Animalia Life
Bradypterus baboecala
SUBFAMILY
Sylviinae
TAXONOMY
Bradypterus baboecala Vieillot, 1817.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: African bush-warbler, African sedge warbler; French:
Bouscarle des marais; German: Sumpfbuschsдnger; Spanish:
Ruiseсor Africano.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
5.9–7.5 in (15–19 cm); 0.4–0.6 oz (11–17 g). Medium-sized
warbler with dark brown upperparts, buffy flanks and breast,
whitish underparts, whitish throat streaked or spotted with
dark brown, and pale eye line. Tail wide and rounded.
DISTRIBUTION
Sub-Saharan Africa. Widespread, but local in the northern
tropics; common throughout much of the south.
HABITAT
Reedbeds and grasses, near marshes, lagoons, sewage ponds,
watercourses.
BEHAVIOR
Found singly or in pairs. Reluctant to fly. Song an accelerating
series of chips, with the tempo of a “bouncing ball.” Males defend
territory with song and song-flight. Generally sedentary.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Forages for insects. Also known to take ant eggs.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Monogamous. Nest is a tight, bulky cup of grasses and reeds,
situated in a tussock and supported by sedge or rush leaves
over water. The 2–3 eggs are incubated 12–14 days. Fledging
period is 12–13 days, both sexes feed young.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.
Photo Gallery of - Little rush warbler
