European Stonechat
Saxicola rubicola
Also known as: Stonechat
About This Species
Look for this small, upright chat perched prominently on gorse, low bushes or fence posts in heathland, coastal scrub and rough grassland, where it drops to the ground to snatch insects. Its call is a hard, stone-clicking sound that often gives its presence away before it is seen, and males are especially visible while singing from a perch in spring. Open heath or coastal paths in spring and summer, scanning low perches, give the best chance of a sighting.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Keep a respectful distance of at least 20 metres and avoid pushing into scrub where a pair may be nesting low to the ground, since ground and low-nesting birds are easily flushed and exposed to predators.
- Wild bird nests are legally protected across most of this species' range, meaning nests, eggs and young must not be disturbed or handled.
- If a bird is giving persistent alarm calls or perching agitatedly nearby, it is likely guarding a nest, and the best response is to move away rather than search for it.
NEAvesPasseriformesMuscicapidae
Seasonal Activity
2,278,073 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
Photo
(c) Paul Lewis, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Paul Lewis
CC-BY-NC-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.