Granddad’s Camera
Dartford warbler, as it appears in the game

No.030 · Birds · Rare

Dartford warbler

Curruca undata

A tiny, long-tailed, dark bird with a red eye-ring, living in gorse on lowland heath. Unlike most warblers it stays all year, which makes it vulnerable to hard winters.

When to look

All year, mostly at dawn and day.

Time of day

Best time
Morning on still, sunny days, April–July, when males sing from gorse tips. Hard to see in cold or windy weather.
Where in the game
the New Forest (heath)
Size
Length about 12 cm, with a tail about half of it
Wingspan
About 16 cm
Weight
About 9.4 g (BTO average)
Lifespan
Oldest ringed bird 3 years 8 months (BTO)
Population
About 2,200 pairs in the UK (BTO, 2017); numbers crash after harsh winters, including 2008–10 and 2018
Status
Amber (BTO and RSPB; Birds of Conservation Concern 5, 2021)

Diet

Small insects and spiders, mostly from gorse and heather.

Habitat

Lowland heathland dominated by gorse and heather; the New Forest and Dorset and Surrey heaths are core areas.

Breeding

Up to three broods April–July, typically 4 eggs each (BTO); nest hidden low in gorse.

Field signs

  • Scratchy, chattering song and a harsh 'tchirr' alarm from within gorse
  • Small dark bird with long cocked tail flitting between bushes
  • Song flights from gorse tops in spring
  • Dense, mature gorse on south-facing slopes

Did you know?

  • It was almost lost: harsh winters including 1962/63 left just 10–11 pairs in Britain in the early 1960s (BTO).
  • Its English name comes from Dartford in Kent: the first British specimens were obtained from Bexley Heath, near Dartford, and Thomas Pennant named it in 1776.
  • Its breeding range grew by about 350% between 1968 and 2008 as the population recovered (BTO).

Moments worth waiting for

  • Song flight April to June, dawn and day
    A male rises from the gorse in a jerky, fluttering song flight and drops back in.

Photo tip

Choose a mild, still morning in late spring, find a clump of tall gorse with a singing male and stay 15–20 m away on the path, waiting for him to pop up. Use a long lens (500 mm) and let the bird come to you.

Be a good naturalist

It is a Schedule 1 species: never disturb one near a nest, which is deep in gorse. Stick to the tracks and, during the ground-nesting bird season (March to late August), keep dogs under close control and on leads in signed areas (Forestry England). Never use call playback. Cold snaps can wipe out local populations.

The law

Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Schedule 1: it is an offence to disturb it at or near the nest without a licence. Also on Annex 1 of the Birds Directive.

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