Pine Grosbeak

Pine Grosbeak, male

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Pine Grosbeak, female

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

One of the larger members of its family, the Pine Grosbeak is a bird of the boreal forests, found across northern Eurasia and North America, and south into the mountains of western Canada and the United States. A large, unwary finch, it makes periodic winter irruptions into southern Canada and northern United States. It is the largest and rarest of the "winter finches."

Description

• Large finch; medium-sized songbird.
• Plump, heavy-chested.
• Dark wings with two white wingbars.
• Large stubby curved bill.
• Male red.

• Size: 20-25 cm (8-10 in)
• Wingspan: 33 cm (13 in)

Sex Differences

Sexually dimorphic: Male with rosy-red head, chest and back, rest gray; females with yellow-olive where male has red.

Sound

Song is a sequence of clear, warbling, flute-like notes. Flight calls vary geographically, but can sound like "tee-tee-tew," resembling calls of Greater Yellowlegs.

Conservation Status

Status largely unknown because of difficulty of assessing populations.

Other Names

Durbec des sapins (French)
Camachuelo picogrueso (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The tameness and slow-moving behavior of the Pine Grosbeak gave rise to local name in Newfoundland of "mope."

• Winter flocks may stay near a tree with abundant fruit until all of it is consumed.

• Winter irruptions are infrequent and irregular. To see an illustration of the invasion of the winter 1997-98, based on data gathered through BirdSource's Winter Finch Survey, click here.

• A breeding adult Pine Grosbeak develops pouches in the floor of its mouth for carrying food to its young.

• During most of the year, 99% of diet is vegetable matter, especially buds, seeds, and fruits of spruce, pine, juniper, elm, maple, mountain ash, apple, and crabapple. It feeds insects and spiders to its young, though, often mixed with plant foods. It drinks water or eats snow daily.

Sources used to construct this page:

1.) Adkisson, C. S. 1999. Pine Grosbeak (Pinicola enucleator). in The Birds of North America, No. 456 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 2.) Pyle, P. 1997. Identification Guide to North American Birds. Part I. Columbidae to Ploceidae. Slate Creek Press, Bolinas, CA.