The isabelline wheatear (Oenanthe isabellina) name sounds like it refers to a person's proper name but it doesn't: Isabelline refers to the bird's colouration. Isabelline, or Isabella, is described as a pale grey-yellow, pale fawn, pale cream-brown or parchment colour. The name for this colour is based on apocryphal tales about different queens named Isabella who vowed not to change their royal underpants until a particular war had been won. Wheatear" is not derived from "wheat" or any sense of "ear", but is a 16th-century linguistic corruption of "white" and "arse", referring to the prominent white rump found in most species. Unlike other wheatears, male and female isabelline wheatear are similar in appearance. The isabelline wheatear is migratory with an eastern palearctic breeding range.
