Wheatear, Peak District National Park, England Aug. 21, 2025

You don"t need to be a bird expert to notice the wheatear darting across open ground. These ground-dwelling songbirds belong to the Oenanthe genus and are known for their upright posture and habit of hopping or sprinting between perches. Despite the name, wheatears have nothing to do with wheat or ears—the name is a twist on the old phrase "white arse," pointing to the bird"s distinctive white rump found in most species.

© Ben Hall/Nature Picture Library

palette

Today in History

Aug. 21, 2023Discovery Day in Canada
The Coast of Death
Aug. 21, 2024Nazca boobies, Wolf Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jul. 7, 2025Northern gannets, Shetland Islands, Scotland
Feb. 15, 2026World Whale Day
Apr. 10, 2025Siblings Day
‘Only one Earth’
Jul. 31, 2024Hoodoos, Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, USA
A grove glows green
Apr. 30, 2024Cheetah in Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania
Aug. 28, 2023Dubrovnik, Croatia
Dec. 18, 2025Capitol Reef National Park, Utah, United States
Launching hopes and prayers
Dec. 1, 2023Lake Minnewanka, Alberta
Sep. 20, 2023Aqueduct, Arkadia Park, Poland
Trusty water-shifters
Nov. 17, 2024Red deer stag in Glen Affric, Scotland
Feb. 17, 2025Coll dAres, Catalan Pyrenees
Mar. 30, 2025Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia
A delightful day for donkeys
King of the jungle? Nope
Roll out the red carpet
May 8, 2024Marseille welcomes to Olympic torch
Aug. 6, 2025Ring-tailed lemur
Jan. 25, 2026Burns Night in Scotland
Mar. 14, 2024Happy Pi Day!
Oct. 28, 2024Pumpkin field, Victoria, British Columbia
Bryce Canyon hoodoos in winter
Jan. 10, 2026The Matterhorn reflected in Lake Stellisee at sunrise, Zermatt, Switzerland
Clouds dance above Sundance
Mar. 29, 2025Superbloom in Carrizo Plain National Monument, California, United States
Dec. 2, 2025Whistler, British Columbia
Dec. 18, 2023Capitol Reef National Park, Utah