The wheatear is the size of a sparrow and lives in rocky areas with scanty vegetation. Both genders are nearly invisible because they are perfectly adapted to their natural surroundings with their pale grey, stone coloured feather drawing. However they can certainly identified even by birding-rookies due to an unmistakable feature: the shining white of the rump, contrasting hard from the pitch black drawings on the tip of the tail, suddenly jab to the observers eye creating a black letter “T” on white ground. Its singing is explosive, quick and hard, with twittering and grinding stanzas and woven ,,hiit'' whistling, which it starts singing in the early morning hours from higher places such as rock spires.
Size |
14 – 16,5 cm |
Wingspan |
26 – 32 cm |
Weight |
21 – 30 g |
Clutch size |
4 - 6 |
Clutches (per year) |
1 - 2 |
Breeding period |
14 – 16 days |
Breeding pairs in Germany |
5.500 |
Maximum age |
7 years, 3 months |
Migratory behaviour |
migrant |