| Bullfinch - Pyrrhula pyrrhula - Family: Fringillidae
 Bullfinch - Pyrrhula pyrrhula© Mike Hammett/English NatureThe bullfinch is an extremely attractive bird whose numbers have fallen dramatically in recent decades. It is strongly built with a heavy, conical black bill. The male has deep pink underparts fading to white beneath the tail. It has a black cap, a dark grey back and black tail and wings, with a white bar on the latter. The female has a brown back and pinkish-buff underparts. The white rump of both sexes is very obvious in flight. Normally very shy and secretive, bullfinches are often only detected by their call, a soft, low and almost plaintive whistle. However, this species is one of a number which has joined more established guests at bird tables. Otherwise, they can be seen singly, in pairs or small groups in bushy areas including heaths, scrub, hedgerows and woodland edges. Bullfinches eat the buds of fruit trees in orchards and are therefore regarded as pests in fruit-growing areas. Agricultural intensification and the removal of hedgerows have been cited as the most likely factors leading to their decline. They nest in dense shrubs, sometimes in beech hedges, from late April to May, the nest being a simple twig platform with roots. FoodBullfinches feed on buds, fruit and seeds and the young are also fed on moths and their larvae. PlantsApple, Ash, Black currant, Blackthorn, Bramble, Broom, Crab apple, Dog rose, Elder, Field rose, Gooseberry, Hawthorn, Lady's teardrops, Midland hawthorn, Mountain currant, Pear PreyBugs, Moths, Sawflies PredatorsSparrowhawk |
