Appearance:

Breeding male easily recognized by all black head, prominent white moustache stripe and white collar. Rufous greater coverts in young birds. Females and juveniles otherwise plain and rather characterless, and are easily confused with other rare buntings. Reed bunting however, lacks the pale eye-ring and plain cheeks of Little Bunting, and the rufous rump of Rustic Bunting.

Sound:

Song variable between individuals and breeding status: A short sequence of 3-5 brittle and buzzing sounds, repeated consistently with marked pauses. Last sound in phrase often has a conclusive feel, but not always. Paired males sing slower than unpaired. Unpaired male song also more contracted, making the pauses between each phrase stand out. Contact call a sharp, descending and drawn "tseeeoo". A bit similar to Yellow Wagtail, but not as sharp and explosive. In migration a thick, and unmusical "chong" is often heard.

Song:

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

Appearance:

Small green and yellow finch with contrasting dark wings and tail. Underparts whitish with grey streaking. Secondaries, inner primaries and outer tail feathers with yellow base. Relatively long and pointed bill as opposed to Serin. Male distinct with black crown and bib, bright yellow chest, throat and hind-cheeks. Female less contrasty, with more prominent streaking. Juveniles paler and duller than adults, with even heavier streaking than females.

Sound:

Distinct calls and song. Most often heard is the sharp and disyllabic contact call: "doo-lee", with both notes descending. Sometimes given a in monosyllabic manner "dlyy". The contact call is also prominent in the improvised song. Other typical sounds in the song includes a peculiar wheeze, like someone sucking their teeth, and lots of expert mimicry.

Song:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC