Wildlifeof Bhutan
Siberian Stonechat
Thrushes, Chats & Flycatchers
Photo: Shantanu Kuveskar · CC BY-SA 4.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Saxicola maurus
Basic stats
Habitat
Open rough scrubland or grassland with scattered shrubs, from sea level to about 4,000m or more; in Bhutan, migrants forage in fields and pastures above 2,000m
Range
Breeds across most of temperate Asia from Siberia south to the Himalaya and south-west China, and west to eastern Turkey; winters in the Old World tropics
The Siberian stonechat, or Asian stonechat, is a recently validated species of Old World flycatcher, resembling the European stonechat but typically darker above and paler below, with a white rump. The breeding male has black upperparts and head, a conspicuous white collar, scapular patch and rump, and a restricted area of orange on the throat (Wikipedia, general species account).
It breeds in open rough scrubland or grassland with scattered shrubs, from sea level to about 4,000m or more. In the Himalayan foothills of Bhutan, migrants can occasionally be seen foraging in fields and pastures above 2,000m, but most move down and south to winter in tropical regions. The male has a clicking call like two pebbles knocked together, and a high twittering song like the dunnock's.
Quick answers
- What habitat does the Siberian Stonechat live in?
- Open rough scrubland or grassland with scattered shrubs, from sea level to about 4,000m or more; in Bhutan, migrants forage in fields and pastures above 2,000m
- Where is the Siberian Stonechat found?
- Breeds across most of temperate Asia from Siberia south to the Himalaya and south-west China, and west to eastern Turkey; winters in the Old World tropics