Abyssinian wheatear

Appearance

The Abyssinian wheatear is a dark wheatear which shows sexual dichromatism, with the males being darker than the females. The males have black upperparts, throat and breast and a grey cap with darker streaks. The colour of the belly varies, both within individuals and geographic populations, from white to black. The females are mainly dark brown with heavy streaking on their paler breast and belly. Both males and females have buff under tail coverts, and the tail has a black inverted T pattern on a buff background, best seen in flight. The length of the nominate subspecies is 14 cm.

Naming

The I.O.C. recognises the following subspecies:

"Oenanthe lugubris lugubris"
"Oenanthe lugubris schalowi"
"Oenanthe lugubris vauriei" Meinertzhagen, 1949

Schalow's wheatear from the highlands of southern Kenya and northeastern Tanzania is regarded as a valid species by some authorities but the I.O.C. has pended its endorsement of this position while it waits for the results of genetic studies to be published. "O. l. vauriei" is found in northeastern Somalia.

Distribution

The Abyssinian wheatear is found in northeastern Africa, from Eritrea and northwestern Somalia south to northeastern Tanzania. The subspecies "schalowi" occurs in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania, while "vauriei" in eastern Somalia, and they both have disjunct ranges from the nominate subspecies of Eritrea, Ethiopia, and northwestern Somalia.

Behavior

Abyssinian wheatears are normally solitary outside their breeding season, and in the breeding season, they are typically encountered in pairs. They are generally unafraid of humans and perch in plain sight on rocks, boulders, and shrubs. They may be inactive and shelter during midday. Their diet is mainly invertebrates, caught by dropping on them from a perch or by foraging on the ground. They will also eat fruit, such as berries.

Habitat

This bird occurs in rocky areas where there are some trees and bushes.

Reproduction

The Abyssinian wheatear breeds from the early spring to late summer in Ethiopia and Eritrea, in April and May in Somalia, from April to July in the Kenyan Great Rift Valley, and in March in northern Tanzania. The males display by adopting an upright stance with their heads raised before hopping around the female with droopy, quivering wings, interrupted by quick chases of the female in flight. The female makes the nest in the form of a loose cup with a flat top of the grass and other plant material, lined with softer material such as moss or mammal hair. There may be a small platform of stones either at the entrance to the nest, under it, or around it. The nest is typically situated in a crevice or hole with a maximum depth of 45 cm. This may be among rocks, on cliffs, in stone walls, on the banks of a river, or side of a wadi. They are double-brooded, and each clutch is 5 to 6 eggs. The juveniles from the first brood have been recorded bringing food to the nestlings of the 2nd brood in Schalow's wheatear.

Migration

Abyssinian wheatears are largely resident, with some post-breeding dispersal. The subspecies "vauriei" disappears from its eastern Somali breeding areas from June to January and may migrate to lower altitudes when not breeding.