As Norman and Sandra commented in their trip report for Elmley, one of the highlights of the trip was seeing and hearing two male corn buntings. During the day we saw five marsh harriers flying together, over 3 thousand wigeon, lapwing and redshank display flights, and avocets prospecting for a nest site. Not bad eh? But for me the highlight was the two corn bunting. The two males were shouting at each other and even I could hear their song – said to sound like the jangling of keys. We all stopped to watch them for some time. The two birds ignored us completely, they had more important matters to attend to. Rather sadly, corn buntings and similar looking birds are sometimes given the epithet of “LBJs” (Little brown jobs) – but how wrong can you be. What a stunning bird! A few days later some of us were back on Sheppey near the RSPB raptor watch point at Harty.
Some bramble bushes here, have been the wintering site for a large group of corn buntings. They come back every year and it is always worth stopping to watch them. On this occasion there were at least 80 birds. But having watched two birds setting up breeding territories two days earlier, and only a few miles away, I wondered why these birds were still “together”. I had always assumed that the bramble site contained overwintering local birds. So why were they not out there, all over Sheppey, engaged in territorial campaigns? Perhaps they are all females and are just waiting for the “boys” to sort themselves out. But perhaps they are not local birds. Perhaps they are from much further north and “know” that they have to wait longer for conditions to improve in their home territories. Such wonderful birds and so much to discover about them.
Like many farmland birds, corn buntings have been in decline for some years. They have been the subject of much conservation work. Wouldn’t it be terrible not to see them?
Thanks to Steve and Terry for the photographs.
Malcolm
Yes, you are right, to not see these birds would be terrible. It’s also terrible knowing that it’s probably something we are doing that’s causing their decline.
Lovely pictures. I hope to take my grandchildren to see them one day……..
Thank you Malcolm for reminding us to not dismiss these birds and others like them as just LBJs. If you look closely they are all so much more.
On driving on the ‘Lower Road’ back from Higham towards Chalk, Maria and I used to always wind down the windows and listen out for Corn Bunting singing from the overhead wires. But we have not heard them for a few years. 🙁
Has anyone heard them along this stretch of road?
As you say Paul, a singing corn bunting was always a feature of the overhead wires along the road from Chalk. Usually best seen from the road crossing at Lower Shorne. Not sure about this particular territory but there are at least 2-3 pairs nesting in the fields nearby towards “Red House”. Sally and I try to find the birds each year. Trouble with these territories is that that will be adjacent to the construction of the new Thames Crossing – should it go ahead.