Common Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebs
The species name coelebs means “bachelor”: Carl Linnaeus noticed in Sweden that mainly males remain in winter while many females migrate south. Its rattling song ending in a flourish is one of the best-known sounds of spring in the woods.
- Group
- Songbirds
- Photos
- 2
- Taken
- 2021–2022
Profile: Common Chaffinch
- Family
- Finches (Fringillidae)
- Size
- approx. 14–16 cm
- Wingspan
- approx. 24.5–28.5 cm
- Weight
- approx. 18–29 g
- Habitat
- Almost all types of woodland as well as parks, cemeteries and gardens with trees – one of the commonest birds in Central Europe.
- Diet
- Mainly seeds, especially beechnuts, plus berries, insects and spiders; nestlings are fed mostly on caterpillars and insect larvae.
- When to see
- Resident and partial migrant: seen all year, joined in winter by birds from northern Europe, while some local birds move south-west.
Learn more: Wikipedia · NABU (German)