Reed Bunting

(Emberiza schoeniclus)

Alert Status: Amber – 15% decline
 

Identifying Features: Reed Buntings are sparrow-sized streaky, brown birds. The males have black heads and black throats, with a white collar and white 'moustache'. Female buntings, including female Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings, can be very difficult to tell apart.
Average Length: 15-16 cm
Average Lifespan: 3 years
Average Wingspan: 21-25 cm
 

Beak type: Seeds
 

Feeding:
Natural: Seeds and invertebrates
 

Nesting: The nest is a cup of grass and moss built on the ground but usually among reeds or grasses in a wet or marshy place. Fine grasses and hair are used to line the cup.
 

Where to see: Reed buntings are predominantly a farmland and wetland bird. Typically found in wet vegetation but has recently spread into farmland and, in winter, into gardens. When singing the male usually perched on top of a bush, or reed.