Reed buntings are some of the most 'adulterous' birds on record. As a result, over half the chicks in a nest may not have been fathered by the female's mate. Feigning injury to lure potential predators away from their nests, which are built dangerously close to the ground albeit amongst dense vegetation, is one of the ways that parent birds protect their young. Reed buntings are wetland birds and widespread throughout central and northern Europe.