Eurasian Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)

Genus Pyrrhula contains, in total, eight species of bullfinches. All of them are robust birds with stocky body and strong beak and inhabit only eurasian continent. Three species (Orange Bullfinch, Red-headed Bullfinch and Brown Bullfinch) live in the foothills of the Himalayas. Azores Bullfinch and White-cheeked Bullfinch are endemites for Azores and Philippines, respectively. Except of Azore Bullfinch, all bullfinches are common species in their range. Eurasian Bullfinch inhabits the largest area of all of them – almost all the eurasian temperate zone with an overlap to the north. European populations of bullfinches do not migrate do not go further than to the Mediterranean zone, asian populations fly up to the Caspian Sea and do not go over the Himalayas.



Bullfinches are mostly vegetarian (i. e. seeds of plants and trees, flower buds of fruit trees), but during nesting, they consume various insects and feed their nestlings the same way. Their nest is usually built as the bowl in the branches of the trees.



Eurasian Bullfinch prefers mostly coniferous forests. In the Czech Republic, you will usually meet this species at higher altitudes. Most famous Eurasian Bullfinch is probably the specimen which sat on the crutch of the Grandfather Frosty in the famous russian fairy tale.