Phylum: Chordata - Class: Aves - Order: Passeriformes - Family: Turdidae
Identification - Distribution - Lifecycle - Food - Predators - Reference Sources
This little member of the thrush family is mainly to be seen on heath and gorse-clad cliff-tops. It is resident in Wales all the year round. The picture above shows a male stonechat, seen in the Algarve region of Portugal, while a female is shown in the Picture below, taken on Anglesey, North Wales.
We tend to see more males than females, whether because the males' calls draw attention to themselves or simply because the females are less brightly coloured and perhaps rather more shy.
The male Stonechat pictured below was seen on the Wales Coast Path near Llandudno.
The female is readily distinguished from her mate because she does not have the black head and the white collar that are characteristic of the male of the species.
Nesting usually low down in gorse bushes, stonechats generally produce between four and six offspring. Their main food source is adult insects and their larvae.
This page includes pictures kindly contributed by Ray Tipper.