Emberiza cia
Silhouette: L. Shyamal · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The rock bunting (Emberiza cia) is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name Emberiza is from Old German Embritz, a bunting. The specific cia is from a local Italian name for this bird, from zirlare, "to chirp".
It breeds in northwest Africa, southern Europe east to central Asia, and the Himalayas. It also breeds locally in central Europe. It is partially migratory, with northern populations wintering further south, mainly within the breeding range of the resident southern populations. It is a rare wanderer to western Europe.
The rock bunting breeds in open dry rocky mountainous areas. This bird is 16 cm in length. The breeding male has chestnut upperparts, unmarked deep buff underparts, and a pale grey head marked with black striping. The female rock bunting is a washed-out version of the male, with paler underparts, a grey-brown back and a less contrasted head. The juvenile is similar to the female, but with a streaked head.
There are four races differing mainly in the plumage shades, although the subspecies which breeds in Europe, Africa... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sierra Nevada National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Monfragüe National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 5 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Picos de Europa National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 8 | Ecrins National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 10 | Hemis National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 12 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 13 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 14 | Triglav National Park | 🇸🇮 Slovenia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Rock Bunting sighting in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, based on 288 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 69th most-seen of the 174 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–July and October–December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Rock Bunting in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January and August–September, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rock Bunting sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
11th of 14
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Rock Bunting sightings, Pyrénées National Park ranks 11th at about 10%. The best odds are in Sierra Nevada National Park (Spain, about 30%), Aigüestortes National Park (Spain, about 30%) and Monfragüe National Park (Spain, about 30%).
Same genus: Emberiza
The closest relatives of the Rock Bunting that you can see in Pyrénées National Park (genus Emberiza, Old World Buntings) are Yellowhammer (about 10%) and Cirl Bunting (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Rock Bunting is recorded against all the birds logged in Pyrénées National Park (288 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
