Existing atlas plates
Finsch's Wheatear identification views
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Old World Flycatchers
Finsch's Wheatear
Oenanthe finschii
Ak Sırtlı Kuyrukkakan
Male has white head/back and black face/throat/wings; check terminal tail band and central feathers in either sex.
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Conservation status
- LC Least Concern
First look in the field
Quick identification
- Shape and Pattern Together
Finsch's Wheatear is a relatively large-headed, long-legged wheatear of open rocky ground.
- Sex, Age and Season
Females are grey-brown above and paler below.
- Read the Tail Correctly
Dark central feathers, white bases to the outer tail and a narrow, relatively even dark terminal band form the useful pattern.
Biometrics
Length
- Male
- 14 cm
- Female
- 14 cm
Wingspan
- Male
- 25–27 cm
- Female
- 25–27 cm
Weight
- Male
- 27 g
- Female
- 27 g
Detailed explanations of these measurements are available on our website, on the same species page.
World distribution
Finsch's Wheatear
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Observation Sites
Bird Atlas recordsLoading observations…
Monthly record intensity
12 monthsRecord intensity is affected by observation effort.
Rotate the globe and compare the supported layers. Colours show broad range areas, not exact sightings or nests.
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Generalised data and method
Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
Bibliography ↗Authentic bird sound and ethical use
Voice and listening
See the detailed species account below.
Spoken guide
Narration has not been recorded; no audio file has been created.
Observe without approaching the nest
Breeding
A grass nest lined with hair or feathers is placed in a rock gap or suitable cavity. Usually 4–6 eggs are laid. Gavrilov and Gavrilov report about 12 days of female incubation, followed by feeding by both parents.
Scientific species guide
Detailed account
Shape and Pattern Together
Finsch's Wheatear is a relatively large-headed, long-legged wheatear of open rocky ground. The breeding male has a pale crown and central back contrasting with black face, throat and wings; the belly is white. Assess the whole bird rather than identifying it from a white head or a rock perch alone.
Sex, Age and Season
Females are grey-brown above and paler below. Throat darkness can vary with age, and fresh feather fringes soften male contrast. Young birds are duller with pale feather edges. Do not treat every difference between illustrations as a sex character.
Read the Tail Correctly
Dark central feathers, white bases to the outer tail and a narrow, relatively even dark terminal band form the useful pattern. Other wheatears share a general inverted-T arrangement. Looking from below does not reverse dark central feathers into white ones. Combine tail, head, back and proportions.
Measurements
These are not sex-specific Turkish averages. The Acopian Center gives 14 cm length and a 25–27 cm wingspan, while the Oiseaux.net species account gives a mass of 27 g. Because the sources do not provide separate male and female values, the same species-level values are shown for both sexes; range endpoints are not assigned to different sexes.
Nesting
A grass nest lined with hair or feathers is placed in a rock gap or suitable cavity. Usually 4–6 eggs are laid. Gavrilov and Gavrilov report about 12 days of female incubation, followed by feeding by both parents. A verified fledging age was not found in the consulted accounts; another wheatear's value has not been substituted.
Breeding, Passage and Some Wintering
Finsch's Wheatear breeds in Turkey and occurs on passage. Small numbers can winter in suitable southern and southwestern areas. Calling it exclusively a summer visitor or equally resident everywhere would miss this variation. Elevation and access to open ground influence local occurrence.
Patchy Suitable Habitat
The breeding range extends from Turkey through the Caucasus and Iran into western Central Asia. Suitable rocky slopes and sparsely vegetated openings are discontinuous across this broad area, so occurrence is not uniform. One Turkish record point does not prove residence, breeding or a regular migration route across the country.
Evidence Behind a Calendar
Some northern and eastern populations move farther south in winter, whereas birds in suitable southern areas may make shorter movements. The consulted sources do not establish one country-by-country route, shared mileage or fixed arrival date for all individuals. The calendar therefore presents broad expectations for Turkey rather than copying observation dates from another country.
Estimates Need Context
BirdLife's 2021 table lists 100,000–300,000 Turkish breeding pairs for 2013–2019, with deficient data. This is not a current census. No universal route or mileage is assigned to all individuals, and a record map should not be mistaken for a tracked migration route.
Open Rocky Ground
Bare or sparsely vegetated slopes, outcrops and rocky valleys provide useful habitat. Scattered stones in dense vegetation are not equivalent to an open feeding surface. Both vantage points and access to prey on the ground matter.
How to Search a Slope
Scan low rock tops and openings with binoculars. A bird may drop to the ground and return to a lookout. Wait for natural movements rather than making it move to a more photogenic perch. Use safe established routes and avoid unstable slopes.
Lower Ground in Winter
Plains, steppe and semi-arid open areas can be used outside breeding. A change from mountain slope to lowland habitat does not by itself imply a different species. Check plumage again, and consider snow, frost and the available feeding surface.
Keep Cavities Undisturbed
Rock crevices and holes beneath stones can conceal nests. Never lift stones, shine into a hole or rearrange material at the entrance. If a food-carrying bird repeatedly approaches a cavity, withdraw enough to allow normal access instead of waiting beside it.
Mostly Small Invertebrates
Insects and other small invertebrates form the main food. Season, ground condition and local prey availability influence what is taken. Some plant material may also be eaten, but this does not make the species chiefly a seed eater. Precise Turkish diet percentages are not inferred from a few observations.
From Lookout to Ground
A stone or low outcrop offers a view of nearby feeding surfaces. Short movements to the ground may follow. Record the starting perch, prey surface and observed action separately; not every head dip or tail movement proves a capture.
More Than the Perch
Bare soil, short vegetation and gaps between rocks can offer different prey opportunities. The feeding surface may be separate from the lookout. Protecting a single attractive perch without the surrounding natural ground does not preserve the whole resource. Baiting changes the behaviour being observed.
Food for Young
Both parents provision young. An adult carrying prey or repeatedly travelling in one direction may be breeding. Do not follow it to the nest. Food delivered to chicks is a different sample from food eaten by adults, and a photograph alone cannot establish a family's complete diet or the independence of a young bird.
A Shared Shape Is Not a Species Name
Several wheatears show white tail bases and dark tips. In Finsch's, the relatively even terminal band is assessed alongside the head and back. An attractive T shape alone is not enough. Dorsal and ventral views show different body surfaces but do not invert the colour arrangement of tail feathers.
More Than Male Versus Female
Strong male contrast and duller female colours are useful, yet fresh fringes, wear and young plumages add complexity. Throat darkness in females also varies. Different-sized drawings in different poses cannot demonstrate a real body-size difference.
Stones at a Nest Entrance
Kazakh accounts describe small stones and other fragments carried between the nest and its entrance. A pile of stones is not proof of this bird's nest, nor should an unverified explanation of the behaviour be treated as fact. Observe without handling the material.
Wing Length Is Not Wingspan
A millimetre measurement of one wing cannot be presented as the distance between two extended wingtips. The wingspan panel remains unfilled because a reliable value was not verified. The shared mass range also does not claim separate Turkish measurements for the two sexes. Explicit uncertainty is preferable to importing another species' figures.
Text and plates come from existing atlas records; references are in the central bibliography.
Open bibliography