Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush

• GeneralThe male has a blue head, orange breast and rusty tail; very shy.
• It is a trans-Saharan migrant weighing fifty grams: it breeds on the scree of the Iberian high mountains and spends the winter in the savannahs of the Sahel, crossing the desert twice a year.
• It is in marked decline in Spain and across Europe, and the main cause appears to be the abandonment of mountain grazing, which closes up the open stony grassland it needs.
• The male sings in a display flight: he rises from a rock, hangs for a moment on the spot and then parachutes down with wings and tail spread, showing off the orange.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)

Habitat and environment

Scree, boulder fields and high mountain pasture with rock outcrops; winters in the African savannahs

Sexual maturity

12 months

Gestation / incubation

14 days of incubation

Litter / clutch size

5 eggs

Sources consulted: Wikipedia (es): Monticola saxatilis

The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.