Hume's Wheatear vs Red-tailed Wheatear

Hume's Wheatear

Oenanthe albonigra

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Hume's wheatear is a large wheatear with a dark black head and back contrasting sharply with a pure white breast and belly. Both sexes exhibit this same coloration. While closely resembling the male of the 'picata' form of Variable wheatear, key distinctions include Hume's wheatear's larger size, a more substantial bill, and longer wings. Additionally, the black coloration on Hume's wheatear is restricted to the head and throat, while the white extends further up the back.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Jacky Judas, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Jacky Judas · cc-by

Red-tailed Wheatear

Oenanthe chrysopygia

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It is 14.5 cm long with a wingspan of 26–27 cm and a weight of about 20-27 g. The plumage is fairly drab, mainly grey-brown above and greyish-white below. It has a faint pale stripe over the eye, a rufous tinge to the ear-coverts and silvery-white underwing-coverts. The rump and bases of the outer tail-feathers are reddish while the rest of the tail is black forming a T-shaped pattern. There is little difference between males and females but the male has black between the eye and bill. The female Kurdistan wheatear can be very similar but usually has white bases to the outer tail-feathers.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Jean-Paul Boerekamps · CC0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Hume's Wheatear and Red-tailed Wheatear.