Theyellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella) is apasserinebird in thebunting family that is native toEurasia and has beenintroduced to New Zealand and Australia. Most European birds remain in the breeding range year-round, but the easternsubspecies is partiallymigratory, with much of the population wintering further south. The male yellowhammer has a bright yellow head, streaked brown back, chestnut rump, and yellow under parts. Other plumages are duller versions of the same pattern. The yellowhammer is common in open areas with some shrubs or trees, and forms small flocks in winter. Its song has a rhythm like "A little bit of bread and no cheese". The song is very similar to that of its closest relative, thepine bunting, with which it interbreeds.
Breeding commences mainly in April and May, with the female building a linedcup nest in a concealed location on or near the ground. 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 female incubates the eggs for 12–14 days prior to hatching, and broods thealtricial downy chicks until theyfledge 11–13 days later. Both adults feed the chick in the nest and raise two or three broods each year. The nest may be raided by rodents orcorvids, and the adults are hunted bybirds of prey. Yellowhammers feed on the ground, usually in flocks outside the breeding season. Their diet is mainly seeds, supplemented byinvertebrates in the breeding season. 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 ofleast concern by theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature.
This conspicuous yellow bird has inspired poems byRobert Burns andJohn Clare, and its characteristic song has influenced musical works byBeethoven andMessiaen. Children's writerEnid Blyton helped to popularise the standard English representation of the song.
The yellowhammer was described byCarl Linnaeus in his landmark 175810th edition ofSystema Naturae under its current scientific name.[2]Emberiza is derived from theOld GermanEmbritz, a bunting,[3] andcitrinella is the Italian for a small yellow bird.[4] The English name is thought to have come fromAmmer, another German word for a bunting, and was first recorded in 1553 asyelambre.[5]
The bird familyEmberizidae contains a single genusEmberiza, with around 40 members, that are confined to the Old World.[6] Within its genus, the yellowhammer is most closely related to the pine bunting, with which it forms asuperspecies; they have at times been considered as one species. Thewhite-capped andcirl buntings are also near relatives of the species pair.[7] Where their ranges meet, the yellowhammer and pine bunting interbreed; the yellowhammer is dominant, and the hybrid zone is moving further east.[8]
There are currently 3 recognised subspecies of yellowhammer:[7]
E. c. citrinella (Linnaeus, 1758), thenominate subspecies, which occurs in southeast England and most of Europe east to the northwestern corner of Russia and western Ukraine.
E. c. caliginosa (Clancey, 1940) is the form found in Ireland, theIsle of Man, and Great Britain (except southeast England).
E. c. erythrogenys (Brehm, 1855) breeds from Russia, central Ukraine and the easternBalkans eastwards toSiberia and northwest Mongolia, and also has isolated populations to the east of theBlack Sea and in theCaucasus.
The yellowhammer is a large bunting, 16–16.5 cm (6.3–6.5 in) long, with a 23–29.5 cm (9.1–11.6 in) wingspan;[9] it weighs 20–36.5 g (0.71–1.29 oz).[7] The male of the nominate subspeciesE. c. citrinella has a bright yellow head, heavily streaked brown back,rufous rump, yellow under parts, and white outer tail feathers.[9] The female is less brightly coloured, and more streaked on the crown, breast, and flanks. Both sexes are less strongly marked outside the breeding season, when the dark fringes on new feathers obscure the yellow plumage. The juvenile is much duller and less yellow than the adults, and often has a paler rump.[10]
After breeding, adults have a completemoult, which takes at least eight weeks; males acquire more yellow in the plumage each time they moult. Juveniles have a partial moult not long after fledging, replacing the head, body, and somecovert feathers.[10]
Differences between the subspecies are small andgeographically gradual. On average, the male ofE. c. caliginosa is slightly smaller and darker than the same sex of the nominate subspecies, and also has more streaking on its back, a greenish tint to the yellow of the head and more chestnut on the flanks. The male of the eastern form,E. c. erythrogenys, is paler and less streaked thanE. c. citrinella. Its flanks, undertail and wing bars are usually whiter, and its crown and throat are brighter yellow.[10] Distinguishing females of the three subspecies using plumage features is not usually possible.[11]
Females and juveniles, especially of the pale eastern subspecies,E. c. erythrogenys, may be confused with pine buntings, but they always have a yellow tint to their plumage, a paler rufous rump, and more uniform upperparts than that species.[12] Young and female yellowhammers can be distinguished from cirl buntings by the grey-brown rump of the latter species.[10] Male hybrids with pine buntings are typically white-faced and have some yellow on the head, under parts orflight feathers, but females are usually indistinguishable from yellowhammers.[13]
The song of the cock yellowhammer is a series of short notes, gradually increasing in volume and followed by one or two more protracted notes. It is often represented as "A little bit of bread and no cheese", and the full version can be confused with the almost identical song of the pine bunting. If the final notes are omitted, confusion with the cirl bunting is possible. Other vocalisations include azit contact call, asee alarm, and a trilledtirrr given in flight.[9]
Yellowhammer males learn their songs from their fathers, and over time, regional dialects have developed,[14][15] with minor differences to the conclusion of the basic song; all are mutually recognised by birds from different areas.[8] Each male has an individual repertoire of song variants within its regional dialect;[16] females tend to mate with males that share their dialect, and prefer those with the largest repertoires.[17]
The pine bunting and yellowhammer are so closely related that each responds to the other's song. The male yellowhammer's song is more attractive to females, and is one reason for the dominance of that species where the ranges overlap.[8]
Traditional farmland provides good habitat for nesting and feeding.
