I think that Bluethroat is Europe’s most beautiful songbird. The throat looks colourful enough to be a Christmas tree decoration and the copper triangles on its tail sides are exquisite. Its scientific name Luscinia svecica translates as Swedish Nightingale and it was in northern Sweden where I photographed this stunning male. There are two main races of Bluethroat in Europe. The white spotted race (cyanecula) has a white spot in its blue throat and breeds mainly in reedbeds in central and southern Europe. But this is the red-spotted race (nominate svecica) which breeds in birch and willow scrub in Northern Europe. There are also a few pockets of birds with a solid blue throat. The song is amazing too, with mimicry of other bird songs repeated three or four times. This singing male was perched on top of a Juniper bush.
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In northern Scandinavia, it has a name which translates as something like “A bell in its throat”.
This is also the title of a book, by a female author whose name I can’t remember, about her travels
birdwatching in the area, a good read,I have it in a box somewhere.
The bluethroat has actually bred in Scotland https://www.britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V61/V61_N11/V61_N11_P524_525_A086.pdf – it’s surmised that it’s one of several species that are currently rare or non breeders in Scotland that could become established if we had more natural woodland especially at the upper limit of its growth on our mountains. It’s hard to believe that Scotland hasn’t lost species due to the terrible deforestation it’s endured, at least the bluethroat could make a comeback under its own steam.