..The Reed Bunting..
The Reed Bunting as its name suggests is a bird that favours reed beds and Corkaghs lakes (established in 2000) and wetlands area provide it with an ideal habitat. There are generally a pair to be found around the blue bridge lake which is where most of my images were taken.
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| Male on Bullrushes near blue bridge |
In Spring and Summer the Reed Bunting feeds mostly on the insects that can be found in the Bullrushes and near the water of the lakes. In winter their diet is mostly seed based and they will often leave the margins of the lake to forage for food further afield. I have seen them in the hedgerow near the Dog Run in winter for instance.
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| Male with summer plumage |
The male Reed Bunting has a heavily streaked brown body with a black head and throat during the summer, in fact he might be confused with a male Sparrow except for his white collar and breast. In winter he loses much of his black colouring. The female is has chocolate brown streaky feathers throughout. Both have distinctive white markings.
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| Female with brown plumage and white markings on face. |
Reed Buntings are territorial during the breeding season but may join flocks to find food in winter.
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| Male in winter plumage |
They build their nest either on or just above ground level in the cover of reeds or dense tussocks of grass. Even though the nest is well hidden it is still very vulnerable to predators and so the pair will raise up to three broods in a season.
When the young leave the nest they are unable to fly and must remain hidden amongst the reeds and grass for several days. Because of the risks to the young and to increase the chances of at least some of the young surviving the adults split the fledgelings in to two groups with a parent watching and feeding each.
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| Male in late winter, his plumage is beginning to change, note his cap is nearly black. |
Once they are old enough the juvenile Reed Buntings will leave their parents territory to forage for their own food before joining up with a flock come winter.
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| Female at the blue bridge |
