Reed Bunting

Emberiza schoeniclus · Songbirds

Reed Bunting in hawthorn

Stodmarsh, 2 May 2026

A male Reed Bunting working through flowering hawthorn at Stodmarsh in May, a world away from the open reedbed the name suggests. Reed buntings breed in the reeds and wet margins of the marsh, but they forage well beyond them once the season brings on a wider range of insects and seeds, and hawthorn in early May is full of both.

The black head, white collar and white moustache stripe make this a male in full breeding plumage. The female is a streaky brown bird that takes a second look to separate from a sparrow.

Reed Bunting, singing

Stodmarsh, 2 May 2026

A male Reed Bunting in full breeding plumage, perched at the very tip of a dead reed stem at Stodmarsh with its bill open mid-song. Reed buntings are birds of reedbed and wet margin across Europe and Asia, and the Stour marshes are prime breeding ground.

Solid black head and throat, a crisp white collar and moustache. A bare, exposed perch like this one is exactly where a male goes to be heard and seen over the reeds around him, and the song is a short, unhurried few notes that he repeats all morning.