Corn Bunting

I recently had the pleasure of completing a commissioned sketch of a Corn Bunting. Sketching a bird I knew nothing about was a challenge but knowing that this little guy would soon reside in a flat on a small Scottish island made the challenge most welcome.

I thank Kieren Jones, who is the new owner of the sketch, for this opportunity. Kieren is a conservationist working in an attempt to stop the Corn Bunting from disappearing from UK shores. Below are a few of his words about the bird in which he is so passionate.

“The Corn Bunting is one of the defining birds of European farm land, in fact the gaelic name for the Corn Bunting translates as "the fat bird of the barley". Unfortunately with the modernization of farming techniques there has been a dramatic shift towards silage bails. These are not only ugly to look at but unfortunately also leads to fields being cut before they are ripe and the seed ferments in the bails. Without this food source there has been an 83% drop in Corn Bunting numbers across the UK in the last 50 years.

With other countries following suit and modernizing farm techniques the research which the RSPB are undertaking becomes of the utmost importance.”

Thank you Kieren and all of those who devote their time and energy to causes that make a difference in our lives!