One of the 3 wagtails on WAnimals
Birds · Passeriformes · Motacillidae
Western Yellow Wagtail
Motacilla flava
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary
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
Lifespan
5 years
Diet
Insectivore
Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Sighting difficulty
Easy
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
Fun facts
- GeneralIt follows livestock to catch the insects they put up as they graze.
- Its Spanish name comes from its habit of moving among cattle looking for the insects they flush; "lavandera", washerwoman, refers to its living beside water.
- Its scientific name conceals a medieval misunderstanding: motacilla is in fact a diminutive of motare, "to move", but it was read as though cilla meant "tail".
- It walks along the ground wagging its tail up and down without pause, the trait that gives the group its English name, wagtail.
- Its Spanish name refers to its habit of moving among livestock in pasture, taking the insects that the cattle flush as they graze.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Damp meadows, rice fields and saltmarsh
- Sexual maturity
- 12 months
- Gestation / incubation
- 11 days
- Litter / clutch size
- 5
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
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: Spring and summer; it is a summer visitor in Spain and winters in Africa
Where to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 10 de 195 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Western Yellow Wagtail — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Grey Wagtail
Motacilla cinerea
Meadow Pipit
Anthus pratensis
White Wagtail
Motacilla alba
Least ConcernWater Pipit
Anthus spinoletta
Black-winged Stilt
Himantopus himantopus
White-throated Dipper
Cinclus cinclus
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about western yellow wagtail.
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