# Black redstart (*Phoenicurus ochruros*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-redstart  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) is a small bird in the family Muscicapidae, part of the group of songbirds and other perching birds. Adults weigh 16.5 g, with reported values from 16.3 to 16.7 g, and have a wingspan of 25 cm. It is an invertivore at the omnivore trophic level, lives in rocky habitats, has a perching lifestyle and is partially migratory. It lays 4.9 eggs per clutch with 2 clutches per year, incubates eggs for 13 days, and is listed as Least Concern, not an IUCN threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 16.3 g – 16.7 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 25 cm |
| Lifespan | 9.29 years – 10.2 years |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | rocky |
| Egg incubation | 13 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 4.9 |
| Age at maturity | 12 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 2 |
| Lifestyle | Perching |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Passeriformes
- family: Muscicapidae
- genus: Phoenicurus
- species: *Phoenicurus ochruros* (S. G. Gmelin, 1774)

Synonyms: *Erythacus tithys*, *Lusciola tithys*, *Motacilla atrata*, *Motacilla erythrourus*, *Motacilla ochruros*, *Phaenicura nipalensis*, *Phoenicura atrata*, *Phoenicura nipalensis*, *Ruticilla atrata*, *Ruticilla cairii*, *Ruticilla erythroprocta*, *Ruticilla indica*, *Ruticilla montana*, *Ruticilla nipalensis*, *Ruticilla titys*, *Saxicola tithys*, *Sylvia tites campylonyx*, *Sylvia tithys*

## Common questions

### How big is the black redstart?

The black redstart weighs 16.5 g, with reported values from 16.3 to 16.7 g. Its wingspan is 25 cm.

### What does the black redstart eat?

The black redstart is an invertivore. Its trophic level is omnivore.

### Is the black redstart endangered?

No. It is listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the black redstart live?

The black redstart has a lifespan of 9.3 years, with values reported up to 10.2 years.

### How many eggs does the black redstart lay?

The black redstart lays 4.9 eggs per clutch and has 2 clutches per year. Incubation lasts 13 days.

### What kind of animal is the black redstart?

The black redstart is a bird in the family Muscicapidae and the order Passeriformes, grouped with songbirds and other perching birds.

### Does the black redstart migrate?

Yes, the black redstart is partially migratory.

### Who named the black redstart?

The black redstart, Phoenicurus ochruros, was named by S. G. Gmelin in 1774.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-redstart