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PLATE 112: PIPITS II
Buff-bellied Pipit Anthus rubescens V
L: 15.5. Subspecies japonica resembles dark winter Water Pipit; upperparts dark olive or grey-
brown, faintly streaked; breast and flanks usually rather boldly streaked (in Water Pipit, sparser,
finer, particularly on flanks); legs pale brown or reddish-brown (normally darker in Water Pipit);
white eye-ring more obvious, malar streak often broader, ending in black patch at sides of
neck. In spring, underparts pinkish-buff, breast lightly spotted, but flanks still strongly streaked;
upperparts almost unstreaked olive-grey. Larger and darker than young Red-throated with faintly
streaked upperparts. Voice High-pitched, short tripp, lacking shrill quality of Water Pipit but similar
to Meadow Pipit. Habitat Grassy fields, near water. Note Passage and winter hatched, but rare;
vagrant Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar.Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta WV
L: 16. Largish with dark brown or red-brown legs and greyish indistinctly streaked mantle. In
winter browner above, with whitish underparts sparsely streaked, almost unstreaked in some.
In summer breast variably tinged rosy-pink and practically unstreaked; creamy-white supercilium
generally pronounced. Voice Call sharpish ringing tsrieh or bzisp. Habitat On passage and in winter,
in lowland grassland, wetlands, lakesides. Note Passage and winter hatched, often abundant.Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis wv
L: 14.5. Similar to Tree Pipit but more slightly built, with long hindclaw; from first-autumn Red-
throated Pipit by almost unstreaked rump, more broken breast- and flank-streaks, call and less
contrasting mantle pattern. Flies with irregular undulations and changes of direction; on ground
flicks tail nervously. Voice Flight call thin, nervous, sit–sii–sit or tsis–sip. Habitat Open county,
marshes, coasts. Note Passage and winter hatched; rare Oman.Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis PM, wv
L: 15. Slightly stockier than Meadow Pipit with slightly shorter tail and deeper-based bill. Warmer,
less olive, above, warmer buff on breast and whiter belly; breast often boldly striped, but flanks
more finely streaked than Meadow; dark malar and creamy submoustachial streak generally bolder
in Tree Pipit but moustachial streak fainter. Pale hindclaw short, legs pinkish-salmon (dirty flesh
to orange-brown in Meadow). In autumn, from Red-throated Pipit by voice, unstreaked rump, fine
flank-streaks, less variegated streaking above and smaller blackish spot at end of malar. Bounding
flight more direct than Meadow Pipit; on ground pumps tail, unlike Meadow’s nervous flicking. Voice
Flight call distinctive, short bzeez or speez; alarm a repeated stit. Contact note distinctive quiet tip.
Habitat Open woodland, parkland and grasslands. Note Passage hatched; rare in south in winter.Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni wv, pm
L: 14.5. Resembles Tree Pipit, with broad supercilium, white behind eye, buff in front, edged black
above, pronounced small white and black spots on rear of ear-coverts (only sometimes weakly
present in Tree); upperparts greener, in subspecies yunnanensis vaguely or diffusely streaked
unless worn (Tree Pipit clearly streaked); breast more boldly streaked black; some also show
bold blackish flank-streaks. Subspecies hodgsoni similar but mantle obviously streaked (extreme
vagrant to UAE). Behaviour as Tree Pipit, though tail-wagging usually more pronounced. Voice Flight
call a thin tzeez, usually drawn-out, sometimes slightly stronger at start. Habitat As Tree Pipit.
Note Winter hatched, but rare; vagrant Bahrain, Iran, Saudi Arabia.Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus PM, WV
L: 15. Adult has variable amount of pinkish or reddish-buff on face, supercilium, throat and upper
breast; retained in autumn though rarely in winter; some females have only beige throat. From
Meadow Pipit in autumn/winter by call; boldly streaked rump, breast and flanks creamy or white
(usually pale buff in Meadow), flanks usually with 2–3 bold, almost unbroken, stripes; malar streak
ends in large, dark triangle on side of throat; upperparts with bolder blackish and creamy white
stripes. Flight similar to Meadow Pipit. Voice Distinctive, thin, high-pitched, drawn-out pseeee,
slowly dying away. Habitat Marshes, grassland, cultivation; usually near water. Note Passage and
winter hatched; rare in north in winter.