Tawny Pipit
Encyclopedia
The Tawny Pipit, Anthus campestris, is a medium-large passerine
bird
which breeds in much of temperate Europe
and Asia
, and northwest Africa
. It is a migrant
moving in winter to tropical Africa and the India
n subcontinent.
This is a large pipit
, 16 centimetres (6.3 in) long with wing-span 25 –, but is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly sandy brown above and pale below. It is very similar to Richard's Pipit
, but is slightly smaller, has shorter wings, tail and legs and a narrower dark bill. It is also less streaked. Its flight is strong and direct, and it gives a characteristic "schip" call, higher pitched than Richard's.
Its song is a short repetition of a loud disyllabic chir-ree chir-ree.
In south Asia, in winter some care must be taken to distinguish this from other large pipits which winter or are resident in the area, including Richard's Pipit, Blyth's Pipit
and Paddyfield Pipit
. Tawny Pipit is insectivorous, like its relatives.
The breeding habit is dry open country including semi-deserts. The nest is on the ground, with 4-6 eggs being laid.
centred on the rare event of a pair of Tawny Pipits breeding in England
. Eric Hosking
's footage of the pipits was actually of Meadow Pipit
s because he could not access genuine Tawny Pipits in German-occupied Europe.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
which breeds in much of temperate Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, and northwest Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. It is a migrant
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
moving in winter to tropical Africa and the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n subcontinent.
This is a large pipit
Pipit
The pipits are a cosmopolitan genus, Anthus, of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Along with the wagtails and longclaws, the pipits make up the family Motacillidae...
, 16 centimetres (6.3 in) long with wing-span 25 –, but is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly sandy brown above and pale below. It is very similar to Richard's Pipit
Richard's Pipit
The Richard's Pipit is a medium-sized passerine bird which breeds in open grasslands in northern Asia. It is a long-distance migrant moving to open lowlands in southern Asia. It is a rare but regular vagrant to western Europe...
, but is slightly smaller, has shorter wings, tail and legs and a narrower dark bill. It is also less streaked. Its flight is strong and direct, and it gives a characteristic "schip" call, higher pitched than Richard's.
Its song is a short repetition of a loud disyllabic chir-ree chir-ree.
In south Asia, in winter some care must be taken to distinguish this from other large pipits which winter or are resident in the area, including Richard's Pipit, Blyth's Pipit
Blyth's Pipit
The Blyth's Pipit, Anthus godlewskii, is a medium-sized passerine bird which breeds in Mongolia and neighbouring areas. It is a long distance migrant moving to open lowlands in southern Asia. It is a very rare vagrant to western Europe....
and Paddyfield Pipit
Paddyfield Pipit
Paddyfield Pipit is a small passerine bird in the pipits and wagtail family. It is a resident breeder in open scrub, grassland and cultivation in southern Asia east to the Philippines. Although among the few breeding pipits in the Asian region, identification becomes difficult in winter when...
. Tawny Pipit is insectivorous, like its relatives.
The breeding habit is dry open country including semi-deserts. The nest is on the ground, with 4-6 eggs being laid.
In culture
The plot of the 1944 film Tawny PipitTawny Pipit (film)
Tawny Pipit is a British war film produced by Prestige Productions in 1944. It tells of how a sleepy English village becomes the centre of attention when a rare bird's nest is discovered there.-Plot:...
centred on the rare event of a pair of Tawny Pipits breeding in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Eric Hosking
Eric Hosking
Eric John Hosking OBE was an English photographer noted for his bird photography.Hosking was born in London. Although he pioneered several techniques for bird photography, during the first 10 years of his photography career, Hosking was not successful in being published...
's footage of the pipits was actually of Meadow Pipit
Meadow Pipit
The Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis, is a small passerine bird which breeds in much of the northern half of Europe and also northwestern Asia, from southeastern Greenland and Iceland east to just east of the Ural Mountains in Russia, and south to central France and Romania; there is also an isolated...
s because he could not access genuine Tawny Pipits in German-occupied Europe.