FINCH

Phenology

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FRINGUELLO: Description

Il Finch belongs to the order Passeriformes, family Fringillidae, birds of reduced size but with particularly bright colors. The Finch it is about the size of a sparrow, has a body length of 14-16 cm. Characteristics of the species, present in both sexes, are the white bars present on the shoulders and on the wing (very evident when the bird is in flight) and the external coxswain also white. The sexes have different plumage. The male of the Finch it has the brightest colors: the chest is dark red, the head and the nape of the slate blue, the black forehead and the greenish rump (detail of distinction from the Peppola). The female of the Finch instead it has a gray-olive back, a light head and a yellowish chest. The flight is undulating and similar to that of the other Finches. Territorial in the reproductive period, in winter the Finch it is gregarious, forming groups of variable size, mixed with other species of the same family (especially brambles, greenfinches and siskins); the sexes often fly apart. Despite the singing of the Finch is well recognizable, the different sub-populations have "dialectal" variants.

FRINGUELLO: Habitat and diffusion area

Il Finch it builds a cup-shaped nest by weaving moss, feathers, blades of grass, and then covering it with lichens; places it on the bifurcations of the branches at medium high heights. It is a mainly forest species, present both in broad-leaved woods and in coniferous woods, pure or mixed, as long as they are not excessively dense; Densities greater than Finches however, they are observed in open and sunny conifer complexes. Nor does it disdain gardens and urban parks for nesting; in the cold season it is also encountered in the agricultural areas of the plains, in feeding activities, after having made commuting movements of several kilometers from the dormitories located on the edge or inside the woods. The Finch it mainly eats seeds or other foods of vegetable origin, especially during the cold season; in the reproductive period, on the other hand, a good percentage of the diet is made up of invertebrates. The Finch it nests all over Europe, up to the greater latitudes; in the north-eastern regions it is largely replaced by Brambling. The wintering area coincides almost exactly with the nesting area (Tucker & Heath, 1994). Partial migrant, the Finch it is ringed in large numbers; in this way an autumn route from north-east to south-west was ascertained, when the northern populations increase the sedentary contingents already present in southern and western Europe. In Italy the peak of the autumn migration of finch it occurs in October, while the spring is between February and April. The Finch it is sedentary and nesting, it is one of the most widespread and numerous birds on national soil; it nests throughout the territory, from sea level to 2000 m of altitude, with higher density values in the northern regions.

FRINGUELLO: Population size and trend

Il Finch it is well diffused and common, 83-240 million pairs nest in Europe, of which almost two thirds in Russia (Heath et al., 2000); with the exception of a slight decline of the Finnish fractions between the 70s and 90s, the populations are stable or locally increasing. In Italy the Finch about 1-2 million pairs reproduce. In the last 50 years, the northern breeding population appears to have expanded geographically, at the expense of Brambling. Migration flows through our country seem to affect a number of 100-280 million individuals (Bani et al., 1999).

FRINGUELLO: Conservation and management

Il Finch it has a favorable conservation status, but the global range appears concentrated only on the European continent. It does not appear to be under any threat.

Tags: finch.