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| Blyth's Reed Warbler Acrocephalus dumetorum
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| Photographer : | © Sunil Singhal |
| Location : | Alniya Wetland, Near Kota, Rajasthan, India |
| Date : |
15 October 2010 |
| English synonyms: | Blyth's Reed-Warbler |
| Bird Family : | Acrocephalinae - Tesias, Stubtails, Warblers & Tailorbirds |
| Bird Group : | PASSERIFORMES |
| Red Data Status : | Least Concern |
| Remarks : | The bird is clearly undergoing complete moult, as you can see from its primaries as well. Moult in this species does occur around this time of year in northern India. Blyth's Reed Warblers, in fact, have a very interesting and somewhat unusual moult pattern: they do it right in the middle of their autumn migration! These birds arrive in northern India just after the monsoon, stop there for a couple of months during which they undergo moult, and then move on by Nov or so to southern India for the rest of winter. Given the short time they have during this stopover when they must complete their moult before moving south, they have to do so at a fairly rapid rate. Which in turn means they often drop most of their feathers at once - as this bird (and the other one you've noticed) seems to have done with its entire tail. |
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