Wheatear
Wheatears are very wary birds. They bounce away to the next perch as soon as you approach. Walking along a footpath or road will see them flutter a few fenceposts along again and again and again, until you wish they would just fly past you, so you could stop bothering them.
This male was doing the same as we walked into Emsworthy Mire, but through the magic of telephoto lenses I still managed to capture an image. Isn’t that granite and lichen fabulous?
The Northern Wheatear’s scientific name is Oenanthe oenanthe, which is another example of ‘so good they named it twice’. Oenanthe means the flower of the vine, from Ancient Greek oenos (οίνος) ‘wine’ and anthos (ανθός) ‘flower’. That’s probably a seasonal reference, because they return just as the grapevines are coming into flower.
Their Italian name is Culbianco, which means White Arse, and, before you think that’s vulgar, that’s the origin of the English name Wheatear, before it was made more polite.
It’s spent our winter in central Africa and it looking for a safe space to have a family. I wish it luck.
More Wheatears
The Flower of the Vine returns Wheatears are back on Westray. They've made their way from Africa to Westray to raise their families in hollows, rabbit… read more
Oenanthe oenanthe The Northern Wheatear's scientific name is Oenanthe oenanthe. It means 'Flower of the Vine' in Ancient Greek. Its binomial name… read more
Lookout Northern Wheatear are powerful birds and migrate to Africa for our winter. It's astonishing that so soon after being an… read more
A Wheatear explosion I've never been able to get close to Wheatears before. They are very wary birds. There are a few families… read more
Golden light The light is incredible on the west coast of Westray. It's golden, and reflects beautifully off the Atlantic onto the… read more
Westside Wheatears I've taken to walking the Westside of Westray. Yes, I've been taking a Walk on the Westside. The glorious weather… read more
Chuckie A walk up the west coast of Westray revealed several pairs of Wheatear, which are very active at the moment.… read more
The most delicious taste for a creature of one mouthful It's always a delight to see a Wheatear. They're quite incredible in their capacity to migrate. They can travel many… read more