Common Stonechat © 2009 Sue Tranter

Vagrant to Brunei Darussalam, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Indonesia, Latvia, Liberia, Somalia, Sweden.

It has been proposed to split the species into three distinct species: European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) (including subspeies hibernans), Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus) (including variegatus, armenicus, indicus, przewalskii and vstejnegeri) and Common Stonechat (Saxicola torquatus) (remaining subspecies).

Further splitting has been argued and more study is needed. Subspecies affiliation of population recently found breeding in north-western Thailand is unknown.

The following 26 subspecies are recognised:

• hibernans (Linnaeus, 1766)   -  Ireland, Britain, western France and western Iberian coast. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola).
• rubicola (Linnaeus, 1766)   -  From Denmark south-west to Spain and northern Morocco, east to Poland and Ukraine, and south-east to Turkey. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola).
• variegatus (S. G. Gmelin, 1774)   -  Eastern Caucasus area east to lower R Ural and south to north-western Iran. Non-breeding north-eastern Africa. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus).
• armenicus Stegmann, 1935   -  South-eastern Turkey, Transcaucasia and south-western Iran. Non-breeding also south-western Asia and north-eastern Africa.
• maurus (Pallas, 1773)   -  Eastern Caucasus, south-eastern Turkey and western Iran. central Siberia, central Asia, the Himalayas to western, central China;. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus).
• stejnegeri (Parrot, 1908)   -  Eastern Siberia east to Anadyrland, south to eastern Mongolia, north-eastern China, Korea and Japan. Non-breeding eastern and south-eastern Asia (south to Malay Peninsula). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Stejneger's Stonechat (Saxicola stejnegeri). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus).
• indicus (Blyth, 1847)   -  North-western and central Himalayas. Non-breeding Pakistan and central India. See also Common Stonechat (Saxicola torquatus). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus).
• przewalskii (Pleske, 1889)   -  Tibetan Plateau east to central China, south to north-eastern Myanmar and Indochina. Non-breeding northern and north-eastern India east to south-eastern China and south-eastern Asia. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Siberian Stonechat (Saxicola maurus).
• moptanus Bates, 1932   -  Senegal Delta and southern Mali (inner Niger Delta).
• nebularum Bates, 1930   -  Sierra Leone east to western Ivory Coast.
• jebelmarrae Lynes, 1920   -  Eastern Chad and western Sudan (Darfur).
• salax (Verreaux, J & Verreaux, E, 1851)   -  Eastern Nigeria south to north-western Angola, including Bioko I (Fernando Po).
• felix Bates, 1936   -  South-western Saudi Arabia and western Yemen.
• albofasciatus Rüppell, 1840   -  South-eastern Sudan, Ethiopian Highlands and north-eastern Uganda.
• axillaris (Shelley, 1885)   -  Eastern DRCongo east to Kenya and northern and western Tanzania. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species African Stonechat (Saxicola axillaris). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, African Stonechat (Saxicola axillaris).
• stonei Bowen, 1931   -  South-western Tanzania south to southern and eastern Angola, north-eastern Namibia, Botswana and northern South Africa.
• promiscuus Hartert, 1922   -  Southern Tanzania south to eastern Zimbabwe and western Mozambique.
• torquatus (Linnaeus, 1766)   -  South Africa (Northern Province south to south-western western Cape) and western Swaziland.
• oreobates Clancey, 1956   -  Lesotho Highlands.
• clanceyi Courtenay-Latimer, 1961   -  Coastal western Cape.
• voeltzkowi Grote, 1926   -  Grand Comoro (Njazidja), in Comoro Is.
• sibilla (Linnaeus, 1766)   -  Madagascar (except northern massif and central area). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Madagascar Stonechat (Saxicola sibilla).
• tsaratananae Milon, 1951   -  Tsaratanana Massif, in northern Madagascar. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Madagascar Stonechat (Saxicola sibilla).
• ankaratrae Salomonsen, 1934   -  Ankaratra Massif and adjacent central part of western savannas, in central Madagascar. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Madagascar Stonechat (Saxicola sibilla).
• adamauae Grote, 1922   -  Highlands of northern and western Cameroon.
• pallidigula Reichenow, 1892   -  Cameroon Mt. and Bioko.

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BirdLife International For more information about the Common Stonechat see... BirdLife International Species Factsheet. Articles about the Common Stonechat If you would like to read any articles about the Common Stonechat... Show Articles (0) No Pictures of Common Stonechat If Birdpedia has no pictures of Common Stonechat or you would like to see more, then try the following...       From BING (10) No Videos of Common Stonechat If Birdpedia has no videos of Common Stonechat or you would like to see more, then try the following..       From BING (0) Where can I observe this species? Select an area (or leave blank) to see locations where this species has been recorded. Area   GERMANY OCEAN   All    Optional: Complete the following if you wish to restrict the reserve to within a given distance of a location. Please enter the Latitude and Longitiude of a given location together with the maximum distance (km) to display a list of reserves within that distance. You must enter a Latitude, a Longitude and a distance greater than 0.   Latitude: (Decimal degrees takes precedence) Deg Min Sec     Decimal degrees (Include compass setting or value)          N S or   GPS help Longitude: (Decimal degrees takes precedence) Deg Min Sec     Decimal degrees (Include compass setting or value)          E W or   Find GPS using Google Maps Distance Bearing     N NE E SE S SW W NW Get Sample GPS readings On What Field Trips was this species observed? Select an area (or leave blank), and a date range, to see field trips on which this species has been recorded. Area   GERMANY OCEAN   All    From To     Optional: Complete the following if you wish to restrict the reserve to within a given distance of a location. Please enter the Latitude and Longitiude of a given location together with the maximum distance (km) to display a list of reserves within that distance. You must enter a Latitude, a Longitude and a distance greater than 0.   Latitude: (Decimal degrees takes precedence) Deg Min Sec     Decimal degrees (Include compass setting or value)          N S or   GPS help Longitude: (Decimal degrees takes precedence) Deg Min Sec     Decimal degrees (Include compass setting or value)          E W or Distance Bearing     N NE E SE S SW W NW Get Sample GPS readings Latest Sightings for Common Stonechat Select the Area to restrict the Sightings. Area   GERMANY OCEAN   All