Snow Bunting

(Plectrophenax nivalis)

Alert Status: Amber
 

Identifying Features: Snow buntings are large buntings, with striking 'snowy' plumages. Males in summer have all white heads and underparts contrasting with a black mantle and wing tips. Females are a more mottled above. Snow Buntings become buffy and streaky in the winter.
Average Length:  15 cm
Average Lifespan: 3 years
Average Wingspan: 25-30 cm
 

Beak type: Seeds
 

Feeding:
Natural: Seeds and insects
 

Nesting: Snow Buntings build their nests in rock crevices on bare mountain slopes or rocky shores and lay four to six eggs.
 

Where to see: Breeds in small numbers in the Scottish Highlands. Winters around the coasts of northern and eastern Britain.