Pied Wagtail
Motacilla alba ssp yarellii
Length 18cm

Familiar bird of playing fields, farmland and coastal meadows. Name derives from black and white appearance and habit of pumping tail up and down. Often seen in bounding flight, uttering loud chissick call. Female differs from male by dark grey, not black, back. Juvenile has black element of plumage replaced by grey. Common throughout.