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The
Meadow Pipit looks like a Song Thrush, but is only slightly larger than
a
Great Tit. The
male and female Meadow Pipits are alike.
Typically, the upperparts are grey to
olive-brown in colour with darker streaks. The under parts are pale grey or buff
coloured with bold streaks and spots
on the breast and flanks.
The belly and outer tail feathers are white.
The legs are a dull pink. Juvenile Meadow Pipits are pinkish-buff and lack the
dark streaks on the flanks.
The Tree Pipit is very similar to
the Meadow Pipit, but its general appearance is cleaner with more distinct
markings, the legs are a paler pink and the hind claw is much shorter.
The song is delivered during the
bird's aerial display, which consists of flying from a perch, rising upwards in
a fluttering ascent, and then parachuting downwards on half spread wings.
The song comprises a series of
accelerating "tseep tseep..." as it rises, decelerating "tseut tseut...", and a
trill to finish.
The diet is mainly invertebrates including flies, spiders, moths and beetles,
but also seeds in autumn and winter.
Meadow Pipits breed in open country on heaths, moors, bogs, and coastal marshes.
The nest is on the ground usually well concealed, and built by the female from
dry grass and lined with finer grass and hair.
The smooth, glossy eggs are white with heavy brown spotting, and about 19 mm by
15 mm. Incubation is by the female only. The young are fed by both parents.
Meadow Pipit broods are often parasitized by the Cuckoo.
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