Perching Birds. 25 



THE YELLOW Our commonest Bunting, generally called the ' Yellow 



BUNTING. Hammer,' or, more correctly, the Yellow ' Ammer,' the name 



bemg, no doubt, derived from the German name of ' Ammer,' a 

 citrinelta.) 



Bunting. In many parts of England it is known as the ' 'Writing 



Lark,' from the scribblings which are the chief feature of the Yellow Bunting's egg. 

 The last-mentioned species, E. melanocephala, which is even more brilliantly coloured 

 than our Yellow Bunting, is easily recognised b}' its black head and by the absence ot 

 any streaks on the flanks, whereas the Yellow Bunting has the centre of the crown 

 3'ellow, and has ver\' distinct blackish streaks on the flanks ; the breast and sides oi 

 the body also are light chestnut. It is universally distributed throughout the British 

 Islands, and receives a large addition to its numbers in the autumn. The breeding- 

 range of the Yellow Bunting extends throughout Northern Europe and Eastern Siberia 

 as far as the River Ob, and in winter it visits Southern Europe and Central Asia. 



The nest of E. citrinella is a neat structure of grass and bents, usually placed 

 on the ground and well concealed, but occasionally to be found in a low bush. The 

 eggs wsLxy from four to si.x in number, and are of a stone-gre}' or pinkish-grey colour, 

 with spots and scribblings of grey and purplish brown. 



In appearance and also in habits the Cirl Bunting is very 

 similar to the Yellow Bunting, with which it is often confused. 



„ , . . , , The male, however, can always be distinguished from E. citrinella 

 {hmbcrtza ctrlns.) ' ' j o 



by the black throat, and the olive-green rump and lower back, these 

 parts being streaked with dusky black. The female Cirl Bunting is more difficult to tell 

 from the same se.x of the Yellow Bunting, but it may be distinguished by the greenish 

 grey colour of the lesser wing-coverts, which contrast with the colour of the back. 



Instead of being universally distributed throughout the British Islands, like the 

 Yellow Bunting, the present species is decidedly local, and is not known to nest to 

 the north of our Midland counties, In the South of England, though still local in 

 its distribution, the Cirl Bunting is generally met with, but from its retiring habits and 

 from its resemblance to the Yellow Bunting, it is a species which escapes general 

 observation. To anyone acquainted with the voice of the Cirl Bunting, which has a 

 diflerent intonation to that of E. citrinella, and lacks the final ascending note of the 

 latter species, it is not difficult to discover E. cirlus in the South of England, where, 

 as late as May, small flocks may be found, composed of birds in full breeding plumage, 

 while in the autumn small parties, composed of young and old birds, may be 

 noticed ; from which it would appear that the Cirl Bunting never associates in 

 autumn and winter with Chaffinches and other kindred species in the stubble-fields 

 and farmyards, but keeps to small family parties of its own kind. Such, at least, has 

 been my own experience. The nest is sometimes placed on the ground, but is more 

 often built in bushes, at a height of a few feet from the ground. The eggs are four or 

 iive in number, but are rather lighter than those of the Yellow Bunting, with ratlier 

 more distinct scribblings and lines than in the eggs of the latter species. 



