In the same way that Thomas Hardy’s lament of a bleak winter in his poem ‘The Darkling Thrush’ was interrupted by the joyful song of a solitary Thrush, when I catch sight of a Yellowhammer, it brings a much appreciated splash of colour into an otherwise dismal, grey and wet January day.
At this time of year, when I’m out walking in the fields, large flocks of Yellowhammers, typically with other members of the bunting family, such as Reed bunting, and finches such as Linnets flit between the field and hedgerows foraging. The distinctive bright yellow head and under-carriage of the male in particular, can be seen clearly perching on top of a hedgerow, with the female presenting a more subtle image through the binoculars, and their song is heard wafting on the breeze (click below to listen).
Yellowhammers are a species indicative of open farmland. Last winter, the weedy cereal stubbles were a good source of food for these seed-eating wintering flocks, whilst this winter, the 24 metre alleys of winter bird food cover, cultivated fallow and newly sown floristic areas between our agro-forestry tree rows are key foraging habitats.
Whilst browsing through seed catalogues and websites during late winter, I always look for seed producing mixes that will support a wide range of local bird species, but not need re-establishing each year. Instead I go for mixes of annual, biannual and perennial species which provide longevity, diversity and a varied structure, and if managed rotationally, mean there is a supply of seed and good quality habitat available each winter.
Yellowhammers show a preference for cereals, and so we have included Spring Triticale, along with millets within the mixtures. The fallow, cultivated last spring, has produced an array of arable weeds, such as fat hen and knotgrass, which are another rich source of seed for Yellowhammers and other seed-eating birds.