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Message: <blockquote data-quote="CARERY" data-source="post: 3478881" data-attributes="member: 140105">Hi all,I just recently joined this forum and immediately found this fascinating discussion. Interesting how difficult buntings can be! The largest and the smallest species have been suggested! Great!I wonder why no one asked about the size of the bird. That could straight away rule out a few discussed species. Even without comparison of other birds closeby a Corn Bunting should be recognised by it's clearly bigger size. On the other hand Little Bunting should be - well - little!Admittedly the picture is quite poor, but still shows a few features. Firstly, the upper wingbar is rather prominent and whitish that excludes Reed Bunting. Secondly, the bill is rather weak and so if not already by overall size, Corn Bunting is out (bill should be much stronger and more curved even in the more eastern birds) as is Little Bunting (bill should be even finer, and also ear coverts should be different). Thirdly, flank streaking is not dark red-brown but clearly broad and blackish, so Rustic is out as is another species not yet considered: first year Cirl Bunting.  I think that Pine Bunting indeed is the best guess! At first I thought the whitish upper wingbar would be a problem but look at this picture: <a href="http://rarebirdalert.co.uk/RealData/gallery_show.asp?galleryid=45920&page=1&sort=4&SpeciesID=18560&L1=0" target="_blank">http://rarebirdalert.co.uk/RealData/gallery_show.asp?galleryid=45920&page=1&sort=4&SpeciesID=18560&L1=0</a>Cheers,Roland</blockquote>

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