Familiar Chat vs Western Black-eared Wheatear

Familiar Chat

Oenanthe familiaris

Small19 gShrubland

The familiar chat is a dumpy short-tailed bird 14–15 cm (5.5–5.9 in) long. The adult's upperparts are a dull brown with warmer brown ear coverts behind the eye. The underparts vary from off-white to pale grey-brown, and the rump and outer tail feathers are rufous with a dark brown tip. The central tail feathers are dark brown. The short straight bill and the legs and feet are black. The sexes are alike, but the juvenile is similar to the adult but has buff spots above and a scaly pattern on the breast. The familiar chat has a soft "shek-shek" alarm call. The song is a warbling trill.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: flamelily · CC0

Western Black-eared Wheatear

Oenanthe hispanica

Small15 gShrubland

The breeding male has the forehead and crown white or nearly white, the mantle buff, and the wings blacker than those of the northern wheatear. The underparts are white tinged with buff. The back, upper tail coverts and most of the tail are white. A black mask extends from the ear coverts to the bill. The throat can be either black or white. In autumn and winter the head and mantle are distinctly buff, as are the underparts (including the throat in non-black-throated individuals), but the buff varies in intensity.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Eleftherios Katsillis · CC BY 4.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Familiar Chat and Western Black-eared Wheatear.