Rustic Bunting

Summer male
Photo by Nutcracker
Farne Islands, Northumberland, UK, June 2012

Emberiza rustica

Identification

Length 13-14.5 cm (5-5¾ in), weight 15.5-24.3 g

• Reddish brown flanks
• White underparts
• Pink legs
• Pink lower mandible.
  

Summer male

• Black head
• White throat and supercilium
• Reddish breast band.
  

Winter male
Photo by wigan24
Suburb of Seoul, South Korea, December 2005

F'emale

• Heavy streaking on brown back
• Brown face with a whitish supercilium
• Reddish flank streaks
• Chestnut nape
• Pink lower mandible

Distribution

Breeds in Northern Europe and Siberia, migrating to south east Asia, Japan, and eastern China for the winter.

A scarce passage visitor in western Europe, including Britain (mainly late May to early June, and mid October).

Status

Population in severe decline due to massive illegal hunting on the wintering grounds.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 2 subspecies^[1]:

• E. r. rustica:

• Taiga of northern Eurasia; winters to eastern China and Japan

• E. r. latifascia:

• Taiga of north-eastern Siberia (Yakutsk to Kamchatka)

Habitat

Breeds in wet pine and spruce forests with birch trees.

Behaviour

Breeding

The clutch consists of 4-6 eggs. The nest is built in a bush or on the ground.

Diet

Their usual diet is comprised of seeds, supplemented with insects when feeding young.

Vocalisation

<flashmp3>Emberiza rustica (song).mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2016)
3. Wikipedia

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Rustic Bunting. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 19 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Rustic_Bunting

External Links

Search for photos of Rustic Bunting in the gallery

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