Common chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita

Features

The common chiffchaff is a small and frequent songbird from the warbler family, which nests in open forests of the temperate part of Europe and Asia. It migrates and winters in southern and western Europe, South Asia and North Africa.

Species	Bird
Living space	Field, Meadow
Size	10 -12 cm
Weight	8,3 g

Description

The common chiffchaff has a brownish-green top of the body, sometimes a slightly brighter rump, while its belly, chest and neck are dirty white with various large spots of more yellowish feathers on the chest and the neck. It has a dark stripe drawn across its eyes and a lighter stripe running above the darker one. Its beak is tiny, dark and evident of the fact that this species is insectivorous. The common chiffchaff distinguishes from the very similar willow warbler by its evenly dark coloured legs and wings. When wings are folded alongside the body, primary flight feathers extend only for about half the length of the tertiary towards the tail. This warbler gets its name from its simple distinctive song, a repetitive cheerful chiff-chaff. This song is one of the first signs that spring has returned.