# Yellowhammer (*Emberiza citrinella*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/yellowhammer  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella), also called the Eurasian yellow bunting, is a bird in the songbirds and other perching birds subgroup, belonging to the order Passeriformes and the family Emberizidae. It is a small bird with an adult body mass of 29.7 g, up to 31.45 g, and a wingspan of 26 cm. The yellowhammer is a terrestrial granivore of shrubland habitats and is partially migratory. It lays 3.9 eggs per clutch with 2.5 clutches per year, incubates eggs for 13 days, and is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 29.7 g – 31.5 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 26 cm |
| Lifespan | 13 years |
| Diet | Granivore |
| Main food | seeds |
| Habitat | shrubland |
| Egg incubation | 13 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 3.9 |
| Age at maturity | 12 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 2.5 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Passeriformes
- family: Emberizidae
- genus: Emberiza
- species: *Emberiza citrinella* Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms: *Emberiza flava*, *Emberiza septentrionalis*, *Emberiza sylvestris*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the yellowhammer?

The yellowhammer is a small bird in the songbirds and other perching birds subgroup, in the family Emberizidae.

### Who named the yellowhammer and when?

The yellowhammer, Emberiza citrinella, was named by Linnaeus, 1758.

### How heavy is a yellowhammer?

An adult Yellowhammer weighs 29.7 g, with values up to 31.45 g reported. Its wingspan is 26 cm.

### What does the yellowhammer eat?

The yellowhammer is a granivore, placing it at the herbivore trophic level.

### What habitat does the yellowhammer live in?

The yellowhammer lives in shrubland and forages as a terrestrial bird.

### Is the yellowhammer endangered?

No. The yellowhammer is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a yellowhammer live?

The yellowhammer has a lifespan of 13 years, with values up to 13.25 years reported.

### How many eggs does a yellowhammer lay?

The yellowhammer lays 3.9 eggs per clutch and has 2.5 clutches per year, with an incubation period of 13 days.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/yellowhammer