Country diary: Return of the butterscotch humbugs

Prawle Point, Devon: In front of me is a small, delightful flock of cirl buntings. This is what a conservation success story looks likeUp ahead, beneath dried splinters of cut kale, the ground appears to shift. A ripple of small birds is working its way through the stubble in the morning sun, foraging on fallen seed. Occasionally they raise their heads, striped like humbugs, the colour of caramel or butterscotch, and I count quickly, scarcely able to believe my luck.I have come to this sloping stretch of farmland on the south Devon coast in the hope of spotting just one of these rare sparrow-sized birds. Instead, I have stumbled across a chattering flock numbering upwards of a dozen. Continue reading...