Yellow-browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus     photos Sid Francis

One of the small, fine billed warblers with wing-bars, is usually a well known species to most of our European clients, and, just like their birds, ours are passage and winter visitors. Quite common during passage when you can find in places like city parks. Full cap (slight hint of a coronal stripe best seen in photos) and lack of rump is chief identifier from all other birds than hume's.

Similar species - its full cap (can show faint coronal stripe) and lack of rump are the best pointers to separate from the other fine billed, small warblers apart from the breeding hume's. From hume's, best and most noticeable is pointer is that it's a brighter bird.  When and where the sighting was made is also highly useful, with breeding season sightings made in alpine habitat being obvious pointers to hume's, I find the calls of mandellii hume's and yellow-browed rather alike to make a vocal separation. Photos of the bill can also be very helpful - yellow-browed has a noticeable yellow base to lower mandible, while hume's is dark.

Vocalizations - a passage winter visitor that can be heard calling  a double note chee-wit. Calling hume's doesn't give such a distinct double note.

Habitat - as passage/winter bird can turn up in a wide variety of habitats, often lower woodlands, but also, during passage, in higher areas where mountain passes act as migration funnels. 

Call here - xeno-canto      Peter Ericsson, XC894389. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/894389