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Birdman Mel's Backyard Tips
Overview
Red Crossbill: Medium finch with red-orange body, brighter red rump, and dark brown wings. Bill is dark and crossed at tip. The tail is notched. Legs and feet are gray-black. Eats seeds, insects and caterpillars. Swift bounding flight, alternates rapid wing beats with wings pulled briefly to sides.
Range and Habitat
Red Crossbill: Breeds from southern Alaska, Manitoba, Quebec, and Newfoundland, south in the west to northern Nicaragua, and in eastern U.S. to Wisconsin and North Carolina (in mountains). Spends winters irregularly south to the Gulf Coast; also in Eurasia. Preferred habitats include coniferous forests; visits ornamental evergreens in winter.
Topo Map:
Perching-like Body
Listen to Call
Voice Text
"chipa-chipa-chipa, chee-chee-chee-chee", "kip-kip-kip"
Interesting Facts
The Red Crossbill is so dependent upon conifer seeds it even feeds them to its young. It can breed any time it finds a sufficiently large cone crop, even in the depths of winter.
They show a great deal of variation in bill shape and voice, and may in fact be composed of several different species.
Eight different flight call types have been described, and birds giving each type have slightly differently shaped bills.
A group of crossbills are collectively known as a "crookedness" and a "warp" of crossbills.
Bird Term Glossary
Author
Gary Owen Dick
Artist
Kavita Jhunjhunwala
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