White-winged Snowfinch

Snow Finch ( Montifringilla nivalis) in a finish dress in summer

The snow finch ( Montifringilla nivalis), or even snow Sperling, is a species of bird in the family of sparrows ( Passeridae ). He lives only in high alpine, rocky areas.

Description

The snow Fink reaches a length from 16.5 to 19 centimeters, which is significantly larger than the house sparrow. The wings are white, only the primaries and the Daumenfittich are black. The tail is white with a thin black terminal band, only the innermost two tail feathers are black. This creates a high contrast, eye-catching flight image that resembles that of the snow bunting. The legs and the iris are black. The top is earth brown matte, the hull is on the underside of solid white. The head is gray. In summer, the beak and throat are black. In winter, the dark throat patch is obscured by bright spring seams. The beak is off-white in winter. Females are slightly paler in color than the males.

Voice

The snow finch has a varied repertoire of vocalizations. It calls, among other things rough " zjiiih " wailing - meowing " mjäh " short "ti ti Zurich " and when excited often similar to the crested tit rolling " tir'r'r'r ", or chattering " tjett - tjett - tjett - tjett ". The singing is variable, hesitating and stumbling. It contains recurring, dry trill, sometimes chirping Pre- Sang.

Habitat and Distribution

The snow Fink is a sedentary bird and comes in rocky mountain areas at altitudes 1900-3100 meters in front. He remains in the winter at these heights and comes only exceptionally up to 1000 meters down. Its distribution extends from the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Italian region of Abruzzo and the Balkans to Greece, the eastern Turkey and the Caucasus. The subspecies nivalis Montifringilla henrici who is also regarded as a distinct species, is found in China.

Lifestyle and food

The snow finch feeds mainly on insects and seeds. In winter sports areas he is very tame and often comes close to the people to pick crumbs.

Reproduction

The nest is built in crevices or rodent burrows. The nest consists of four to five eggs, the incubation period is about two weeks. Both parents take care of the rearing of the young. There can be up to two broods per year.