Snow Bunting

Plectrophenax nivalis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Calcariidae — Longspurs, Snow Buntings

Snow Bunting, Plectrophenax nivalis, is a passerine in the Calcariidae family that breeds in North America and the Palearctic, and spends the nonbreeding season in the Mediterranean and the southern USA. It is a bird of the Arctic, with breeding sites spread across the far north of the northern hemisphere. Small outlying groups also occur on a few high mountain summits well south of the Arctic zone, including the Cairngorms, the Saint Elias Mountains and the Cape Breton Highlands. It is the most northerly recorded passerine in the world.

Order: Passeriformes
Family: Calcariidae — Longspurs, Snow Buntings
Breeding range: North America, Palearctic: n
Nonbreeding range: Mediterranean, s USA