Tag: Tickell’s Leaf Warbler

Tickell’s Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis occisinensis, also known as Alpine Leaf Warbler, Qinghai, China, elev. 3450 m (11,320 ft.), July. (Craig Brelsford)

Alpine Leaf Warbler P. a. occisinensis, Sichuan, China, elev. 3610 m (11,840 ft.), May. (Craig Brelsford)

Alpine Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis occisinensis breeds across much of eastern Tibetan Plateau and adjacent mountains, from eastern Tibet and Qinghai to southern Shaanxi, western Sichuan, and western Yunnan. Non-breeders move downslope and south, to southeast Tibet, Yunnan, and Guizhou. HABITAT & BEHAVIOR Breeds in alpine and subalpine scrub, often amid dwarf junipers and rhododendron, between 3050–4880 m (10,010–16,010 ft.). Non-breeders skulk in bushes and low trees, usually at forest edge. Feeds acrobatically in low bushes and occasionally on ground, singly or in pairs in breeding season, in mixed-species flocks in winter. ID & COMPARISON Medium-sized leaf warbler with bright lemon-yellow supercilium and underparts, bold eye-stripe, and uniform, greenish-brown crown, upperparts, and tail. Nearly identical to Tickell’s Leaf Warbler P. a. affinis and P. a. perflavus (see below); very similar to Buff-throated Warbler P. subaffinis and Sulphur-bellied Warbler P. griseolus. Long supercilium often whiter behind eye, and eye-stripe usually less distinct on lores than behind eye. Dusky-yellow ear coverts and cheeks. Flight feathers and tail feathers show olive fringes, with outermost three tail feathers showing white tips and white inner edge. Underparts show strongest yellowish hue on chin and throat, turning more yellowish-brown on breast and flanks and whiter toward vent. Buff-throated Warbler is duller and has a shorter, darker bill, proportionately longer tail, more uniformly buffish-yellow supercilium, and weaker eye-stripe and generally breeds at lower elevations. Sulphur-bellied Warbler spends more time on ground, is colder grey-brown above with greyish-white edges to flight feathers, and has more brownish-yellow underparts and a more prominent supercilium. BARE PARTS Upper mandible blackish-brown, lower mandible orange with dark tip. Feet pinkish-brown. VOICE Song a simple, repetitive trill, often introduced by one or two call notes: chep-chi-chi-chi-chi. Song of Buff-throated Warbler lacks introductory call note. — Craig Brelsford

Tickell’s Leaf Warbler P. a. affinis, P. a. perflavus

Tickell’s Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis affinis and P. a. perflavus are Himalayan counterparts of Alpine Leaf Warbler P. a. occisinensis. Occur in Tibet near borders of Nepal, India, and Bhutan, with both western (perflavus) and eastern (affinis) ssp. probably present on Chinese territory. Nearly identical to occisinensis, but perflavus more olive-brown above and uniformly citron-yellow on underparts. Song a slightly faster and higher-pitched trill than occisinensis. — Craig Brelsford

SOUND-RECORDING

Alpine Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis occisinensis, song, Sichuan, China, June, by Craig Brelsford (0:41; 1.4 MB)

ALPINE LEAF WARBLER ON SHANGHAIBIRDING.COM

• Alpine Leaf Warbler Sound-Recorded on Tibetan Plateau in Sichuan, China

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)

Scroll down for posts about Tickell’s Leaf Warbler. Reach us at info@shanghaibirding.com.