3/30/2023 0 Comments Yellow hammer kid![]() Both sexes are less strongly marked outside the breeding season, when the dark fringes on new feathers obscure the yellow plumage. The female is less brightly coloured, and more streaked on the crown, breast, and flanks. citrinella has a bright yellow head, heavily streaked brown back, rufous rump, yellow under parts, and white outer tail feathers. erythrogenys ( Brehm, 1855) breeds from Russia, central Ukraine and the eastern Balkans eastwards to Siberia and northwest Mongolia, and also has isolated populations to the east of the Black Sea and in the Caucasus. caliginosa ( Clancey, 1940) is the form found in Ireland, the Isle of Man, and Great Britain (except southeast England). citrinella (Linnaeus, 1758), the nominate subspecies, which occurs in southeast England and most of Europe east to the northwestern corner of Russia and western Ukraine. There are currently 3 recognised subspecies of yellowhammer: Where their ranges meet, the yellowhammer and pine bunting interbreed the yellowhammer is dominant, and the hybrid zone is moving further east. ![]() The white-capped and cirl buntings are also near relatives of the species pair. Within its genus, the yellowhammer is most closely related to the pine bunting, with which it forms a superspecies they have at times been considered as one species. The bird family Emberizidae contains a single genus Emberiza, with around 40 members, that are confined to the Old World. The English name is thought to have come from Ammer, another German word for a bunting, and was first recorded in 1553 as yelambre. Emberiza is derived from the Old German Embritz, a bunting, and citrinella is the Italian for a small yellow bird. The yellowhammer was described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae under its current scientific name. Children's writer Enid Blyton helped to popularise the standard English representation of the song. ![]() This conspicuous yellow bird has inspired poems by Robert Burns and John Clare, and its characteristic song has influenced musical works by Beethoven and Messiaen. Changes to agricultural practices have led to population declines in western Europe, but its large numbers and huge range mean that the yellowhammer is classed as being of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Their diet is mainly seeds, supplemented by invertebrates in the breeding season. Yellowhammers feed on the ground, usually in flocks outside the breeding season. The nest may be raided by rodents or corvids, and the adults are hunted by birds of prey. Both adults feed the chick in the nest and raise two or three broods each year. The female incubates the eggs for 12–14 days prior to hatching, and broods the altricial downy chicks until they fledge 11–13 days later. The three to five eggs are patterned with a mesh of fine dark lines, giving rise to the old name for the bird of "scribble lark" or "writing lark". The song is very similar to that of its closest relative, the pine bunting, with which it interbreeds.īreeding commences mainly in April and May, with the female building a lined cup nest in a concealed location on or near the ground. ![]() Its song has a rhythm like "A little bit of bread and no cheese". The yellowhammer is common in open areas with some shrubs or trees, and forms small flocks in winter. Other plumages are duller versions of the same pattern. The male yellowhammer has a bright yellow head, streaked brown back, chestnut rump, and yellow under parts. Most European birds remain in the breeding range year-round, but the eastern subspecies is partially migratory, with much of the population wintering further south. The yellowhammer ( Emberiza citrinella) is a passerine bird in the bunting family that is native to Eurasia and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia.
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