Listen to the European stonechat
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the European stonechat
The European stonechat is a bird in the family Muscicapidae (order Passeriformes).
What does the European stonechat sound like?
Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once. Songs tend to be long and patterned and are used to hold territory and attract a mate; calls are short signals for contact, alarm and flight.
The recordings here are labelled as song, call, alarm call and begging call. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The European stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a subspecies of the common stonechat. Long considered a member of the thrush family, Turdidae, genetic evidence has placed it and its relatives in the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae. It is found across Europe, as far east as Ukraine and the South Caucasus, and in parts of North Africa.
Related birds in the genus Saxicola
More from the family Muscicapidae
European robin
Erithacus rubecula
Common nightingale
Luscinia megarhynchos
Bluethroat
Luscinia svecica
Common redstart
Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Northern wheatear
Oenanthe oenanthe
Black redstart
Phoenicurus ochruros
Spotted flycatcher
Muscicapa striata
Blue rock thrush
Monticola solitarius
Red-breasted flycatcher
Ficedula parva
Thrush nightingale
Luscinia luscinia
Frequently asked questions
What does an European stonechat sound like?
You can hear 5 recordings of the European stonechat on this page, including its song, call and alarm call. Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once.
What family does the European stonechat belong to?
The European stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) belongs to the family Muscicapidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Alarm call · Serranía de Ronda (near Ronda), Málaga, Andalucía, Spain by Joost van Bruggen – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Luzancy, Seine-et-Marne, Île-de-France, France by Marie-Lan Taÿ Pamart – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Kameniská, Slovakia by Alexander Kurthy – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Perpezat, Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France by Marie-Lan Taÿ Pamart – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Begging call, call · Greater Bilbao (near Getxo), Bizkaia… by Borja – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q838665 – CC0
- Wikipedia: European stonechat – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by Frank Vassen from Brussels, Belgium – CC BY 2.0