Greater Swamp Warbler - BirdForum Opus

Subspecies rufescens
Photo by whiteheadedvulture
Accra, Ghana, April 2016

Acrocephalus rufescens

Identification

16–18 cm (6¼-7 in)

• Grey supercilium
• Pale lores

Distribution

Widespread throughout sub-saharan Africa
Western Africa: Mauritania, Senegambia, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola
Eastern Africa: South Sudan, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia
Southern Africa: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe
African Islands: Gulf of Guinea Islands: Bioko (Fernando Po)

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 4 subspecies^[1]:

• A. r. senegalensis:

• Senegal

• A. r. rufescens:

• Ghana to Nigeria, Cameroon, Cabinda and north-western Zaire; Bioko

• A. r. chadensis:

• Lake Chad environs

• A. r. ansorgei (niloticus, foxi):

• South Sudan to eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and western Kenya south to northwestern Angola, northern Botswana, and northwestern Zimbabwe

Habitat

Papyrus swamps, reed-beds and marshes.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet consists of insects and small frogs.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved September 2014)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Greater Swamp Warbler. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Greater_Swamp_Warbler

External Links

Search for photos of Greater Swamp Warbler in the gallery