LITTLE BUNTING. 85 



back, and has a band of the same colour across the breast ; its 

 forehead, crown and the sides of the head are black and a white 

 stripe extends from the eye to the nape. Its under parts are 

 white with chestnut spots on the flanks. The female has brown 

 instead of black on the head, and the white stripe and band on 

 the breast are narrower. In winter buff obscures much of the 

 black on the male, and the under parts are suffused with buff. 

 Young birds have spotted throats. The breast band and spots 

 on the flanks are the best distinctive characters. Length, 5*5 ins. 

 Wing, yi ins. Tarsus, 75 in. 



Little Bunting. Emberiza pusU/a Pallas. 



The Little Bunting inhabits Arctic Russia and Siberia, 

 migrating south in Asia and often reaching Europe in autumn. 

 Saunders and Seebohm included it as British on the strength 

 of a single occurrence in Sussex, but as it has frequently 

 appeared in Holland, Belgium and Heligoland it is not 

 surprising that more systematic observation has placed the 

 bird on the list of more or less regular autumn visitors. It has 

 been several times met with in England and once in Ireland, 

 but its passage in Scotland and especially the Shetlands is 

 regular in autumn, and it has been once noted on the return 

 journey. It can no longer be counted as a mere accidental 

 visitor. 



In general appearance this bird is a small female Reed- 

 Bunting, but in the male (Plate 36) the crown and cheeks are 

 rufous, the former bordered and emphasised by a black line 

 extending to the whitish collar. The brown back is lighter than 

 the centre of the crown, and is freely spotted in streaks. The 

 under parts are white shading to buff on the striated flanks. 

 A dark streak runs downwards from the bill on either side of 

 the chestnut throat. The bill, legs and irides are brown. The 

 head markings are less pronounced in the female and she is a 



