Other Names (World)
Japanese Bush-Warbler, Singing Bush-warbler, Chinese Bush-warbler, Oriental Bush-warbler, Short-winged Reed-warbler, Manchurian Bush-warbler (canturians), Japanese Bush Warbler
Japanese Bush Warbler (Horornis diphone) [XC465465]
by David Farrow from Miyakejima--Tairo-ike, Japan (song)
Japanese Bush Warbler (Horornis diphone) [XC285821]
by Masato Nagai (Japan) from Mount Fuji east side, Japan (song)
Subspecies
Sometimes treated as conspecific with Philippine Bush-Warbler (Horornis seebohmi). Subspecies canturians has been considered a separate species on basis of differences in plumage and voice. Further study is required. Birds from southern Kuril Is described as subspecies viridis, considered synonymous with sakhalinensis. Borodino Is subspecies restricta (rich rufous-brown above, greyish-olive wash on breast side to undertail-coverts) extinct.
The following 8 subspecies are recognised:
borealis (Kittlitz, 1830) - Breeds north-eastern China, adjacent south-eastern Russia (southern Ussuriland) and Korea. Non-breeding eastern China (Fujian), Taiwan and northern Philippines (Batan Is, Luzon). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Korean Bush-Warbler (Horornis canturians).
sakhalinensis (Yamashina, 1927) - Southern Sakhalin and southern Kuril Is. Non-breeding south-eastern China.
cantans (Temminck & Schlegel, 1847) - Japan, incuding coastal islands south to Yaku-shima, Tanega-shima and Hachijo-jima, also Tsushima and Quelpart I (Cheju-do).
riukiuensis Kuroda, Nagamichi, 1925 - Ryukyu Is (from Amami-o-shima south to Iriomote-jima).
diphone (Kittlitz, 1830) - Southern Izu Is, Ogasawara Is and Iwo Is.
canturians (Swinhoe, 1860) - Central, eastern China, south-eastern Siberia and Korea. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Korean Bush-Warbler (Horornis canturians).
BirdLife International Species Factsheet