Emberiza

Emberiza 

a genus of birds of the family Emberizidae of the order Passeriformes. The body length is 12.5–20 cm. Midway up the bill, there is a small gap between the upper and lower mandibles. The tail is relatively long, with the outer feathers often white at the tip. Predominant colors are chestnut, brown, and sometimes yellow.

The genus comprises 39 species, which are distributed in Europe, Asia, and Africa. In the USSR there are 27 species, including the yellowhammer (E. citrinella), the pine bunting (E. leucocephala), the reed bunting (E. schoeniclus), the ortolan bunting (E. hortulana), the black-headed bunting (E. melanocephala), the corn bunting (E. calandra), and the yellow-breasted bunting (E. aureola). The Emberiza inhabit all zones from the shrub tundra to the deserts and are found in mountains up to elevations of about 3,600 m. Some species are sedentary, while others migrate for the winter or descend from the mountains into the valleys. The birds build open nests on the ground or on low bushes. There are three to six eggs per clutch. The Emberiza feed on seeds and, in the summer, on insects, which they also use for feeding the nestlings.