A small, streaky, dark brown and grey bird, shuffling under shrubberies and through flowerbeds but also found widely in many habitats from forest to coastal heath. 

Best known as little garden birds that sing from the hedge and scuttle into thick cover at the least sign of disturbance, Dunnocks are as likely to be found among the brambles and bracken of coastal clifftops. They are full of surprises when breeding, with extra-pair matings and trios being quite normal.