Northern Wheatear
Oenanthe oenanthe
Silhouette: Charles J. Sharp · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyMuscicapidae (Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats)
- GenusOenanthe (Wheatears and Allies)
- SpeciesOenanthe oenanthe (Northern Wheatear)
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 →
Recent sightings of Northern Wheatear in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Sierra de Guadarrama National Park
Western Black-eared Wheatear
Oenanthe hispanica
European Robin
Erithacus rubecula
Black Redstart
Phoenicurus ochruros
European Stonechat
Saxicola rubicola
Common Nightingale
Luscinia megarhynchos
European Pied Flycatcher
Ficedula hypoleuca
Spotted Flycatcher
Muscicapa striata
Blue Rock-Thrush
Monticola solitarius
Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush
Monticola saxatilis
Common Redstart
Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Whinchat
Saxicola rubetra
Bluethroat
Luscinia svecica
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Northern Wheatear in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park?
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Wheatear sighting in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, based on 852 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Northern Wheatear in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park?
July has the highest sighting rate for Northern Wheatear in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park in our monthly data.