Alternative name: Pallas's Reed Bunting
- Emberiza pallasi
Identification
Length 12-13.5 cm, weight 10-20 g
Overall, a pale bunting similar to a small Reed Bunting but with a 'frosted' appearance. Bill small, conical, with a straight culmen.
Male
- Greyish-brown upperparts with black streaks; little or no brown tones
- White lower breast, belly, undertail coverts
- Black head, throat, upper breast
- White collar and moustachial stripe
- Black tail with white outer feathers
- Bill black in breeding season, paler pinkish in winter
Female
- Lacks black in plumage
- Slightly browner overall
- Bill pinkish
Similar species
Reed Bunting is very similar, but slightly larger and much darker and browner; also has a stouter bill with a slightly curved culmen and dark grey where Pallas's is pink (both have black bills in breeding males).
Distribution
Asia: breeds in northeast Asia in eastern Russia and Mongolia, winters in China, Japan (rare), Korea and Taiwan.
Taxonomy
Subspecies[1]
- E. p. polaris:
- E. p. pallasi:
- Mountains of central and eastern Asia; winters to western China
- E. p. lydiae:
- Mountains of central Mongolia
An additional subspecies minor is not recognised by all authorities[1].
Habitat
Breeds in wetland reed beds and beside lakes; along streams in taiga and tundra; winters in grasslands and marshlands. On passage found in more scrubby areas.
Behaviour
References
- Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- Avibase
- What Bird
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Pallas's Bunting. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 22 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Pallas%27s_Bunting
