Eurasian Bullfinch
Pyrrhula pyrrhula
Uncommon to fairly common, but unobtrusive and easily overlooked. Favors mixed woodland and edge, parks, gardens, orchards; also farmland with hedges and wooded patches. Usually found in pairs or small groups, feeding quietly and sluggishly on buds and fruits; does not usually visit feeders. Male handsome and distinctive, with black cap, bright pink cheeks and breast, blue-gray back; female colors muted, but note distinctive black cap, stubby black bill. White rump patch shows mainly in flight. Soft, plaintive whistled notes may draw attention.
Identification
The Eurasian bullfinch is a bulky bull-headed bird. The upper parts are grey; the flight feathers and short thick bill are black; as are the cap and face in adults (they are greyish-brown in juveniles), and the white rump and wing bars are striking in flight. The adult male has red underparts, but females and young birds have grey-buff underparts. It moults between July and October, but males do not have the duller autumn plumage that is typical of some other finches. The song of this unobtrusive bird contains fluted whistles, and is often described as 'mournful'. This Bullfinch's usual call is a quiet, low, melancholy whistled “peeu” or “pew.” The song is audible only at close range. It is a weak, scratchy warbling, alternating with soft whistles. Tamed bullfinches can be taught to repeat specific melodies.
Taxonomy
The Eurasian bullfinch was formally described in 1758 by Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Loxia pyrrhula. It is now placed in the genus Pyrrhula that was introduced in 1760 by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson. The Latin word pyrrhula comes from the Greek πυρρός (a flame-coloured bird, from πυρρός flame coloured, from πυρ fire : Pyrrha), a 'worm eating bird' that is mentioned by Aristotle. The Latin name pyrrhula for the Eurasian bullfinch had been used in 1555 by the Swiss naturalist Conrad Gesner in his Historiae animalium.<p>Ten subspecies are recognised:<p>The Azores bullfinch (P. murina), previously regarded as a subspecies of the Eurasian bullfinch, is now recognised as a separate species.
- Scientific name
- Pyrrhula pyrrhula
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Fringillidae
- Genus
- Pyrrhula
Range and habitat
This bird breeds across Europe and temperate Asia. It is mainly resident, but many northern birds migrate further south in the winter. Mixed woodland with some conifers is favoured for breeding, including parkland and gardens.
- Breeding range
- PAL : widespread; w, n Europe through n Russia and n Mongolia to Kamchatka and s through n, c Japan
- Non-breeding range
- to s Europe, c Asia, ne China, Korean Pen., and Kyushu (s Japan)
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
This species does not form large flocks outside the breeding season, and is usually seen as a pair or family group.<p>It builds its nest in a bush, (preferably more than four metres tall and wide), mature stands of scrub, or tree, laying four to seven pale blue eggs which are mottled with red-brown. It is peculiar among the Passeriformes for having spermatozoa with a rounded head and a blunt acrosome. This species produces two or three broods per season, from early May to mid-July. Nesting success increases progressively from April–May to June–July and August.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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