Meadow Bunting

Fascinating facts about the Meadow Bunting

• At 15–16.5 cm long, the meadow bunting has a bold head pattern with white eyebrows and moustache.
• When a male perches on a twig, he launches a short, hurried song, while his call consists of up to four sharp notes.
• The species nests low in bushes or on the ground, laying three to five eggs that are incubated for 11 days, and the chicks fledge after another 11 days.
• Although largely sedentary, birds from the northern edge of the range drift south each winter, reaching as far as southern China and Taiwan, illustrating a subtle seasonal shift without a full migration.
• Pairs stay monogamous and often return to the same breeding patch year after year, suggesting strong site fidelity even across the vast open habitats of eastern Asia.

About the Meadow Bunting

The meadow bunting (Emberiza cioides) is a modestly sized passerine, measuring 15 to 16.5 cm, its plumage a tapestry of rufous-brown streaked back and a boldly patterned head marked by white eyebrows, a white moustachial stripe, and a contrasting grey neck side. Males wear the full intensity of these colours, while females present a duller, paler version with a less defined head pattern; both sexes display pinkish-brown legs and outer tail feathers tipped in white. Their song is a short, hurried phrase delivered from a prominent perch, accompanied by a call of up to four sharp notes. In the wild they favor dry, open habitats, scrub, farmland, grassland, and open woodland, across a broad swathe of eastern Asia, breeding from southern Siberia through northern and eastern China to Mongolia, Korea, Japan, and the steppes of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Though largely non-migratory, northern birds drift southward to southern China and Taiwan, and occasional European sightings are usually attributed to escaped captives. Nesting low in bushes or on the ground, pairs lay three to five eggs, incubating them for 11 days before fledging another 11, often returning to the same breeding grounds year after year.

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