In Old English ‘dun’ means dull brown and ‘ock’ signifies little and, true to its name, the Dunnock (Prunella modularis) is the archetypal little brown bird. Although sparrow-sized and commonly called the Hedge Sparrow, it has a thin bill and is not a true sparrow but rather one of 12 species of accentors of the family Prunellidae, mostly montane birds which occur throughout Europe and Asia. Accentors often inhabit dense vegetation, where they forage solitarily, creeping about with mouse-like action in their search for small insects and seeds. The sexes are similar in appearance, with streaked plumage and the males have short, simple, warbling songs.

The Dunnock favors habitats with dense undergrowth. In Britain it is one of the 11 most common woodland birds and is the second most abundant bird of farmland hedgerows. It also inhabits downland, marshland and coastal scrub, and is common in suburban parks and gardens. Despite its abundance, this species' modest appearance and skulking habits did not, until recently, attract any detailed study. Indeed, the Reverend F. O. Morris, writing in his History of British Birds in 1856, encouraged his parishioners to emulate the humble life of the Dunnock: ‘Unobtrusive, quiet and retiring, without being shy, humble and homely in its deportment and habits, sober and unpretending in its dress, while still neat and graceful, the dunnock exhibits a pattern which many of a higher grade might imitate, with advantage to themselves and benefit to others through an improved example’.