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Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.)
Aves, Passeriformes, Fringillidae .

Bullfinch

Description, Biology, Life Cycle, Damage, Common Names, Images

[R]Description
- Adult: 16-18 cm long; 28 cm wingspan; skullcap, wings and tail black; rump white; beak large and black; male: underside of body red or bright pink, upper side grey-blue (*) ; female: underside of body pink-purplish, back grey-brown (*) .
- Egg: pale blue and mottled grey, brown and black.
- Nest: built at a low height (1-2 m) in a hedge or a young conifer (*) .

[R]Biology
- The bullfinch is common in mountain forests (conifer and mixed forests), parks, groves and gardens (*) .
- Lowland bullfinches are sedentary while mountain bullfinches may descend to the valleys to spend the winter. Behaviour is set by food resources between September and April. This species is rarely to be found in large numbers. Breeding occurs in wooded places (forests, orchards, gardens).
- Bullfinches are mainly vegetable-eating, feeding on seeds of wild herbaceous plants, maple (Acer), hornbeam (Carpinus), alder (Alnus), and buds of fruit trees.

[R]Life Cycle
- Eggs (4-5) are laid in May and others often during the summer.

[R]Damage
- Bullfinches cause damage by removing buds, attacking both fruit trees (apple, pear, plum) and fruit bushes (currant, black currant).

[R]Common Names
DE: Gimpel, Dompfaff ES: Camachuelo FR: Bouvreuil pivoine IT: Ciuffolotto PT: Dom-fafe GB: Bullfinch

[R] Images

  1. Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.) (ACTA)
    Male adult
  2. Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.) (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Damage to currant Flower buds were hollowed out.
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  3. Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.) (ACTA)
    Female adult
  4. Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.) (Midoux E. / ONC)
    Nest
  5. Pyrrhula pyrrhula (L.) (Coatmeur J. & P. Faucheux / SPHN)
    Perched bird

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