The TRUE REED WARBLER (_Acrocephalus turdoides_) is about eight inches
long and eleven broad; the wing measures three inches and a half, and
the tail four inches and a quarter. This species is yellowish grey on
the mantle, and reddish white on the under side, shaded with grey upon
the throat. The female is somewhat smaller and paler than her mate.
The Reed Warblers inhabit Europe, from South Scandinavia to Greece and
Spain; in the extreme south and in Northern Africa they are replaced by
nearly allied species. Everywhere they frequent such marshy localities as
are overgrown with reeds, and are never seen in mountainous regions or
woodland districts, or even upon the trees that grow near their favourite
haunts. The migratory season commences in September; but during their
wanderings, which often extend as far as Central Africa, they pass direct
from one piece of water to another, and never turn aside in their course
to linger in any but marshy or well-watered places. Shortly after the
return of these birds, at the end of April or beginning of May, their
loud resonant voices are to be heard not only from sunrise to sunset,
but frequently throughout the night. The song is a strange combination
of a great variety of harsh quavering notes, more nearly resembling the
croaking of the frogs whose domain they share than the notes of any of
the feathered creation. While singing the males usually perch upon a
reed or twig, with drooping wing, outspread tail, inflated throat, and
open beak, and go through their noisy performance with an energetic
desire to rival every bird around them; such is the evident satisfaction
they exhibit at the result of their efforts, as to make the listener
overlook the want of vocal talent, in his amusement at the conceit of
the self-complacent songsters. The nests are commenced about June, and
are built near together, suspended firmly from the reeds that overhang
the surface of the pond or stream, some four or five being drawn firmly
together to make a safe support.
Like other Marsh Warblers, they display wonderful instinct in the
situation they select, and invariably build at such a height as is
secure from any unusual rising of the water; indeed, it has been
repeatedly observed that in certain years the nests of the Reed Warblers
were constructed at an unusual distance from the ground, and this
precaution has always been explained later in the season by the fall
of extraordinary heavy rain, that would inevitably have swept away the
little structures had they been placed in the situation ordinarily
selected. The nest itself is very long in shape, with the top turned
inwards, to render the nestlings secure in a high wind. The walls are
thick, formed of grass, stalks, fibres, and wool, lined with cobwebs,
horsehair, and similar materials. The eggs, four or five in number, are
of a bluish or greenish-white tint, spotted and veined with dark brown
and grey; the young are hatched in about a fortnight, should the parent
be undisturbed, and are tended with great affection, even long after they
are fully fledged. The Reed Warblers, as we learn from Dr. Bennett, are
commonly met with in Australia. "One species" (_Acrocephalus Australis_),
he tells us, "is very numerous about the sedgy localities of the Nepean
river; and although it has been denied that any of the Australian birds
are endowed with a musical voice, this bird has a very loud, pleasing
song, enlivening the places it frequents. It is a migratory species,
arriving in the spring season--_i.e._, about September--and taking its
departure as winter commences. It builds its nest, suspended among the
reeds, in a similar manner to its congeners in Europe; it is composed of
the thin epidermis of reeds interwoven with dried rushes. The sexes are
alike. I did not see the eggs in the nests, but they are stated to be
four in number, of a greyish-white colour, thickly marked all over with
irregular blotches and markings of yellowish brown, umber brown, and
bluish grey."
The large Reed Warbler of India (_Acrocephalus brunnescens_) is,
according to Jerdon, very similar to the European species, but differs
in being something smaller in the relative size of the primaries, the
greater length of the wing, and the greater intensity of its colour.
The larger Reed Warbler is found in most parts of India in the cold
weather, for it is only a winter visitant. It extends into Assam, Aracan,
and China, in some parts of which latter country it probably breeds. It
frequents high reeds and grasses, high grain fields and gardens, where
it hunts among the rows of peas, beans, and other vegetables. It clings
strongly to the stalks of grain, and makes its way adroitly through
thick grass or bushes, concealing itself when observed, and being with
difficulty driven out. It feeds on small grasshoppers, ants, and other
insects. "I have," continues our author, "heard it occasionally utter a
harsh, clucking kind of note."
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The SEDGE WARBLERS (_Calamodus_) are distinguished from the birds above
described by their inferior size, and by the comparative shortness of
their wings, in which the third quill is the longest; the tail, moreover,
is very decidedly rounded, and their plumage spotted.