A Mural of Buntings
By Matt Sewell.

There are many different kinds of bunting around the world and they are all as cute as a baby turtle birthday party. The snow buntings, as their name suggests, are northerners of the Arctic tundra, who seek out the cold highlands from North America to Scandinavia, Russia to Central Asia. In the UK they can only be found in the badlands of Scotland or on the eastern shores during wintertime, after migrating over the North Sea from Norway. In Alaska, these buntings are known as Snowflakes, arriving as a dazzling blizzard. You can be snow-blinded by their cuteness: yes, they really are that pretty! The mural description comes from this prettiness and the colours of the buntings as they move together in large flocks, a flurry of pastel tones and stark highlights, brightening up any old frosty field and never once failing to put a smile on your frostbitten face.

From Matt’s new book, A Charm of Goldfinches and Other Collective Nouns. Signed copies can be bought in the Caught by the River shop, priced £12.
Matt Sewell on Caught by the River / on Twitter