Red-rumped Wheatear
Oenanthe moesta
A large, gray-backed wheatear of arid zones with a strong bill and short wings. Note pale-fringed wing feathers, broad tail with a dark brown terminal band, and pale cinnamon tail-base and lower rump. Male has a black face and throat and a darker gray back than the female who sports a cinnamon head. Nests in burrows in flat sandy or stony desert or semi-desert. Call is a dry “Prrt.” Song is a mix of deep flutelike notes and scratches.
Identification
The red-rumped wheatear is a compact, big-headed wheatear with a rufous rump and all dark tail. the male has a grey crown and nape with a black throat and face and white supercilium. The shoulders and back are black with white fringes to the feathers, the rump and base of the tail are rufous and the distal part of the tail is black. Female is paler with a rufous crown and cheeks. Juveniles are similar to females but are less rufous and do show faint spots and streaks. Length is 16 cm. The fly low to the ground with a loose flapping flight that resembles a skylark.<p>The territorial song, given by both sexes, seems to vary geographically from a harsher chattering song in the west to a more melodious. pleasant and repetitive "twee-churr-urr-urr" in Cyrenaica. The courtship song sounds like an old fashioned boiling kettle, a long warbling whistle rising in pitch given in duet by both sexes. The alarm and contact calls are typically chat like harsh clicks.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Oenanthe moesta
- Authority
- (Lichtenstein, MHC, 1823)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Oenanthe
Range and habitat
The red-rumped wheatear avoids real deserts and is normally found in flat areas, especially near saline or barren areas. In Morocco uses more vegetated areas than the desert wheatear and also found in rocky hills. There are two recognised subspecies of Red-rumped wheatear, they are:
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Malagasy Brush-Warbler
Nesillas typica
Medium-sized brown bird with a long, spiky tail. Found in a wide variety of moist and woody habitats, including rainforest, wet scrub, plantations, and gardens. Absent or very local in much of west and southwest Madagascar. Skulks in thick undergrowth. Incessantly given call is a Geiger counter-like ticking. Darker brown than Subdesert Brush-Warbler, with a lower-pitched call and little overlap in range. Similar to Madagascar Swamp-Warbler, but has less distinct breast streaking and white eyebrow, and is generally found in scrub rather than marsh.
Andean Potoo
Nyctibius maculosus
Rare night bird found in high elevation Andean cloud forest. Cryptically patterned in brown and buff with white patches in the wings. Usually seen perching vertically on the tip of an exposed branch or snag. Sometimes encountered roosting or nesting during the day and may return to the same location over the course of months or even years. At night, it is usually detected by seeing its eyeshine in the beam of a light or by hearing its song—a short howl given at long intervals.
Shelley's Rufous Sparrow
Passer shelleyi
A typical sparrow with a striped back, a gray crown and nape, and a black bib. The rufous rump is conspicuous in flight. The sexes are similar, though males are brighter overall and have more rufous on the face. Found locally in dry thorn savanna and cultivated areas, sometimes around human habitation. Similar to Somali Sparrow, but the male is separated by his gray crown and the female by her much more colorful overall plumage. Very similar to Kenya Rufous Sparrow, but not known to overlap in range, and Shelley’s is separated by its dark eye. The call is a cheerful “chirp” like that of other sparrows.
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