ID Keys: White face with black big, nape, and crown, gray
upperparts, white underparts, large white wing patch
The
White Wagtail is an extremely common bird throughout Asia and Europe, but in
North America, they are only typically found in northwest Alaska, where
limited breeding occurs along the coast. They have also been sighted
as vagrants in many parts of North America, most often along the west coast
of the United States, but also with some eastern U.S. records, and a handful
of records in the interior of the U.S. The "Black-backed Wagtail",
also found on rare occasions in North America, was once considered a
separate species, but is now considered a subspecies of the White Wagtail.
The Black-backed Wagtail is very similar in appearance, but instead of the
gray back pictured in the bird on the right, their back is black.
Habitat
Breeding birds in Alaska are found around
rocky cliffs and beaches, or sometimes on gravel bars on rivers. In
their range in Eurasia, they can be found in a very wide variety of open and
semi-open habitats.
Diet
Feeds on insects and spiders, but will also
occasionally take other invertebrates such as worms, and will also sometimes
feed on seeds, particularly when invertebrates are not available.
Behavior
Forages by walking along the ground in
search of invertebrates. They may also sometimes fly from the ground
to capture flying insects in mid-air. As with other Wagtail species, White
Wagtails frequently wag their tails as they move about.
Nesting
The nest of a White Wagtail is a cup of
grasses, sticks, moss, and other material, usually built in a protected area
such as a rocky crevice. They have also adapted well to a human
presence, and even in sparsely populated western Alaska, they may nest in a
crevice in a building. They female usually lays between 5 to 7 eggs,
and both parents help to incubate them. After the eggs hatch, both
parents help to feed them. The young leave the nest after about 2
weeks, but typically remain in the care of the parents for another week or
so.
Song
The song of a White Wagtail is a series of
short, clear phrases, with each phrase consisting of two or three syllables.
Migration
Strongly migratory. Birds that
breed in Alaska winter in southeast Asia. In their Eurasian range,
some birds are permanent residents in more temperate zones. Birds in
less temperate areas are migratory, with European birds mostly wintering in
southern Europe near the Mediterranean, or in north Africa. Asian
birds winter in the Middle East, India, and southeast Asia.
