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Siberian Rubythroat

Siberian Rubythroat Identification Guide

Siberian Rubythroat

Key facts

Scientific name: Calliope calliope
UK status: Rare vagrant (accidental)
Global conservation status: Least concern
Length: 14 cm
Wingspan: 24 cm
Weight: 79 g

Description

The Siberian rubythroat is a robust, long-legged, upright chat that is slightly larger than the European robin. The male has olive-brown upperparts and paler underparts with a grey breast and sides. The wings and tail are olive-brown. The throat is bright red edged with a narrow black and white border. The head is brown with a black patch through the eyes, a white supercilium, and a white moustache. The bill is dark grey, and the legs and feet are pink.

The female is similar but lacks the red throat and borders, and the head pattern is brown, white, and grey.

The male’s song is a long series of warbling notes, similar to that of a garden warbler. It sometimes mimics other species of birds.

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Diet

Siberian rubythroats eat mainly insects, spiders, and worms but also snails and berries. It forages from the ground or in bushes.

Listen

Ding Li Yong/xeno-canto

Range and habitat

Siberian rubythroats breed throughout Asia and eastern Europe on open woodlands or grasslands with scattered thickets. It migrates for the winter to southern Asia.

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