Page 300 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

CHATS AND THRUSHES
Order Passeriformes Family Turdidae Species Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Redstart bold white
forehead
bluish grey from
crown to back
whitish feather black face
tips obscuring
most of dark and throat
face
dark MALE slim body
centre on (SPRING)
pale rust-
red tail plain
head
IN FLIGHT
rich orange-
rufous
MALE (AUTUMN)
underside
slim black
pale buff underside legs
rust-red
rusty tail rump

FEMALE
obin-like but slim and slender-tailed, the Redstart constantly MALE
R flickers its tail up and down. Spring males are extremely (SPRING)
handsome birds, best located by following up their short, sweet song.
A woodland bird, the Redstart prefers to nest in old woods with
plenty of space beneath the canopy in which it can feed.As a migrant, FLIGHT: quite quick and agile, flitting from tree to
it often appears in thickets and bushes, both inland (often in willow tree; often drops briefly to ground.
thickets beside lakes and reservoirs) and
more commonly along the coast.
VOICE Clear, rising wheet or hueeee;
huee-tic; sharp tac; song brief, bright,
musical warble, often beginning with
several low, rolling notes, finishing in
weak trill.
NESTING Grassy nest lined with
feathers and hair, in hole or nest box;
5–7 eggs; 1 brood; May–June.
FEEDING In foliage or drops to ground, AUTUMN PLUMAGE
finding insects, spiders, caterpillars, small Autumn females and juveniles have pale wingbars
worms, and some berries. and a bright buffy appearance overall. OCCURRENCE
Breeds in most of Europe (except
SIMILAR SPECIES Iceland and Ireland), in open
woodland or old woods with little
BLACK REDSTART 2 ROBIN NIGHTINGALE undergrowth, some in scattered
similar to 2; less see p.295 see p.296
red on rump; larger trees on rocky slopes. Present from
see p.299 April to October, moving to Africa
plain brown
darker tail in winter. Migrants are often near
above uniform the coast or in willow thickets
greyer below tail beside reservoirs inland.
Seen in the UK
J F M A M JJ A S O N D
Length 14cm (5 1 ⁄2in) Wingspan 20–24cm (8–9 1 ⁄2in) Weight 12–20g ( 7 ⁄16 – 11 ⁄16oz)
Social Solitary Lifespan Up to 5 years Status Vulnerable
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