The yellowhammer breeds across thePalearctic between the 16–20 °C (61–68 °F) Julyisotherms. It is the commonest and most widespread European bunting,[9] although it is absent from high mountains,Arctic regions, the western Netherlands, most ofIberia and Greece, and low-lying regions of other countries adjoining theMediterranean Sea. It breeds in Russia east toIrkutsk, and in most of Ukraine. The Asian range extends into northwest Turkey, the Caucasus, and northern Kazakhstan.[10]
Most European yellowhammers winter within their breeding range, only the far north being vacated, although some birds move south of their breeding range in Spain, Italy, and other Mediterranean countries.[10] Distances travelled can be up to 500 km (310 mi) for northern birds.[9] Asian birds are more stronglymigratory, deserting much of the north to winter in Iraq, Iran, and southernCentral Asia. The yellowhammer has occurred as a vagrant in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt,[10] Kuwait, Morocco, Malta, the Himalayas (winter vagrant from northern Afghanistan to central Nepal[18]), theBalearic Islands, Iceland, and theFaroes.[9]
Yellowhammers of the British and Irish race,E. c. caliginosa, wereintroduced to New Zealand by localacclimatisation societies in 1862,[8][19] and soon spread over the main islands. They sometimes visit New Zealand's subantarctic islands, although rarely staying to breed, and have reached Australia'sLord Howe Island on a number of occasions. At the beginning of the 20th century, this bunting was seen as a serious agricultural pest in its adopted country.[20]
Populations of yellowhammer have also been introduced to theFalkland Islands and South Africa.[21]
The yellowhammer is a bird of dry, open country, preferably with a range of vegetation types and some trees from which to sing. It is absent from urban areas, forests, and wetlands. Probably originally found at forest edges and large clearing, it has benefited from traditional agriculture, which created extensive open areas with hedges and clumps of trees.[9]
Breeding normally starts in early May, but often in April in the south of the range. Yellowhammers aremonogamous and breed when aged one year. The males establish territories along hedges or woodland fringes and sing from a tree or bush, often continuing well into July or August. The male displays to the female by raising his wings and running towards her.[9] The nest is built by the female on or near the ground, and is typically well hidden in tussocks, against a bank or low in a bush. It is constructed from nearby plant material, such as leaves, dry grass, and stalks, and is lined with fine grasses and sometimes animal hair.[10] It is 11.5–13 cm (4.5–5.1 in) across with a cup 4–4.5 cm (1.6–1.8 in) deep.[7]
Theclutch is usually three to five whitish eggs, typically patterned with a network of fine, dark lines. The eggs average 21 mm × 16 mm (0.83 in × 0.63 in) in size and weigh 2.9 g (0.10 oz), of which 6% is shell.[22] The female incubates the eggs for 12–14 days to hatching, and broods thealtricial, downy chicks until theyfledge 11–13 days later. Both adults feed the chick in the nest and two or three broods are raised each year.[10][22]
The adult annual survival rate in the UK is around 54%, and that for juveniles in their first year is 53%. The typical lifespan is three years,[22] although records from Great Britain and Germany indicate birds surviving more than 13 years.[23]
Foraging is mainly on the ground, and the bird's diet consists mainly of seeds. Oily seeds, such as those ofbrassicas, are ignored in favour of more starchy items. Typical food plants includecommon nettle,docks,common knotgrass,fat hen,common chickweed, andyarrow. Grasses are also important, particularlycereals, and grain makes up a significant part of the food consumed in autumn and winter, wheat and oats being preferred to barley. When not breeding, yellowhammers forage in flocks that can occasionally number hundreds of birds, and oftencontain other buntings andfinches.[7]
The yellowhammer addsinvertebrates to its diet in the breeding season, particularly as food for its growing chicks. A wide range of species is taken, includingspringtails,grasshoppers,flies,beetles,caterpillars,earthworms,spiders, andsnails.[7] During the first few days, chicks are exclusively fed invertebrate prey, but from day three they are also fed cereal grains, which the chicks can digest efficiently. This is thought to be intentional by the parents to allow the nestlings to adjust their physiology to eating seed.[24]
Thirteen species offleas in the generaCeratophyllus andDasypsyllus have been found on this bunting,[31] and internal parasites includeAscaridia galli.[32] The yellowhammer may carryhaematozoan blood parasites such asHaemoproteus coatneyi. Males with high parasite levels produced fewer offspring (there is no such effect for females), and tend to be less brightly coloured. The striking plumage of the male may therefore have arisen as a signal of fitness to breed.[33] Yellowhammers infected withHaemoproteus may have lower winter survival rates due to a tendency to having shorter wings.[34]
TheInternational Union for Conservation of Nature estimates the European population of the yellowhammer to be from 54–93 million individuals, suggesting a Eurasian total of 73–186 million birds. Although the population appears to be in a decline, the decrease is not rapid enough to trigger their vulnerability criteria. The large numbers and huge breeding range of about 12.9 million km2 (5 million sq mi),[35] mean that this bunting is classified by the IUCN as being ofleast concern.[1]
Populations have declined in recent decades in western Europe, including the British Isles, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, and Italy.[7] The yellowhammer is a red-list (severely declining) species in Ireland and the UK.[22][36] In 2016 the species went extinct on theIsle of Man.[37] In eastern Europe, numbers appear to be stable, although the trend in Russia is unknown. Changes to agricultural practices are thought to be responsible for reduced breeding densities.[7] The introduced population in New Zealand has been very successful, with breeding densities much higher than in the UK.[20][38]
John Clare wrote two poems about the yellowhammer.
