Scientific name: Locustella lanceolata (Temminck, 1840)
Bird group: Warblers
Field characters. 12 cm. Very similar to Grasshopper Warbler but smaller and with shorter bill and tail. Crown and mantle striped (not spotted as in Grasshopper Warbler); breast distinctly marked with elongate streaks; tertials and coverts with clearly defined pale edges; centre of breast whitish; undertail coverts grey-buff with narrow, sharply bordered spots (larger, triangular and more diffuse in Grasshopper Warbler). Same unobtrusive behaviour as Grasshopper Warbler.
Voice. Very similar to Grasshopper Warbler but slightly slower and higher pitched.
Distribution. Central Eurasia, extending only marginally into Europe.
Habitat. Reedbeds, wet meadows, bushes in marshy areas, and scrubby patches in damp woodlands.
Food. Insects; occasionally seeds.