The striated grassbird is an "Old World warbler" species in the family Locustellidae. It was formerly placed in the family Sylviidae. It is now the only species placed in the genus Megalurus.
Region
South and Southeast Asia
Typical Environment
Occupies extensive grasslands, marsh edges, reedbeds, and rice fields, especially in lowland floodplains. It prefers rank, tall grasses and sedges interspersed with scattered shrubs and reeds. Birds often use fence posts, bushes, or the tops of reeds as singing perches. Occurs in both natural wetlands and human-modified agricultural landscapes where cover remains.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1500 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A loud and conspicuous songster, the striated grassbird often sings from exposed perches or during short song-flights above tall grass. It favors wetlands and paddy margins where it builds deep, well-concealed cup nests in dense vegetation. Formerly grouped with Old World warblers, it now sits in the grassbird family Locustellidae and is currently the only species in the genus Megalurus.
Striated Grassbird over a power wire.
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with brief fluttering song-flights; usually low over vegetation
Social Behavior
Typically seen singly or in pairs during the breeding season, defending territories in tall grass. Nests are deep, woven cups placed low in dense vegetation. Clutches are usually small, and both parents tend the young. Outside breeding, it may occur loosely with other grassland birds but is not strongly gregarious.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A loud, ringing series of buzzy trills and sharp, metallic notes delivered from exposed perches or in display flights. Phrases are repeated persistently, often at dawn and dusk, carrying far over open grassland.
Plumage
Heavily streaked brown upperparts with darker shaft-streaks, a paler buffy to whitish underside with fine streaking on the breast, and a long, graduated tail often edged paler. Feathers appear warm rufous-brown on the wings with a prominent pale supercilium.
Diet
Feeds mainly on insects such as grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, caterpillars, and other arthropods. It also takes small spiders and occasionally soft plant matter or seeds. Prey is gleaned from stems, leaves, and the ground, with quick sallies to capture flushed insects. Foraging is methodical, using cover while making short dashes between perches.
Preferred Environment
Hunts within tall grasses, sedges, and reedbeds, often along wet edges of marshes and rice paddies. Uses exposed stems and low perches to scan and then drops into cover to seize prey.
