Finches · Perching birds
Common Chaffinch
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Fringilla coelebs
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Voice
Song
Call
Call
How to recognize it
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About 14.5 cm long
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In spring, adult male: blue-grey cap and rust-red breast; female duller, grey-brown
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Two white bars on each wing in both sexes
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Male sings from an exposed perch
About the species
In spring, the male has a blue-grey cap and rust-red chest, set against a brown back and olive-green rump. Two white bars cross his dark wings, with white at the tail edges. The female is more muted, grey-brown above and pale below, but keeps the same bright wing bars. The male’s colors become more vivid as the pale tips of his feathers wear away through winter.
A male sings from an exposed perch, stringing thin whistles into a rolling trill that ends with a short, sharp note. Between songs, listen for a quick "chink." Outside the breeding season, they gather in loose flocks and pick seeds from the ground.
Look for them in woods, gardens, and parks, including green spaces near homes. During the breeding season, they forage in trees for caterpillars and other invertebrates; at other times, they take seeds and plant matter from the ground. Those from colder northern regions move south for winter, while many in milder areas stay year-round.
Did you know?
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Crimean subspecies of chaffinch cracks apples
The Crimean subspecies of chaffinch has grown a beak powerful enough to crack open ripe apples, pears and hawthorn fruits to extract the seeds — something the nominate subspecies cannot do.
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3,300 trills a day
An unmated male chaffinch repeats his short song every 7–15 seconds all day long — about 360 times an hour and more than 3,300 trills over a 12-hour day, trying to attract a female.
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Eleven to 183 feedings
The chaffinch's feeding tempo speeds up 17-fold in nine days: from 11 insect deliveries on the day of hatching to 183 by the time the brood is nine days old.
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Where to find
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In city parks with trees, listen for a male singing from an exposed branch.
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During the breeding season, watch the branches in parks for chaffinches searching for insects to feed their young.
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Outside the breeding season, look across open ground beyond the city for flocks of Common Chaffinches picking up seeds.
