Eastern Yellow Wagtail Motacilla tschutschensis
Vagrant. Polytypic with four races which breed in Siberia from upper Yenisey to Kamchatka, S to N Mongolia, NW & NE China & N Japan, also W and N Alaska, USA, and N Yukon, Canada. Winters E and SE Asia, Philippines, Indonesia & N Australia.
(Photos to follow)
The first accepted British record was a first-calendar-year bird at Sedgeford, Norfolk, December 23rd 2019; this bird remained to March 1st 2020. During its extended stay it developed into breeding plumage which aided its identification as the nominate subspecies M. t. tschutschensis of Eastern Yellow Wagtail. It was added to the British List by the BOU in June 2021. Rowlands (2016) described BBRC’s current approach to vagrant forms of the Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava in Britain, emphasising the detailed information required to pin down the identification, in particular recording the call and, if possible, obtaining material for DNA analysis. He listed the essential identification criteria for an accepted record as follows:
● A harsh, rasping call reminiscent of Citrine Wagtail, preferably sound-recorded.
● Head pattern and bill coloration that eliminate Citrine Wagtail.
Supporting features:
● Cold grey-and-white first-winter plumage, lacking yellow in underparts and green tones in upperparts.
● DNA evidence.
● Long hind claw.
References
British Ornithologists Union (2021): Changes to the British List (30 June 2021) at https://bou.org.uk/british-list/changes-to-the-british-list-30-june-2021/
Rowlands, A. (2016). From the Rarities Committee’s files. BBRC and Yellow Wagtails. British Birds 109(7): 398-411.
(Account prepared February 2025)