Common Redstart

How to identify

Field marks

1. Uppertail-coverts and outer tail feathers orange-red
2. Male face and throat black; forehead white
3. Male crown and back blue-gray; breast orange-tinged reddish-brown
4. Male bill, legs and feet black

Male, female and young

Female gray-brown above and pale yellowish-white or pale orange below, with tail feathers like those of the male.

Voice

Song melodious and slightly melancholy, beginning with clear “ji-gju-gju-gju”; a mournful “hweet” for contact and a sharp “tchak” in alarm.

Similar species

Black Redstart

Males of eastern subspecies of Black Redstart are easily confused with males of the nominate subspecies of Common Redstart, but usually have a large black patch on the breast, a less distinct white stripe on the head and a richer belly color.

Where and when it's recorded

Common Redstart has been recorded at 1,280 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 100 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Jerusalem Bird ObservatoryIsrael2,418 records
2. International Birding and Research Center Eilat (IBRCE)Israel1,530 records
3. Aras Kuş Halkalama İstasyonuTürkiye1,430 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United KingdomIsraelSpainGermanyTürkiyePortugalSwedenItaly

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The common redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus), or often simply redstart, is a small passerine bird in the genus Phoenicurus. Like its relatives, it was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family, (Turdidae), but is now known to be an Old World flycatcher (family Muscicapidae).

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Questions