Rufous-tailed rock thrush

    Monticola saxatilis

Castilian: Roquero rojo

Catalan: Merla roquera

Gallego: Merlo rubio

Euskera: Harkaitz-zozo gorria

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Turdidae

Migratory status: Summer resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Not Evaluated”.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

listen song

THREATS

It is affected by uncontrolled mountain tourism, the increase of mountain ski courses and the excess of livestock farming in high mountain areas.

Length / size: 18,5 cm / 33-37 cm

Identification: The male's plumage is unmistakeable. His head and back are greyish-blue with a white spot on the back part, in contrast with the orange colour of his breast and tail coverts; his wings are dark and his tail is orange with a central brown band. The female's tail is similar, but her body is mostly brown with her feathers edged in a light band that gives her a vermicular appearance.

Song: It makes different warbling sounds and notes that resemble those of other finches. Its alarm sound is a short, high-pitched "bweee" and its call is a stronger "weet-weet-weet....bweet-bweet".

Diet: It especially feeds on large insects such as beetles and grasshoppers, as well as caterpillars and fruits in autumn.

Reproduction: Courtship begins in April. The female builds the nest, creating a cup of roots, grass and moss, which she places in cracks in rocks, human structures, hollow trunks or tree stumps. The female is responsible for incubation but, after the eggs hatch, both parents care for the chicks.

HABITAT

It occupies rocky areas, scree, and river cliffs mixed with areas of pastureland and low scattered scrubland. In the northern half it appears beginning at an altitude of 600-700 metres, while in the south it lives above 1,000 metres.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It is distributed throughout most of the Cantabrian Mountains, the Pyrenees, the Iberian and Central Systems, and the coastal mountains of Levante. However, in the south it is rarer, appearing only in some places in the Baetic mountain ranges.

In Castile and León: It breeds in all the provinces except Valladolid, and it is spread out across the main mountainous massifs. The largest concentrations are found in northeastern León and Soria, Ávila, and Burgos.

Movements and migrations: It is a migratory species. At the end of summer it goes to eastern Africa, although some specimens remain in northern Africa, and they return to Europe to breed in spring.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of less than 5000 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of 1400-2000 breeding pairs.