Page 382 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

FINCHES
Order Passeriformes Family Fringillidae Species Fringilla coelebs
Chaffinch head with
ochre-brown
smudges
blue-grey
head and
bill dark patch in
greenish two white front of eye
rump wingbars brown
back
dark wings
with yellowish
feather edges
MALE (WINTER)
MALE brownish pink
(SUMMER) cheeks and throat
IN FLIGHT
greyish olive from
white patch head to back
duller plumage
than male’s
pink underside, but similar
whiter on belly white bars
and under tail
dark tail
with broad
white sides
MALE
(SUMMER)
FEMALE
ne of Europe’s most pale greyish
Oabundant birds, the Chaffinch underside
forms an obvious species pair with the Brambling.The two often
feed together outside the breeding season; their general shape,
pattern, and behaviour are very similar. Chaffinches breed in separate
territories, proclaimed by males singing loudly from prominent FLIGHT: direct, quite quick, undulating; bursts of
perches, but they are social birds at other times.They are often very wingbeats between glides with wings closed.
tame, coming for food in car parks and picnic sites SINGING MALE
and frequently visiting gardens. The cheerful, rattling, and far-
VOICE Flight call short, single, soft chup, frequent carrying song of the Chaffinch is
loud pink! in spring, loud hweet, jilip; song bright, an early sign of spring.
cheery, rattled phrase with a flourish, chi-chip-chip,
chirichirchiri cheeip-tcheweeoo.
NESTING Neat, perfectly camouflaged cup of grass,
leaves, moss, cobweb, and lichen, against trunk of
tree or bush; 4 or 5 eggs; 1 brood;April–May.
FEEDING Eats insects in summer, mostly
caterpillars from foliage; otherwise takes seeds,
shoots, and berries; visits bird-tables for seed
mixtures, especially sunflower seeds.
SIMILAR SPECIES OCCURRENCE
Summer visitor in N and E Europe;
BRAMBLING 2winter, BULLFINCH 3 HOUSE SPARROW 2 all year in W and S (absent from
similar to 2; similar to 3 similar to 2; Iceland); breeds in woods
white rump; summer; see p.375
see p.381 white rump; thick black (extensive pine forest or conifer
see p.390 plantations to deciduous stands),
orange bill and
upper black cap parks, and gardens. Under beeches,
wingbar in fields, and gardens in winter.
no white Seen in the UK
on tail J F M A M JJ A S O N D
Length 14.5cm (5 3 ⁄4in) Wingspan 25–28cm (10–11in) Weight 19–23g ( 11 ⁄16 – 13 ⁄16oz)
Social Flocks Lifespan 2–5 years Status Secure
380