The accentors are all in a single genus Prunella. All but the Dunnock and the Japanese Accentor are inhabitants of the mountainous regions of Europe and Asia; these two also occur in lowland areas. This genus is not strongly migratory, but they will leave the coldest parts of their range in winter, and make altitudinal movements. These are small, fairly drab species superficially similar, but unrelated to, sparrows; they are generally regarded as being related to the thrushes or the warblers. They are 14 to 18 centimetres in length, and weigh between 25 and 35 grams. Accentors have thin sharp bills, reflecting their diet of ground-dwelling insects in summer, augmented with seeds and berries in winter. They may also swallow grit and sand to help their stomach break up these seeds.

Accentors spend the majority of their time in the undergrowth and even when flushed, stay low to the ground until reaching cover. Accentors may have two to three broods a year. Courtship consists of a great deal of song from the males, which may include short lark-like song flights to attract a mate. In most species, the male and female share in the nest making. They build neat cup nests and lay about 4 unspotted green or blue eggs[1].

[Abstracted from Wikipedia]


Genus Prunella
Accentor, Alpine Prunella collaris  Found: Europe, Asia
Photographed by:  1 - 3) del Monaco   4) Florian Schott  5) Robert HM Voors



Accentor, Siberian  Prunella montanella  Found: Asia
Drawing by: Naumann in Natural history of the birds of central Europe


Dunnock aka Hedge Accentor  Prunella modularis Found: Europe, Asia
Photographed by:  1, 2) Joe Gough  3) Gertjan Hooijer in the Netherlands   4) Dick Daniels in Great Britain

The dippers are all in a single genus Cinclus. They are named for the dipping or bobbing motion. They are the only passerines that regularly swim underwater. They like to swim in moving water, particularly in streams. As with other birds that spend large amounts of time underwater, they have more red blood cells to aid in oxygen storage.


Genus Cinclus

Dipper, American Cinclus mexicanus Found: North America and Central America
Photographed by  1) Alan D Wilson at Noons Creek, Port Moody, British Columbia  2) IPK Photography  3) Dominic Sherony


Dipper, Brown  aka Asian Dipper  Cinclus pallasii  Found: mountains of southern and central Asia
Photrographed by: 1) M. Nishimura  2) Robert tdc


Dipper, White-throated aka European Dipper Cinclus cinclus  Found: Europe, Asia
Photographed by:  1) Martha Lantink  2) Andrew2606  3) Dick Daniels in Scotland