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Siberian Stonechat

Siberian Stonechat

Saxicola maurus

Identify the Siberian Stonechat by sound or photo and log your sightings with Birdpass.

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The Siberian Stonechat is a small, upright chat of open country that breeds across temperate Asia and winters in the tropics from north-east Africa to Southeast Asia. Males have a black head, a bold white half-collar, a white rump and an orange breast; females are browner with a pale, unstreaked rump. Long lumped with the European Stonechat, it is now a separate species with several subspecies.

Did you know?

  • Its call sounds like two pebbles being clicked together.
  • It was formerly lumped with the European and African Stonechats.

About the species

Identification

It resembles European Stonechat, but the male's white collar is broad and clear, the rump patch pure white and the shoulder patches clearly white; the orange breast is usually smaller. Females and young are browner and duller, but the pale, unstreaked rump and white shoulder patches help separate it from European Stonechat.

Family

Turdidae

Size

Tiny (goldcrest)

Colours

black, orange, white, brown

About the habitat

Open landscapes with scattered shrubs – rough grassland, steppe, meadows, fallows and scrubby edges – from lowlands to high mountains.

Diet

Mainly insects and other small invertebrates such as beetles, flies and spiders, caught in short sallies from low perches; also seeds and berries outside the breeding season.

Behaviour

Perches conspicuously on stems, posts and reed tops, frequently flicking its tail and wings, and makes short sallies to catch prey. The male sings a high, twittering song from lookouts, and both sexes give a sharp call like two pebbles clicked together. It nests low in dense vegetation. It is a long-distance migrant.

Sources

Photo: Mprasannak, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Siberian stonechat Male.jpg

Text: Wikipedia (English) + FinBIF species descriptions, CC BY-SA 4.0; FinBIF: CC BY 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_stonechat

See also