Small, long-tailed Curruca warbler. Upperparts dark with well-patterned wing feathers. Males have a back hood, similar to Sardinian Warbler, but have heavily barred underparts. Females are plainer below, but always have patterned undertail coverts. Breeds in dense bushes in open Mediterranean scrub on Cyprus only. Winters in desert wadis. Song is a monotonous rattle. Call is a series of sharp, metallic “tzeck- tzeck- tzeck” notes.