Listen to the grey wagtail
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the grey wagtail
The grey wagtail is a bird in the family Motacillidae (order Passeriformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “least concern”. Adults have a wingspan of about 26 cm and weigh around 17 g.
What does the grey wagtail 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 flight call and 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 grey wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) is a member of the wagtail family, Motacillidae, measuring around 18–19 cm overall length. The species looks somewhat similar to the yellow wagtail but has the yellow on its underside restricted to the throat and vent. Breeding males have a black throat. The species is widely distributed, with several populations breeding in Eurosiberia and migrating to tropical regions in Asia and Africa. The species is always associated with running water when breeding, although they may use man-made structures near streams for the nest. Outside the breeding season, they may also be seen around lakes, coasts and other watery habitats. Like other wagtails, they frequently wag their tail and fly low with undulations and they have a sharp call that is often given in flight.
Related birds in the genus Motacilla
More from the family Motacillidae
Frequently asked questions
What does a grey wagtail sound like?
You can hear 2 recordings of the grey wagtail on this page, including its flight call and call. Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once.
Is the grey wagtail endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the grey wagtail as “least concern”.
What family does the grey wagtail belong to?
The grey wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) belongs to the family Motacillidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Flight call · Kolkata, Kharibari, North 24 Paraganas 22 37.696 88 31.600 by Sudipto Roy – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Müntschemier, Erlach, Bern, Switzerland by Pascal Christe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q201316 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Grey wagtail – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K – CC BY 2.0