Editing Water pipit (section)

==Description==

The water pipit is {{convert|15|–|17|cm}} long and weighs {{convert|18.7|–|23|g}}. The adult of the nominate race in spring plumage has greyish-brown upperparts, weakly streaked with darker brown, and pale pink-buff underparts fading to whitish on the lower belly. There may be some faint streaking on the breast and flanks. The head is grey with a broad white [[supercilium]]. The outer tail feathers are white, and the legs, bill and iris are dark brown or blackish. In non-breeding plumage, the head is grey-brown and the supercilium is less distinct. The upperparts are more streaked, and the underparts are white, marked lightly with brown on the breast and flanks.<ref name=id>{{cite journal |last1= Alström |first1=Per |last2=Mild|first2=Krister |year=1996 |title=The identification of Rock, Water and Buff-bellied Pipits |journal=Alula |volume=2 |issue=4 |pages=161–175}}</ref><ref name=hbw/>

The sexes are similar although the female has, on average, a greyer head. Young birds resembles the non-breeding adult, but are browner and more streaked above with prominent streaking on the underparts. ''A. s. coutellii'' is smaller than the nominate subspecies and the white of the outer tail feathers has a hint of grey. It is paler and more heavily streaked above, and in summer plumage the underparts' colour covers a larger area and has a rusty tint. ''A. s. blakistoni'' is large, pale and less strongly streaked.<ref name=hbw/>
[[File:Anthus spinoletta-4.jpg|thumb|left|Conspicuous head markings]]

The water pipit has a complete [[moult]] between July and September, although there is considerable individual variation in timing. There is a partial pre-breeding moult, mainly between January and March, but with much variability in timing. This moult typically involves replacing the head, body and some wing feathers, but the extent is again variable. Very occasionally, females may moult into what looks like non-breeding plumage, rather than the expected brighter garb. The chicks start to gain juvenile plumage as soon as a month after hatching, and most have completed the transition to near-adult appearance by September. The first pre-breeding moult is similar to that of the adult, but may be less complete or even absent.<ref name =cramp/>

The water pipit is closely related to the Eurasian rock pipit and the meadow pipit,<ref name="researchgate"/> and is rather similar to both in appearance. Compared to the meadow pipit, the water pipit is longer-winged and longer-tailed than its relative, and has much paler underparts. It has dark, rather than pinkish-red, legs. The water pipit in winter plumage is also confusable with the Eurasian rock pipit, but has a strong supercilium, greyer upperparts, and white, not grey, outer tail feathers; it is also typically much warier.<ref name="macmillan">{{cite book |last1=Harris |first1=Alan |last2=Vinicombe |first2=Keith |last3=Tucker |first3=Laurel |title=The Macmillan Field Guide to Bird Identification |publisher=Macmillan |series=Macmillan field guides |year=1989 |location=London |pages=159–161 |isbn=978-0-333-42773-6}}</ref> The habitats used by European rock and water pipits are completely separate in the breeding season, and there is little overlap even when birds are not nesting. There is also little mixing with breeding meadow pipits, although since 1960 some overlapping territories have been found where the species coexist.<ref name=hbw/>

The European rock pipit's subspecies ''Anthus petrosus littoralis'' in summer plumage is particularly close in outward appearance to the water pipit. The rock pipit normally has a bluer tint to the head, streaking on the breast and flanks, and buff outer tail feathers,<ref name="macmillan"/> and the songs are also different.<ref name="hbw" /><ref name="simms2"/> The species mostly occupy different [[Habitat (ecology)|habitat]] types even when they occur in the same general area.<ref name="Bijlsma">{{cite journal |last=Bijlsma |first=R J |title=Voorkomen en oecologie van ''Anthus spinoletta spinoletta'' en ''A. s. littoralis'' in de uiterwaarden van de Rijn bij Wageningen |journal=Limosa |year=1977 |volume=50 |issue=3–4 |pages=127–136 |language=nl}}</ref>

===Voice===

The water pipit's song is delivered from a perch or in flight, and consists of four or five blocks, each consisting of about half a dozen repetitions of a different short note.<ref name="hbw" /> In comparison, the European rock pipit's song is a sequence of about twenty tinkling ''cheepa'' notes followed by a rising series of thin ''gee'' calls, and finishing with a short [[trill (music)|trill]].<ref name="simms2">{{cite book |last1=Simms |first1=Eric |title=British Larks, Pipits and Wagtails |publisher=Harper Collins |series=New Naturalist |year=1992 |location=London |pages=153–165 |isbn=978-0-00-219870-7}}</ref> The call of the water pipit is a single or double sharp "dzip" or similar, slightly harsher than soft ''sip sip sip'' of the meadow pipit or the shrill ''pseep'' of the European rock pipit. The short, thin ''fist'' flight call is intermediate between the ''sip'' of the meadow pipit and the rock pipit's ''feest''.<ref name=hbw/><ref name="macmillan" /> The differences between the calls of the pipit species are very subtle, and not diagnostic in the absence of other evidence.<ref name="macmillan" /> The flight call of the subspecies ''A. s. coutellii'' is shorter and more buzzing than that of the nominate race.<ref name=hbw/>