ORTOLAN

also called Ortolan Bunting (Emberiza hortulana), Eurasian garden and field bird of the subfamily Emberizinae, family Fringillidae. It grows fat in autumn, when large flocks gather for migration to northern Africa and the Middle East, and at that season it is a table delicacy. The bird is 16 centimetres (6 1/2 inches) long, with streaked brown back, grayish head and breast, pale yellow throat, and pinkish belly. Its song resembles that of the related yellowhammer (E. citrinella) but is slower, more varied, and usually of six or seven clear notes followed by an occasional flourish. The nest is built on or near the ground and may contain four or five glossy greenish-white eggs, variously marked with purple and brown.