The Western Yellow Wagtail (Motacilla flava) is a small passerine bird in the wagtail family Motacillidae, which includes pipits and longclaws. Breeding in much of temperate Europe and Asia, most populations are migratory, wintering in tropical Africa and southern Asia, while a small population in Egypt remains resident year-round.
Measuring 15–16 cm in length, the bird has a slender body and a long tail that is characteristic of its genus. The breeding adult male is olive above and yellow below, while juveniles may appear more whitish. Male heads vary in color and pattern by subspecies, and their call is a distinctive high-pitched “jeet.” Inhabiting open areas near water such as wet meadows, they nest in tussocks and lay 4–8 speckled eggs.
There are ten recognized subspecies:
Yellow Wagtail | M. f. flavissima | England, east Wales, southeast Scotland | West Africa | Yellow-green head, females paler than males.
Yellow-Headed Wagtail | M. f. lutea | Lower Volga to Lake Zaysan | Africa, Indian subcontinent | Yellow head with green neck in males.
Blue-Headed Wagtail | M. f. flava | Southern Scandinavia to France | Sub-Saharan Africa | Blue-grey head with white supercilium in males.
Sykes’s Wagtail | M. f. beema | North of M. f. lutea | Indian subcontinent, eastern Africa | Lighter grey head; females similar to M. f. flava.
Spanish Wagtail | M. f. iberiae | Southwestern France, Iberia | The Gambia to Central Africa | White throat, darker behind the eyes.
Ashy-Headed Wagtail | M. f. cinereocapilla | Southeastern France, Italy | Coastal Tunisia to Lake Chad | Lacks or has a vestigial supercilium.
Egyptian Yellow Wagtail | M. f. pygmaea | Nile Delta | Resident, non-migratory | Smaller and less brightly colored than M. f. cinereocapilla.
White-Headed Wagtail | M. f. leucocephala | Northwest Mongolia | Likely India | Pale head, females darker than M. f. flava.
Black-Headed Wagtail | M. f. feldegg | Balkans to Caspian Sea | Central Africa, northern India | Jet black cap in males, washed-out color in females.
Grey-Headed Wagtail | M. f. thunbergi | Central Northern Scandinavia | Eastern Africa, Southeast Asia | Dark grey head in males; lighter and washed with green in females.
