Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Plural form of
wagtail .
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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Their larvae are mostly aquatic and play an important role feeding fish, whilst the hatched flies are much sought after by birds such as wagtails, spiders, and if the winter weather relents sufficiently, even a few bats might emerge briefly at dusk to zoom repeatedly through the mating swarms.
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Pied wagtails can often be seen pottering about on pavements and roadside verges, picking up these meagre morsels of food with that sharp, pointed bill.
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These roosts provide safety in numbers against nocturnal predators such as owls, and also allow the wagtails to huddle up together against the cold.
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Late hay cuts in traditional meadows give ground-nesting birds a chance to complete their breeding cycle, so look out for partridges leading fledglings through the undergrowth, anxious curlews trying to distract your attention from their offspring and yellow wagtails snapping flies from flowers to feed their nestlings.
Make hay meadow photos while the sun shines | Phil Gates 2011
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Everywhere I have lived, from the centre of London, via the sprawling suburbs, to the heart of rural England, pied wagtails have lived alongside me.
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Two other species of wagtail also breed in Britain, the grey and yellow wagtails.
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Grey wagtails are resident, and often found along fast-flowing rivers and streams, while the yellow wagtail is purely a summer visitor, found mainly in wet-meadows such as those on Tealham Moor, a short distance from my home.
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In fact pied wagtails are a peculiarly British bird.
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Pied wagtails feed on tiny insects, so small that other ground-feeding birds generally ignore them.
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The pied wagtails around my home show some fascinating behaviour, too.
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