Bluethroat

About the Bluethroat

The bluethroat (Luscinia svecica) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It is a migratory insectivorous species breeding in wet birch wood or bushy swamp in Europe and across the Palearctic with a foothold in western Alaska. It nests in tussocks or low in dense bushes. It winters in the Iberian Peninsula, the northern half of Africa, and in southern Asia (among others including the Indian subcontinent). The bluethroat, and similar small European flycatchers, are often called chats. The bluethroat is similar in size to the European robin at 13–14 cm. It is plain brown above except for the distinctive tail, brown with black outer corners and red basal side patches. It has a strong white supercilium.

Source: Wikipedia

Classification

Scientific name

Luscinia svecica

Family

Old World Flycatchers

Order

Passeriformes

Similar species

Other members of the old world flycatchers family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.

• Amur Stonechat Saxicola stejnegeri
• Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica
• Blue Rock-Thrush Monticola solitarius
• Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus
• Dark-sided Flycatcher Muscicapa sibirica
• European Robin Erithacus rubecula
• Gray-streaked Flycatcher Muscicapa griseisticta
• Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki
• Narcissus Flycatcher Ficedula narcissina
• Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe
• Pied Wheatear Oenanthe pleschanka
• Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus