Least ConcernGrey Wagtail
Motacilla cinerea
One of the 3 wagtails on WAnimals
Birds · Passeriformes · Motacillidae
Motacilla flava
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk.
The European wagtail with the shortest tail and the most compact build. The breeding male is a bright yellow below with an olive-green back; the head pattern varies by subspecies. The Iberian form (iberiae) has a grey crown with a white band above the eye, its most distinctive feature. The legs and bill are black. The female is duller and in autumn turns brownish with an incomplete collar across the breast.
Weight
23 g on average
Size
15 cm – 17 cm
Life expectancy
5 years
Diet
Insectivore
Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Estimated population
Between 26.7 and 36 million mature individuals in Europe. The Spanish breeding population is estimated at 1,982,487 birds, a large share of them in Castile and León and Andalusia
Sources consulted: IUCN Red List · SEO/BirdLife (ficha y III Atlas: Aymí y Gordo 2022) · Bartrolí 1991, Ardeola 38 · Garcias 2008 · Waste Magazine · Yang et al. 2022, ZooKeys 1109 · Linnaeus 1758
Best time: Spring and summer; it is a summer visitor in Spain and winters in Africa
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented — showing 10 of 195.
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Western Yellow Wagtail — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Based on what we already know about western yellow wagtail.
The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.
