Prinia gracilis palaestinae MHNT 225 Jaffa

The graceful prinia (''Prinia gracilis'') is a small

warbler Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous. Sylvioid warblers Th ...

(in some older works it is referred to as graceful warbler). This

prinia Prinia is a genus of small insectivorous birds belonging to the passerine bird family Cisticolidae. They were at one time classed in the Old World warbler family, Sylviidae. The prinias are sometimes referred to as wren-warblers. They are a ...

is a resident breeder in northeastern Africa (the

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...

valley in particular) and southern

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

, from

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

east to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, where it is sometimes called streaked wren-warbler. This active

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by t ...

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

is typically found in shrub or tall grass in a variety of habitats with thick undergrowth,

tamarisk The genus ''Tamarix'' (tamarisk, salt cedar, taray) is composed of about 50–60 species of flowering plants in the family Tamaricaceae, native to drier areas of Eurasia and Africa. The generic name originated in Latin and may refer to the Tam ...

s or similar cover. Graceful prinia builds its nest in a bush or grass and lays 3 to 5 eggs. These 10–11 cm long warblers have short rounded wings, and a long tapering tail with each feather tipped with black and white. In breeding plumage, adults are grey-brown above, with dark streaking. The underparts are whitish with buff flanks, and the bill is short and black. The sexes are similar. In winter, adults are brighter sandy brown above with weaker streaking, there is more buff on the sides, and the bill is paler. There are 7 subspecies. The long tail is often cocked, and the flight of this species is weak. Like most warblers, the graceful prinia is insectivorous. The call is a rolling trilled ''breep'', and the song is a hard rolling repetition of ''zerlip''.

Taxonomy

A study published in 2021 concludes that the graceful prinia should be split from the

delicate prinia The delicate prinia (''Prinia lepida'') is a small warbler. This prinia is a resident breeder in southern Asia, from Turkey to North India. There are 5 subspecies, of which '' P. g. akyildizi'', of southern Turkey is the darkest, brownest, and ...

. * ''Prinia gracilis'', graceful prinia, 7 subspecies: ** ''Prinia gracilis gracilis'', River Nile from Egypt to southern Sudan, ** ''Prinia gracilis deltae'', River Nile delta to western Israel, ** ''Prinia gracilis palaestinae'', Lebanon to northwestern Saudi Arabia, ** ''Prinia gracilis natronensis'', Wadi Natron, northern Egypt, ** ''Prinia gracilis carlo'', Red Sea coast from northeastern Sudan to Somalia, ** ''Prinia gracilis yemenensis'', western Saudi Arabia, Yemen, southern Oman, ** ''Prinia gracilis hufufae'', Bahrain, northeastern Saudi Arabia; The

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

followed this change in an update later that year.

References

Other References

* ''Warblers of Europe, Asia and North Africa'' by Baker, * ''Birds of India'' by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, {{Taxonbar, from=Q248603 graceful prinia Birds of North Africa Birds of the Middle East graceful prinia it:Polochon