 | ||
Representative species European stonechat, African stonechat, Siberian stonechat | ||
Common stonechat is the name used for the Saxicola species Saxicola torquatus when this is treated in its broad sense.
It is, however, now more widely considered to be a superspecies consisting of several related but distinct species, which are outwardly fairly similar but genetically distinct and replacing each other geographically without significant hybridisation:
Three other species, not previously included within the broad view of common stonechat, have also been shown to be members of the superspecies:
Species status possible, but not yet verified:
Not all of the above are currently recognised as full species by all of the relevant taxonomical authorities, for example the British Ornithologists' Union, currently include stejnegeri as a subspecies of Saxicola maurus.
