leaf Warbler P. borealoides
Pale-legged Leaf Warbler P. tenellipes
Japanese Leaf Warbler P. xanthodryas
Kamchatka Leaf Warbler P. examinandus
Arctic Warbler P. borealis
Chestnut-crowned Warbler P. castaniceps
Limestone Leaf Warbler P. calciatilis
Sulphur-breasted Warbler P. ricketti
Yellow-vented Warbler P. cantator
Blyth’s Leaf Warbler P. reguloides
Claudia’s Leaf Warbler P. claudiae
Hartert’s Leaf Warbler P. goodsoni
Kloss’s Leaf Warbler P. ogilviegranti
Hainan Leaf Warbler P. hainanus
Davison’s Leaf Warbler P. davisoni
Grey-hooded Warbler P. xanthoschistos
RESOURCES ON LEAF WARBLERS
Use Per Alström’s 40-page presentation on the leaf warblers of China. The document is available in PDF and jpeg:
Presentation on the Identification of Leaf Warblers in China, by Per Alström (PDF version)
Presentation on the Identification of Leaf Warblers in China, by Per Alström (zip folder containing jpegs that can be synced like photos to one’s smartphone)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Daniel Bengtsson served as chief ornithological consultant for Craig Brelsford’s Photographic Field Guide to the Birds of China, from which this species description is drawn.
