- Saxicola torquatus
Includes: Siberian Stonechat; African Stonechat; European Stonechat; Stejneger's Stonechat; Madagascar Stonechat
Identification
Male
- Black head
- White half-collar
- Black back
- White rump
- Black tail
- Black wings with a large white patch on the top side of the inner wing
- Dark orange-red upper breast
- White or pale orange lower breast and belly
Siberian Stonechat have a distinctive white collar.
Females
- Brown above and on head
- Indistinct pale eyebrow line
- Chestnut-buff underparts
Distribution
Found in Europe (mainly S and W), Africa (including Madagascar), Russia and Siberia, Turkey, the Caucasus, the Himalayas, China, Japan and Korea.
Taxonomy
About 25 subspecies accepted.
There are five distinctive groups, which are sometimes accepted as full species:
- European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) from Europe (W and S) and North Africa
- African Stonechat (Saxicola torquatus) in Africa south of the Sahara, the Grand Comoro Island and the mountains of southwest Arabia)
- Madagascar Stonechat (Saxicola sibilla) in Madagascar
- Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus) from the lower Volga east to Siberia, E Turkey, China and the Himalayas
- Stejneger's Stonechat (Saxicola stejnegeri) in eastern Siberia, eastern Mongolia to Korea and Japan
Habitat
Open rough scrubland and rough grassland with scattered shrubs.
On migration may be found in drier areas.
Behaviour
Most often seen in pairs perched up on a stick or shrub. It flies down onto the ground, returning to the same perch. Often flicks its wings.
Diet
This species eats mainly insects and worms.
Breeding
African birds breed mainly in the summer months. The nest is well hidden inside a clump of vegetation and consists of an untidy bowl of grass and rootlets. It is lined neatly with rootlets and animal hairs.
References
- BirdLife International
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Common Stonechat. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 9 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Common_Stonechat
External Links
This link finds videos titled "European Stonechat"