The yellowhammer is a conspicuous, vocal, and formerly common country bird, and has attracted human interest. Yellowham Wood and Yellowham Hill, nearDorchester England, both derive their names from the bird.Robbie Burns' poem "The Yellow, Yellow Yorlin'" gets its title from a Scottish name for the yellowhammer, which is given an obvious sexual connotation: "I met a pretty maid, an' unto her I said,/ 'I wad fain fin' your yellow, yellow yorlin'.' "[39] More factual descriptions of the bird and its behaviour can be found in John Clare's "The Yellowhammer's Nest" and "The Yellowhammer", whose final lines read:[40][41]
In early spring, when winds blow chilly cold, The yellowhammer, trailing grass, will come To fix a place and choose an early home, With yellow breast and head of solid gold.
Enid Blyton helped to popularize the bird's song as "little bit of bread and no cheese" in books such asThe Ship of Adventure andFive Go Off in a Caravan, and wrote a poem called "The Yellow-hammer".[22][42]
An old legend links the yellowhammer to the devil. Its tongue was supposed to bear a drop of his blood, and the intricate pattern on the eggs was said to carry a concealed, possibly evil, message; these satanic associations sometimes led to the persecution of the bird. The unusual appearance of the eggs also led to the alternative names ofscribble lark orscribble jack.[39][49]
^Winkler, David W.; Billerman, Shawn M.; Lovette, Irby J."Emberizidae".Birds of the World. Cornell Lab of Ornithology.Archived from the original on 3 October 2023. Retrieved6 September 2022.(subscription required)
^abcdefghiHoyo, Josep del; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi; Christie, David A (eds.)."Yellowhammer".Birds of the World. Cornell Lab of Ornithology.doi:10.2173/bow.yellow2.01.S2CID216356773.Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved6 September 2022.(subscription required)
^Diblíková, Lucie; Pipek, Pavel; Petrusek, Adam; Svoboda, Jiří; Bílková, Jana; Vermouzek, Zdeněk; Procházka, Petr; Petrusková, Tereza (2019). "Detailed large-scale mapping of geographical variation of YellowhammerEmberiza citrinella song dialects in a citizen science project".Ibis.161 (2):401–414.doi:10.1111/ibi.12621.ISSN1474-919X.S2CID89795507.
^Caro, Samuel P; Keulen, Christine; Poncin, Pascal (2009). "Song repertoires in a Western European population of YellowhammersEmberiza citrinella".Acta Ornithologica.44 (1):9–16.doi:10.3161/000164509x464830.S2CID84361143.
^Baker, Myron Charles; Bjerke, Tore K; Lampe, Helene U; Espmark, Yngve O (1987). "Sexual response of female Yellowhammers to differences in regional song dialects and repertoire sizes".Animal Behaviour.35 (2):395–401.doi:10.1016/S0003-3472(87)80263-4.S2CID53147836.
^Orłowski, G.; Wuczyński, A.; Karg, J.; Grzesiak, W. (2017). "The significance of seed food in chick development re-evaluated by tracking day-to-day dietary variation in the nestlings of a granivorous passerine".Ibis.159 (1):124–138.doi:10.1111/ibi.12410.S2CID4488345.
^Bellamy, David (2022). Written at Isle of Man. "Extinct: the Loss of the YellowhammerEmberiza citrinella in the Isle of Man".Peregrine.13. Douglas: Manx Ornithological Society:190–211.
^Komdeur, Jan; Hammers, Martin "Failed introductions: finches from outside Australia" in Prins & Gordon (2014) p. 330.
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