Scientific name: Luscinia luscinia (Linnaeus, 1758)
Bird group: Thrushes and allies
Field characters. 16.5 cm. Very similar to Common Nightingale. Earth-brown upperparts with slightly darker wings. Whitish eye-ring, indistinct supercilium, white throat, greyish mottled breast (latter unlike Nightingale), white underparts (but dirtier white than Nightingale, and with darker breast and with characteristic dark tips to undertail-coverts) and dark rufous tail, darker and less contrasting than in Nightingale. Sexes similar, juvenile spotted and mottled like juvenile European Robin, but darker. Secretive and difficult to see, even when singing. Tends to stay in cover.
Voice. Calls 'tac' and 'krrr'. Song rich and melodious, similar to Common Nightingale, but slower, with Mistle Thrush-like tones. Does not have crescendo-notes of Nightingale.
Distribution. Rather common summer visitor in north-eastern part of region.
Habitat. Dense moist deciduous woodlands with plenty of low cover with scattered open places. Often near water.
Food. Mainly invertebrates, also some fruits. Largely feeds on the ground, sometimes in low bushes.