Hippolais polyglotta
Silhouette: John Gerrard Keulemans · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The melodious warbler (Hippolais polyglotta) is an Old World warbler in the tree warbler genus Hippolais. It breeds in southwest Europe and northwest Africa. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa. This small passerine bird is a species found in open woodland with bushes. Three to five eggs are laid in a nest in a tree or a bush. This is a common bird in many parts of its wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".
The genus name Hippolais is from Ancient Greek hupolais, as misspelt by Linnaeus. It referred to a small bird mentioned by Aristotle and others and may be onomatopoeic or derived from hupo,"under", and laas, "stone". The specific polyglotta is from Ancient Greek polus, "many", and glossa, "tongue" and means "harmonious".
This is a medium-sized warbler, 12 to 13 cm (4.7 to 5.1 in) in length, and similar to its eastern counterpart, the icterine warbler (Hippolais icterina). The adult has a plain brown back and wings, and yellowish underparts. Compared to the icterine warbler, the upper parts are rather browner and the under parts rather yellower... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niokolo-Koba National Park | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 2 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Camargue | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Sierra Nevada National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 7 | Monfragüe National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 8 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 10 | Picos de Europa National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ouagadougou | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | |
| 2 | Marrakesh | 🇲🇦 Morocco | |
| 3 | Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Milan | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 5 | Turin | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 6 | Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 7 | Lisbon | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 8 | Rome | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 9 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia | |
| 10 | Porto | 🇵🇹 Portugal |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Melodious Warbler sighting in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park on a given day, based on 367 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 86th most-seen of the 202 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May and June
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Melodious Warbler in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to April, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Melodious 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.
3rd of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Melodious Warbler sightings, Sierra de Guadarrama National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal, about 20%) and Cévennes National Park (France, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Melodious Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (367 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.
