Motacilla citreola (Citrine wagtail) 

Sitrienkwikkie [Afrikaans]; citroenkwikstaart citrine [Dutch]; Bergeronnette citrine [French]; Zitronenstelze [German]

Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Deuterostomia > Chordata > Craniata > Vertebrata (vertebrates)  > Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) > Teleostomi (teleost fish) > Osteichthyes (bony fish) > Class: Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish) > Stegocephalia (terrestrial vertebrates) > Tetrapoda (four-legged vertebrates) > Reptiliomorpha > Amniota > Reptilia (reptiles) > Romeriida > Diapsida > Archosauromorpha > Archosauria > Dinosauria (dinosaurs) > Saurischia > Theropoda (bipedal predatory dinosaurs) > Coelurosauria > Maniraptora > Aves (birds) > Order: Passeriformes > Family: Motacillidae > Genus: Motacilla

Citrine wagtail in non-breeding plumage, Beidaihe, Qinhuangdao, China. [photo Juanli Sun ©]

Distribution and habitat

Breeds from eastern Europe to central Asia south to Iran, Afghanistan and China, heading south in the non-breeding season to India, south-east Asia, the Arabian Peninsula and Ethiopia. Strangely it was once recorded near the Gamtoos River mouth, Eastern Cape, South Africa, approximately 5000km away from the nearest extent of its non-breeding grounds, in Ethiopia. While in Africa it generally favours flooded fields, wetlands and grassland, which is the habitat in which the southern African vagrant bird was found.

References

• Hockey PAR, Dean WRJ and Ryan PG 2005. Roberts - Birds of southern Africa, VIIth ed. The Trustees of the John Voelcker Bird Book Fund, Cape Town.