The white wagtail is a small passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which also includes pipits and longclaws. The species breeds in the Palearctic zone in most of Europe and Asia and parts of North Africa; it also has a toehold in western Alaska as a scarce breeder. It is resident in the mildest parts of its range, but otherwise migrates to Africa. In total, there are between 9 and 11 subspecies of M. alba; in Ireland and Great Britain, the black-backed subspecies known as the pied wagtail predominates.
Region
Palearctic
Typical Environment
Prefers open habitats with low vegetation and abundant bare ground, especially near water such as riverbanks, lakeshores, and wetlands. Common on farmland, pastures, and coastal areas where invertebrates are plentiful. Frequently uses urban and suburban environments, including parks, car parks, and rooftops. Often associates with livestock or follows machinery to catch flushed insects. Nests in crevices, under eaves, bridges, or banks, readily using human structures.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 4500 m
Climate Zone
Temperate
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
The white wagtail is a slender, long-tailed passerine famous for its constant tail-wagging behavior. It readily adapts to human-modified landscapes, often nesting on buildings and foraging in car parks and farmyards. Subspecies vary notably in head and back patterns, including the black-backed pied wagtail common in Britain and Ireland.
Breeding ranges of the major races
An adult with a juvenile in Kazakhstan
An adult in Sweden with insects in its beak to its young.
Eggs, Collection Museum Wiesbaden, Germany
Juvenile M. a. alba in northern Norway, showing the grey face and chest
Temperament
active and alert
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with bounding, undulating flight
Social Behavior
Typically seen singly or in pairs in the breeding season, forming monogamous pairs that nest in crevices or man-made structures. Outside the breeding season, gathers in flocks and uses communal roosts, sometimes in urban trees or reedbeds. Both parents feed the young, which leave the nest after about two weeks and may form family groups.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Calls are sharp, ringing ‘chissick’ notes often given in flight. The song is a simple, brisk series of twitters and trills delivered from a perch or during short display flights.
Plumage
Crisp, contrasting pattern with grey upperparts, white face and underparts, and a black throat bib; long, constantly wagged tail with white outer feathers.
Diet
Feeds mainly on small insects such as flies, midges, mayflies, beetles, and caterpillars, along with spiders and other small invertebrates. Occasionally takes small aquatic larvae along shorelines and puddles. Will opportunistically snap up insects flushed by grazing animals or farm machinery. Plant matter is rarely taken.
Preferred Environment
Forages on open ground, paths, and short grass, often near water or on the edges of wetlands. Frequently hunts from low perches, making short sallies to pick prey off the ground or in the air. Comfortable feeding in busy human settings like car parks and farmyards.
