Wildlifeof China
Northern Wheatear
Thrushes, Chats & Flycatchers
Photo: Mario Bassini · CC BY 4.0
Oenanthe oenanthe
Basic stats
Habitat
Open stony country; nests in rock crevices and rabbit burrows
Range
Breeds across Europe and the Palearctic, and in northeastern and northwestern Canada, Greenland and Alaska; winters mostly in Africa
The northern wheatear is a small migratory, insect-eating chat and the most widespread wheatear in Europe and North and Central Asia. It breeds in open stony country in Europe and east across the Palearctic, with footholds in northeastern Canada, Greenland, northwestern Canada and Alaska. It nests in rock crevices and rabbit burrows, and all birds spend most of the winter in Africa (Wikipedia, general species account).
It belongs to the chats, once thought to be thrushes but now known to be flycatchers, and the resemblance is convergent. The name is an altered form of white-arse, for its prominent white rump. There are four generally accepted subspecies.
Quick answers
- What habitat does the Northern Wheatear live in?
- Open stony country; nests in rock crevices and rabbit burrows
- Where is the Northern Wheatear found?
- Breeds across Europe and the Palearctic, and in northeastern and northwestern Canada, Greenland and Alaska; winters mostly in Africa