Grey Wagtail

Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) is a slim long-tailed wagtail with grey upperparts and yellow concentrated on the vent and lower underparts; breeding males have a black throat. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is closely associated with running water during breeding, catching insects along rocky streams and nesting in banks or structures, then using a wider range of wet habitats outside breeding. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).