Zitting cisticola

    Cisticola juncidis

Castilian: Buitrón

Catalan: Trist

Gallego: Carriza dos xuncos

Euskera: Ihi-txoria

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Sylviidae

Migratory status: Permanent resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Not Evaluated”.

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THREATS

The alteration or destruction of its habitat due to the use of biocides, greenhouse farming, the clearing of pastureland, urbanisation and hard winters are causes of death and limit its distribution.

Length / size: 10 cm / 12-15 cm

Identification: It is one of the smallest birds in Europe. Its back and crown are brown and striped, its rump reddish, its underparts light, and its flanks and breast ochre-coloured. It has a band of black and white spots on its tail that are only visible in flight.

Song: It makes a characteristic "seep-seep" in flight while it elevates its flight path, and it repeats it monotonously.

Diet: It primarily feeds on insects.

Reproduction: Territorial polygamous (one male with two or more females) species that begins its breeding period in March. The nest, which is placed at a low height and hidden in the grass, is a pear-shaped closed bottle-shaped structure that is made using grass and spider webs. The exterior part is made by the male and the interior lining is done by the female. The female incubates and cares for the chicks.

HABITAT

It occupies open plains where there is an abundance of herbaceous vegetation, such as cat's-tail beds, esparto grass beds, reed beds, irrigated farmland, etc. It is found from sea level up to an elevation of 950 metres in Sierra Nevada.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It is distributed throughout the low and thermal areas of the peninsula, and is most abundant on the Mediterranean Coast and in Andalusia and Extremadura.

In Castile and León: It is found in all the provinces, but the largest populations are concentrated in southeastern León, northern Valladolid and eastern Zamora.

Movements and migrations: It is a sedentary species, but northern populations make small movements toward the south in autumn, later returning to their breeding areas between February and April.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 100000 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of less than 6000 breeding pairs.