Scientific name: Carpodacus erythrinus (Pallas, 1770)
Bird group: Finches and Crossbills
Field characters. 14.5 cm. Male with red head, throat, breast and rump. Upperparts, wings and tail brown, often with two light wing bars, belly white. Tail forked. Thick dark conical bill and small dark eye. Has high-peaked crown. Female without red and with brown streaks on olive upperparts, head and breast. Juvenile like female, usually with two broad but ill-defined dull wing bars. First-year males don't have red and look like females. During breeding season often very secretive and difficult to find. Outside breeding season sometimes in flocks with other finches.
Voice. Calls 'seee' and 'wjèèè'. Song loud and clear 'wee tjoo witjoo'.
Distribution. Rather common summer visitor in north-eastern part of region, spreading westward.
Habitat. Dense willow- and other deciduous stands, and edges of woods, often near damp meadows, parks, etc.
Food. Mainly seeds, also insects in summer.