Northern Wheatear
Northern WheatearNorthern WheatearNorthern WheatearNorthern Wheatear

Northern Wheatear

Oenanthe oenanthe

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Ecrins National Park
124 Verified sightings at Ecrins National Park From 2019 to 2026
13,399 Verified sightings across all 58 parks From 2019 to 2026
May Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Northern Wheatear

The northern wheatear or wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the wheatear genus Oenanthe in Europe and North and Central Asia. The northern wheatear is a migratory insectivorous species breeding in open stony country in Europe and east across the Palearctic with footholds in northeastern Canada and Greenland as well as in northwestern Canada and Alaska. It nests in rock crevices and rabbit burrows. All birds spend most of their winter in Africa.

The northern wheatear belongs to a distinctive group of Old World flycatchers, known as chats, that were formerly thought to be thrushes. Genetic analysis showed that they were in fact a type of flycatcher (Muscicapidae), with the resemblance to thrushes being the result of convergent evolution. The northern wheatear was first formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae as Motacilla oenanthe. The species is now placed in the genus Oenanthe that was introduced by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1816. The generic name, Oenanthe, is also the... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Ecrins National Park

European Robin
LC

European Robin

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Erithacus rubecula

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
Black Redstart
LC

Black Redstart

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Phoenicurus ochruros

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
Common Redstart
LC

Common Redstart

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Phoenicurus phoenicurus

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
Whinchat
LC

Whinchat

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Saxicola rubetra

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
European Stonechat

European Stonechat

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Saxicola rubicola

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
European Pied Flycatcher
LC

European Pied Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Ficedula hypoleuca

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush
LC

Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Monticola saxatilis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Blue Rock-Thrush
LC

Blue Rock-Thrush

🌅 Crepuscular Bird

Monticola solitarius

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Spotted Flycatcher
LC

Spotted Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Muscicapa striata

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Chaffinch
LC

Chaffinch

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Fringilla coelebs

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
Coal Tit
LC Endemic

Coal Tit

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Periparus ater

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
Eurasian Blackbird
LC Endemic

Eurasian Blackbird

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Turdus merula

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is)  ·  parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Hohe Tauern National Park 🇦🇹 Austria
~40%
2 Vanoise National Park 🇫🇷 France
~40%
3 Aigüestortes National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
4 Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
5 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
6 Picos de Europa National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
7 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~20%
8 Ecrins National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
9 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
10 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
11 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~20%
12 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
13 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
14 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
15 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
16 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
17 Gates of the Arctic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
18 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
19 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
20 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
21 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
22 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
23 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
24 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
25 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
26 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
27 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
28 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
29 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
30 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
31 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
32 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~10%
33 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
34 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~10%
35 Thingvellir National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~10%
36 Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park 🇲🇳 Mongolia
~10%
37 Triglav National Park 🇸🇮 Slovenia
~10%
38 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
39 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
<5%
40 Gauja National Park 🇱🇻 Latvia
<5%
41 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
42 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
43 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
44 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
45 Tatra National Park 🇸🇰 Slovakia
<5%
46 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
47 Denali National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
48 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
49 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
50 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
51 Bale Mountains National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
Insufficient data
52 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
53 Plitvice Lakes National Park 🇭🇷 Croatia
Insufficient data
54 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
Insufficient data
55 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
56 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
57 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
58 Kluane National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Northern Wheatear in Ecrins National Park?

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Wheatear sighting in Ecrins National Park, based on 124 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Northern Wheatear in Ecrins National Park?

May has the highest sighting rate for Northern Wheatear in Ecrins National Park in our monthly data.

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