Key information
The yellow wagtail is a small, graceful, yellow and green bird, with a medium-length tail and slender black legs. It spends much time walking or running on the ground. As its name implies, it wags its tail from time to time.
It is a summer visitor, migrating to winter in Africa. It breeds in a variety of habitats in the UK, including arable farmland, wet pastures and upland hay meadows. Serious declines in breeding numbers across all of these habitats place the yellow wagtail on the red list of birds of conservation concern.
What they eat:
Small insects, including flies and beetles.
Measurements:
- Length:
- 17cm
- Wingspan:
- 23-27cm
- Weight:
- 16-22g
Population:
- UK breeding:
- 15,000 territories
Identifying features:
This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.
Yellow wagtail (male)
Yellow wagtail (female)
