Corn bunting - stmartins.at

Corn bunting sitting on a branch, singing with an open beak.

Dear Explorers,

It's me, the corn bunting – Austria's Bird of the Year 2024. Perhaps you have seen me before. Or perhaps not, as sadly I have already died out in large parts of Austria over recent decades. I am a songbird that feeds largely on a variety of plant seeds and small invertebrates. In Austria, the Seewinkel is one of my last strongholds for breeding populations, so the chances of spotting me on a safari are particularly high. I am often found perched on a vantage point performing my song. In the area, I like to use smaller trees, bushes and power lines for this.

Right, enough talking for now! The ST. MARTINS outdoor team has compiled a lot of interesting facts about me in a compact format. Enjoy reading!

Best wishes, your corn bunting

_{Image credit: Steve Riall, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons}

_{Header image credit: Zeynel Cebeci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons}

Worth knowing

Corn bunting sitting on a thorny branch.

_{Image credit: Zeynel Cebeci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons}

Wingspan: 26-32 cm
Weight: approx. 35-67 g
Nest: on the ground in denser herbaceous vegetation or under low bushes
Eggs: usually 3-5 eggs
Breeding season: mid-April to early August
Age: 3 to 8 years

Appearance

Corn bunting with an open beak sitting on a thorny branch.

_{Image credit: Zeynel Cebeci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons}

The corn bunting is a sparrow-sized bird with a predominantly grey-brown plumage. Of all the buntings native to Austria, the corn bunting has the most subtly coloured plumage. The typical bunting bill is relatively very strong and yellowish in colour.

Reproduction

The breeding season is from late April to early August and brooding takes place only once a year. Corn buntings mostly form a monogamous seasonal pair, but the males are very frequently polygynous—meaning they have multiple partners in their territory and do not participate in nest building or incubating the clutch, and only to a small extent in raising the young. The nest is usually built on the ground or very low in perennials or shrubs. It consists predominantly of blades of grass and is lined with animal hair and soft plant parts. The clutch usually consists of 3-5 eggs. The incubation period is between 11 and 13 days. The young leave the nest about 12 days after hatching and are then fed by the parents for another 2-4 weeks.

Food

Corn buntings mostly forage for food on the ground and have a predominantly vegetarian diet consisting of various seeds. However, a wide range of insects is also used as a food source. Invertebrates are of particular importance when raising chicks, and the nestlings are fed almost exclusively with insects and spiders.

Voice

The rather monotonous song of the corn bunting is performed exclusively by the males and consists of a short and frequently repeated, grating, rattling phrase. The sound is often compared to the jingling of a bunch of keys. This song is mostly delivered from a perch with a good all-round view. In the Seewinkel, corn buntings like to use low power lines, the tips of individual bushes or trees, or even hay bales for this purpose.

Singing

Distribution

The corn bunting is distributed from the Canary Islands across North Africa, Europe northwards to southern Scandinavia and further to southwest Asia. Depending on the location of the breeding area, the corn bunting is both a resident bird and a short- to medium-distance migrant. In Central Europe, the species was once a common breeding bird, but during the second half of the 20th century it disappeared or died out as a breeding bird in many areas. In Austria, the corn bunting is critically endangered and now only breeds regularly in small distribution islands in the eastern Weinviertel, the Marchfeld, the Parndorfer Platte and the Neusiedler See region. The Seewinkel and the Hanság are among the last strongholds of the species in Austria.

Hazards

The global population of the corn bunting is in decline, though it is currently still classified as of least concern. However, in northwestern and central Europe, the species has become a very rare breeding bird, with the main reasons being the large-scale intensification of agriculture and the decline in insects. In Austria, corn bunting populations have suffered a dramatic collapse of 95% between 1998 and 2022 alone. Consequently, the species is currently listed as "endangered" on the Red List. The corn bunting is of the highest priority for bird conservation in Austria.

Where to find

Corn bunting sitting on leaves, side view against a clear blue sky.

_{Image credit: Zeynel Cebeci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons}

In the Seewinkel, the best observation conditions are from spring into summer, when the corn buntings are very prominent in the area due to their territorial song.
It is always worth taking a close look at individual bushes or power lines and keeping an eye out for a corn bunting, which likes to use such landscape elements as a singing post. The species can often be easily observed from a distance with binoculars or a spotting scope.

Safari

You have a good chance of observing a corn bunting, especially during a birdwatching safari in spring or early summer. In addition to the corn bunting, one of our expert ST. MARTINS rangers will show you other special and unfortunately highly endangered bird species that use the Seewinkel as a breeding area. After all, the Seewinkel is one of the last breeding areas in Austria not only for the corn bunting.

Interactive content

Videos with special content on the corn bunting

Corn bunting singing by Let's bird

Singing Corn Bunting by Birdfun

Around St. Martins

With a bit of luck, you might spot a corn bunting on its singing post directly on the expansive grounds or pasture areas of the ST. MARTINS Therme & Lodge, where singing males are regularly observed. It is therefore worth keeping your eyes open in every direction during your walks and, above all, pricking up your ears, as you are usually alerted to the inconspicuous, grey-brown bird by its striking song.