Corn Buntings are bigger and plumper than other buntings, streaky brown in all plumages, with a heavier and more distinctly notched bill. In flight they lack white outer tail feathers and frequently leave their legs dangling.

Breeds on farmland, downs and coastal scrub. Winters on arable farmland, often in stubble.

A widespread and localised, but rapidly decreasing bird, with a distinct preference for arable land. A some dispersal occurs away from breeding areas. In winter a large mixed flock of birds including hundreds of Corn Buntings can be seen coming to grain near the railway crossing in Deeping St. Nicholas in south Lincolnshire during the winter.

Widespread and numerous in most of Europe but especially abundant in southern Europe where they are commonly seen on roadside wires. They are almost entirely absent from Scandinavia.

©BirdGuides 1999