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Pied Bush Chat

Pied Bush Chat

Saxicola caprata

Identify the Pied Bush Chat by sound or photo and log your sightings with Birdpass.

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The Pied Bush Chat is a small chat of open country from Iran and Central Asia through the Indian subcontinent to Southeast Asia and New Guinea. Males are glossy black with white wing patches, rump and belly, while females are brown. It perches on bushes and posts and drops on insects. It is an extremely rare vagrant to Europe.

Did you know?

  • It colonised New Guinea around 1950.
  • The Common Cuckoo sometimes lays its eggs in its nests.

Voice

Call

About the species

Identification

A small chat (about 13.5 cm, wingspan 21–23 cm). The breeding male is almost entirely black, with a white belly, vent, rump and wing patch. The female is dark brown with a rusty rump and no white wing patch. Its dark overall look and the male's white rump and wing patch separate it from other chats.

Family

Turdidae

Size

Small (sparrow)

Colours

black, brown, white, grey

About the habitat

Open scrub, grassland, cultivation and pastures with scattered bushes, often near water; it avoids forest.

Diet

Mainly small insects such as moths, beetles and grasshoppers, caught on the ground or in short sallies.

Behaviour

Perches conspicuously on low shrubs, posts or rocks and drops to the ground to seize prey. The male sings a bright, whistling song from prominent lookouts. It nests in holes in walls, banks or among stones, lining the nest with grass and hair. Western populations migrate short distances, while tropical ones are resident.

Sources

Photo: PJeganathan, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pied bush chat (Saxicola caprata)male from nilgiris DSC 1123.jpg

Sound: L. Shyamal, CC BY-SA 2.5 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SaxicolaCaprataCall.ogg

Text: Wikipedia (English) + GBIF regional observations + Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0; GBIF occurrence data; Wikipedia: CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pied_bush_chat

See also