European Stonechat
Saxicola rubicola (Linnaeus, 1766)
Muscicapidae — Chats, Old World Flycatchers
European Stonechat, Saxicola rubicola, breeds in western and southern Europe and in north Africa. It is a passerine of the Muscicapidae, the chats and Old World flycatchers, and nests in heathland, coastal dunes and rough grassland with scattered shrubs, bramble, gorse, tussocks or heather. The bird is known for its clicking call, which sounds like stones struck together. It was first described by Linnaeus in 1766. The male’s song is high and twittering, and the species is a short-distance migrant or resident.
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae — Chats, Old World Flycatchers
- Breeding range
- Palearctic: w, s Europe and n Africa
