Snow bunting is beautiful, but a rare visitor

If the robin is the ‘Christmas bird’, then the snow bunting is the ‘white-Christmas’ one; its arrival here each winter is as irregular and unpredictable as snow during the festive season.

The glamorous little male is snowy-white, apart from black patterns on the wings and a brownish-yellow crown. The feathers turn creamy in the autumn and brown patches develop. The bill is stubby and the tail slightly forked. Females, as is usual in bunting species, are less brightly coloured.