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To the Beauty of Birds

The African Pipit (Anthus cinnamomeus) is a fairly small passerine bird belonging to the pipit genus Anthus in the family Motacillidae. It is also known as the grassveld pipit or grassland pipit. It occurs in grassland and fields in Southern, Central and East Africa, south-east of a line from Angola through the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Sudan. It is also found in south-western Arabia.

The African pipit is 15 to 17 cm long and is a slender bird with an erect stance. It is buffy-brown above with darker streaks. The underparts are white or pale buff with a streaked breast and plain belly and flanks. The face is boldly patterned with a pale stripe over the eye and a dark malar stripe. The outer tail-feathers are white. The legs are long and pinkish and the slender bill is dark with a yellowish base to the lower mandible.

The song is a repeated series of twittering notes, given during an undulating song-flight or from a low perch.

This photo was taken at Serena Masai Mara, Kenya. Photo 9334 shows the very faint yellow throat spot.

African Pipit

Pipit African 9331

Pipit African 9332

Pipit African 9334

Pipit African 8744