The RSPB: Corn bunting

Corn bunting

Listen

1 video

Sound clips and movies require Adobe Flash player.

Latin name

Miliaria calandra

Family

Buntings (Emberizidae)

Overview

This nondescript lowland farmland bird is the largest of the buntings and is most usually seen perched on a wire or post. It is a stout, dumpy bird brown which flies off with a fluttering flight and with its legs characteristically 'dangling'. Its dramatic population decline in the UK makes it a Red List species.

Where to see them

Often seen perched prominently on a hedge, post or wire, singing its jangling song. In the summer corn buntings prefer open farmland and in winter they may be found in stubbles, root crops, weedy fields and cattle yards or stockyards.

When to see them

All year round - forms flocks in the winter.

What they eat

Seeds and insects.

Estimated numbers

Europe	UK breeding*	UK wintering*	UK passage*
-	8,500-12,200 territories	-	-

* UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.

Distribution

Key

In the UK: Patchy- absent from Wales, N Ireland and parts of England and Scotland.

Please note that the map is only intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.

Find out more

Videos

Audio is from commercial recordings Bird Songs and Calls of Britain and Europe on 4 CDs or Bird Sounds of Europe & North-west Africa, copyright WildSounds & CEBA (www.wildsounds.com, (UK) +44 (0) 1263 741100)