Acrocephalus agricola
Silhouette: Yves Hoebeke · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
The paddyfield warbler (Acrocephalus agricola) is a species of marsh warbler (family Acrocephalidae). It was formerly included in the "Old World warbler" assemblage. The Manchurian reed warbler (A. tangorum) was (and sometimes still is) included in A. agricola as a subspecies.
The genus name Acrocephalus is from Ancient Greek akros, "highest", and kephale, "head". It is possible that Naumann and Naumann thought akros meant "sharp-pointed". The specific agricola is from Latin and means "farmer".
It breeds in the temperate central Palearctic. It is migratory, wintering in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. It is a rare vagrant to western Europe although there are small breeding populations along the western shores of the Black Sea around the border between Bulgaria and Romania. This passerine bird is a species found in low vegetation such as long grass, reeds and rice. 4–5 eggs are laid in a nest in grass.
At 13 cm (5.1 in) long with a wingspan of 15–17.5 cm (5.9–6.9 in), the paddyfield warbler is close in size to the Eurasian reed warbler but with shorter bill and wingspan. The adult has an unstreaked pale brown back and buff underparts, with a warm brown rump. There is a clearer whitish supercilium and the bill is short and pointed. The sexes are identical, as with most warblers, but young birds are richer buff below. Like most warblers, it is insectivorous.
The song is fast and similar to marsh warbler, with much mimicry and typically acrocephaline whistles added. Its song is weaker and more rhythmic than that of its relative. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | |
| 2 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 5 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vasai-Virar | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Novosibirsk | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 3 | Kolkata | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Kalyan-Dombivli | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Kozhikode | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Coimbatore | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Tamluk | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Dhaka | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | |
| 9 | Mumbai | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Pune | 🇮🇳 India |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Paddyfield Warbler sighting in Kaziranga National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 310th most-seen of the 323 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Paddyfield Warbler in Kaziranga National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season. June and July have too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Paddyfield Warbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Paddyfield Warbler sightings, Kaziranga National Park ranks 5th at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park (Mongolia, under 5%), Keoladeo National Park (India, under 5%) and Manas National Park (India, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Paddyfield Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Kaziranga National Park (6 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
