The eastern yellow wagtail is a small passerine in the wagtail family Motacillidae, which also includes the pipits and longclaws. It was formerly usually classified as a subspecies of the western yellow wagtail, but was split from it in 2003 when genetic data showed this classification to be paraphyletic with respect to the citrine wagtail. It breeds in the eastern Palearctic and Alaska and migrates to South Asia and Australia.
Region
Eastern Palearctic and Alaska; winters in South and Southeast Asia to Australia
Typical Environment
Breeds across the eastern Palearctic from northeastern Siberia and the Russian Far East to Alaska, favoring wet tundra, moorland, and damp meadows. On migration it follows the East Asian–Australasian Flyway through East Asia. In winter it occupies rice paddies, irrigated farmland, river floodplains, marshes, and coastal grasslands. It readily uses human-modified wetlands provided shallow water and open ground are present.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2500 m
Climate Zone
Other
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The eastern yellow wagtail was split from the western yellow wagtail after genetic studies showed deep divergences within the complex. It constantly bobs its long tail while foraging along wet ground and shallow margins. Several subspecies differ in head color and facial pattern, which can complicate field identification. Large communal roosts form in reedbeds during migration and winter.
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
low, undulating flight with rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Typically seen in small parties while foraging, forming larger flocks during migration and in winter. Nests on the ground in grassy or mossy cover near water; pairs are generally seasonal monogamists. Roosts communally in reeds or tall grasses, sometimes with other wagtails or pipits.
Migratory Pattern
Seasonal migrant
Song Description
Song is a simple, thin series of trills and chips delivered from a low perch or in brief song-flight. The common call is a sharp, buzzing tsip or tseet, often given in flight and helpful for detection over open habitats.
Plumage
Slender wagtail with bright yellow underparts and olive to brownish-olive upperparts; breeding males show variable head patterns from gray with a white supercilium to greenish or yellowish heads depending on subspecies. Non-breeding birds are duller with more buffy tones below. White outer tail feathers are prominent in flight and when flicked.
Diet
Primarily takes small insects such as flies, midges, beetles, and caterpillars, as well as spiders and other invertebrates. It often hawks short distances to snatch flying insects or picks prey from the ground and shallow water edges. Occasionally consumes small seeds when insects are scarce.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in open, damp habitats including wet meadows, tundra edges, rice fields, muddy margins, pastures, and riverbanks. Frequently forages near livestock, catching insects they flush, and along the edges of shallow pools and ditches.
