Emberiza nivalis; Print; The snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) is a passerine bird in the family Calcariidae. It is an Arctic specialist; with a circumpolar Arctic breeding range throughout the northern hemisphere. There are small isolated populations on a few high mountain tops south of the Arctic region; including the Cairngorms in central Scotland and the Saint Elias Mountains on the southern Alaska-Yukon border; and also Cape Breton Highlands. The snow bunting is the most northerly recorded passerine in the world.; 1809-1845