Appearance
It is sexually dimorphic with the females sporting more subtle plumage.
Naming
The mourning wheatear was first described by Martin Lichtenstein in 1823.The north African subspecies ''halophila'', considered by some to be a separate species, western mourning wheatear, occurs from Morocco east to western Egypt. The Egyptian populations are discussed in Baha El Din and Baha El Din . These birds differ from typical ''halophila'' in exhibiting less sexual dimorphism, and displaying a prominent white wingbar, and thus are closer to the nominate race.
Distribution
It has been recorded in the following countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.An intriguing dark morph of the mourning wheatear occurs in the basalt desert of northeast Jordan.
Habitat
It is found in semi-desert areas in North Africa and the Middle East.References:
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