Iberian Chiffchaff

Overview

The Iberian chiffchaff (Phylloscopus ibericus) is a passerine bird belonging to the family Phylloscopidae. It breeds in southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa before wintering in western Africa south of the Sahara Desert.

Identification

• Upperparts are a cleaner green colour with no brown hue.
• The breast is yellow and the belly is white, resembling a willow warbler more than a common chiffchaff.
• A distinct dark eyestripe enhances the resemblance to a willow warbler.
• The song includes a faster, more monotonous chiff-chaff call, repeated rattles, and long-drawn-out whistles, transcribed as "chiff-chiff-chiff-chiff-dr-dr-dr-dr-swit-swit-swit".

Habitat

Found as a summer visitor in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, and in small numbers in France. It occupies humid areas, associating with riparian habitats in the south and deciduous woodland with well-developed undergrowth in the north.

Did you know?

The Iberian chiffchaff is the most divergent member of the chiffchaff species complex. It was originally proposed as a separate species by Claud B. Ticehurst in 1937 after an earlier naming attempt by Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer was invalidated when his holotype was found to be a common chiffchaff.