A small and funny bird wagtail is known to almost everyone. You can see it almost all year round. Its habitat is enormous; it extends almost from the Arctic deserts to the Asian ones. It is found even in Iceland and China. By the way, is a wagtail a migratory bird or not?
This is not an idle question, since in some places it is considered settled, while in others it is argued that every winter this bird flies off somewhere.
In this matter, and in fact, not everything is so simple. Scientists believe that the wagtail began its victorious march around the world somewhere in Africa. And the characteristics of all populations indicate that it is happening from somewhere in the south. So who is this wagtail: migratory bird or not?
Ornithologists say that over most of its vast range, this bird makes regular winter flights. But in southern Europe and Africa there are populations that do not fly away for the winter.
The issue with a seasonal change of places may also arise because among this species there is a high percentage of polymorphism, when birds from different places look completely different. They can be confused with other species, which is why this dispute arose.
In our country, a wagtail is a migratory bird that returns to its homeland during the opening of rivers from the ice. As a rule, this happens around the end of March.
By the way, immediately after arrival, these birds like to stay near ice rivers and thawed areas, which is why people jokingly say that it is the wagtail that breaks the ice. Migratory bird or not - we have already figured out, but what happens in the transition zones of Central Asia?
It is not by chance that we drew attention to this very issue. In those parts, the climate is very harsh (no matter how strange it sounds). The fact is that the summer months are often characterized by suffocating heat and a scorching sun, while winter, in its severity, can even strike a native Siberian.
A striking example is Mongolia. In summer, the temperature can approach +60 degrees Celsius, and in winter go far down, beyond -20 degrees. So how does a wagtail bird behave (photo of which is in the article) in such conditions?
Here she shows all her uniqueness! In the same Mongolia, there are almost a dozen subspecies of the parent individual, which differ greatly in appearance and habits.
So, some of them are almost endemic, leaving their homes only in the case of extremely harsh winters, and some wagtails make long flights even in summer, easily forming new hybrids.
The only quality that unites all representatives of this unique species is their strange craving for man and man-made landscapes. If there is a large city near the habitat of a certain range, then almost all birds will settle in its line.
By the way, there is another oddity: in large populated areas, wagtails often change their habits, and then part of the population remains in the same place even in winter. Of course, this can be explained by the richness of the food supply, but other birds do not do this!
Here it is, wagtail. It is difficult to say with certainty whether it is a migratory bird or not, since a number of factors can affect this.