Stonechat
| Stonechat | ||||||||||||
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Stonechat ( Saxicola rubicola ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Saxicola rubicola | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1766) |
The stonechat ( Saxicola rubicola ) is a small songbird from the genus of the meadow treacherous ( Saxicola ) and the flycatcher family (Muscicapidae). The two closest related species, the African stonechat ( Saxicola torquata ) and the Siberian stonechat ( Saxicola maura ), were previously considered subspecies, but were classified as separate species by Ewan Urquhart and Adam Bowley in 2002. The species described here is therefore sometimes called the European stonechat to distinguish it . The stonechat is regionally regarded as a highly endangered bird. The total population is currently not endangered with 2,000,000 - 4,000,000 breeding pairs (Birdlife International).
Appearance
The stonechat is about twelve centimeters long and weighs ten to thirteen grams. The male has a black head and a white neck ring. The front is colored orange-red. In the female, everything is a little more dull in color.
habitat
It lives in open areas with individual bushes, for example on raised bogs and heaths. It has its winter quarters in southern and western Europe . In Central and Eastern Europe , the stonechat is present from March to November.
Spread and endangerment
In Germany the stonechat occurs first in the south (esp. Alpine foothills) and more spaciously in the west (along the Rhine and west of it). The largest contiguous distribution area exists north of the low mountain range from the Lower Rhine to the Lausitz. The frequency decreases to the northeast, but the species occurs in all areas up to the Baltic Sea coast. The stonechat is no longer listed in Germany's current Red List; in some federal states it is considered endangered (category 3) or even very endangered (category 2).
food
The stonechat feeds on insects , spiders and worms , which are mostly caught on the ground.
Reproduction
Two broods are raised in the breeding season from March to August. The nest is well hidden, deepened in the ground, made of grass, stalks, moss and roots. The female lays five to six eggs .
literature
- Ewan Urquhart, Adam Bowley: Stonechats. A Guide to the Genus Saxicola . Christopher Helm, London 2002, ISBN 0-7136-6024-4 .
Web links
- Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach: Stonechat
- Age and gender characteristics (PDF; 3.9 MB) by J. Blasco-Zumeta and G.-M. Heinze (English, scientific name not yet updated)
- Stonechat feathers
Individual evidence
- ↑ Gedeon, K., Grüneberg, C., Mitschke, A., Sudfeldt, C., Eikhorst, W., Fischer, S., Flade, M., Frick, S., Geiersberger, I., Knoop, B. , Kramer, M., Krüger, T., Roth, N., Ryslavy, T., Stübing, S., Sudmann, SR, Steffens, R., Vökler, F., Witt, K. (2014): Atlas Deutscher Breeding bird species. Atlas of German Breeding Birds. Vogelmonitoring Deutschland Foundation and the umbrella association of German Avifaunists, Münster 2014, ISBN 978-3-9815543-3-5 .
- ↑ Christoph Grüneberg, Hans-Günther Bauer, Heiko Haupt, Ommo Hüppop, Torsten Ryslavy & Peter Südbeck: Red List of Germany's Breeding Birds , 5th version, November 30, 2015 . In: Reports on bird protection . tape 52 , p. 19-67 .