Scientific name:
Sylvia communis

Natural spread:
Europe, Asia, Norafrika

the 14-15 cm long thorn-warbler lives in hedge, Dornenhecken and other dense undergrowth between meadows and fields, also in the wasteland and at forest-edges it is native. In gardens and parks, however, one very rarely finds it.

Spread In Europe, thorn-warblers live up to the 65 northwards. Degree of latitude, eastward in Asia as far as to the Mongolia and as far as to the Altai and Jenissei, furthermore they occur in Asia Minor as far as to the Iran and in the western North-Africa. The hibernation-areas of the European populations lie in the tropical Africa while the Asian thorn-warblers move into the Arabic and Indian area in the autumn.

Way of life In its way of life, the thorn-warbler doesn't show any far too big differences opposite the other types of the warblers (type Sylvia). they live in the most important thing of insects, berries (blackberries) also take elderberries gladly from u, however. ä.) on. The thorn-warbler is very active, only rarely, it sits quietly at a place longer time.

Tone-remarks The male carries from Singwarten, more highly situated bush-tops u. ä.) from in its firmly delimited precinct Balzgesänge, that can finish also in Singflügen, before. Then, the bird climbs up to 10 m highly into the air over its Singplatz in order to glide again in stages to the ground subsequent. The tone-remarks - reputations and chants - of the thorn-warblers are very versatile, typical elements frequently are repeated on that occasion. Only during the Balzzeit, a strongly simplified chant is to be heard.

Reproduction Normally, thorn-warblers pull up two broods in Central Europe in the year, only rarely also three. The male builds several nest-installations in the it doesn't mold higher than 50 cm open bowls with what over the ground from dry grass and roots mostly writes grew over. The female chooses one of the offered nests and completes it together with the partner. The nest-hollow is from-dressed soft with webs and hair before the female inserts 4-6 eggs, that become erbrütet from both alto-birds. After 11-13 days, the bare boys slip; after further 10-13 days, they fly out. Both parents feed its offspring. The female hudert the nest-stools in the first days extensive.

The cuckoo likes to visit the nests of the thorn-warbler and near relatives types in order to let reared its young of these much daintier birds.