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Species Details [Taxonomy: HBW - BirdLife (v3)] Print... Email... 

 NR    Black-backed Wagtail* Id (Atlas): 781
    Motacilla lugens Vagrant

Description (10)
Image of Black-backed Wagtail
 

Other Names (World)
Black-backed Wagtail, Kamchatkan Pied Wagtail, Kamchatkan White Wagtail, Japanese Wagtail, Japanese Pied Wagtail

Family
Motacillidae (Pipits And Wagtails)

Size
17 - 18 cm

First Described (Guide)
Gloger, 1829

Derivation
Mo-ta-cil'-la - L., wagtail: lugens - L., mourning, from lugere, to mourn

Abundance (Guide)
V

Scarce vagrant to coastal Australia, in summer and winter.

Habitat
Stubblefields, freshwater wetlands, sewage ponds, wharves, lawns.

Range (Guide)
Russia Far East.
 
Image of Range of Black-backed Wagtail
Breeds in far eastern Siberia, migrating through the Aleutians to Alaska and south to Japan. Vagrant to Australia.
 
Rarity Status
View Rarity Status Information

Status NR
For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Habits
Singly or in twos, sometimes large flocks.

Food
Invetebrates and seeds.

Voice
A harsh, distinctive, 'tzchissick'.

Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia. Breeds in far eastern Siberia.

J F M A M J J A S O N D
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


Nest
A structure composed of grass and moss, in holes in walls, banks and buildings.

Subspecies
No subspecies.

White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) and Black-backed Wagtail (Motacilla lugens) (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) have been lumped into Motacilla alba following AOU (2005). Motacilla alba (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) was split by Sangster et al. (1998) into White Wagtail (Motacilla alba), Himalayan Wagtail (Motacilla alboides), Baikal Wagtail (Motacilla baicalensis), Amur Wagtail (Motacilla leucopsis), East Siberian Wagtail (Motacilla ocularis), Masked Wagtail (Motacilla personata) and Moroccan Wagtail (Motacilla subpersonata) but this treatment is not followed by the BirdLife Taxonomic Working Group because no vocal, morphological or phylogenetic evidence is provided by Sangster et al. (1998) and Alström et al. (2003) notes that all contiguously distributed subspecies of White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) interbreed. Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993) and Sangster et al. (1998) also split Afghan Snowfinch (Pyrgilauda theresae) from White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) but these taxa are also lumped following AOU (2005).

Considered by some authors as a subspecies of White Wagtail (Motacilla alba).

Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of White Wagtail (Motacilla alba).

Similar Species
White Wagtail (Motacilla alba).

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References
See References.

The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9


Files:
JPG files for Black-backed Wagtail (Motacilla lugens) - 10 files


More Information

BirdLife International

For more information about the Black-backed Wagtail see... Show Articles BirdLife International Species Factsheet.


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