Hawfinch
Coccothraustes coccothraustes
The Hawfinch's jaw muscles and massive bill can exert a crushing force equivalent to approximately 45 kg (100 lbs), which is easily enough to shatter a rock-hard cherry stone.
- Scientific name
- Coccothraustes coccothraustes
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Fringillidae › Coccothraustes
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Deciduous and mixed forests, mature parks, and orchards with large, seed-bearing trees like beech, hornbeam, and cherry.
- Diet
- Hard seeds, especially cherry stones, plum stones, beechmast, and hornbeam seeds, supplemented with caterpillars and insects in spring.
- Range
- Europe, North Africa, Temperate Asia, Japan
- Size
- Length: 16.5-18 cm (6.5-7 inches); Wingspan: 29-33 cm (11-13 inches); Weight: 46-57 grams.
- Lifespan
- Typically 3 to 5 years in the wild, though some individuals have lived up to 12 years.
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat loss through the removal of mature deciduous woodlands, fragmentation of breeding territories, and loss of ancient orchards.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless. Hawfinches are shy, canopy-dwelling birds and highly unlikely to approach humans. Observe them quietly from a distance using binoculars. If handling an injured bird, wear thick gloves; their massive bills can exert a crushing force of over 100 pounds per square inch and deliver a very painful pinch.
The hawfinch ( Coccothraustes coccothraustes ) is a passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. Its closest living relatives are the evening grosbeak ( Hesperiphona vespertinus ) from North America and the hooded grosbeak ( Hesperiphona abeillei ) from Central America especially Mexico.
Photo: egorbirder, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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