Common rosefinch

Carpodacus erythrinus
  • Where it lives:

  • Non native species

About

The common rosefinch is generally an autumn visitor to the UK, with most records in September and October. These are often young birds, with a fairly plain brown plumage. They are just passing through on their southward migration. Occasionally, the brightly coloured males are found singing in spring. There have even been sporadic records of nesting pairs, mainly in Scotland.

Common rosefinches usually breed in a wide range from Scandinavia and eastern Europe east to Kamchatka in Russia, though there are also scattered populations in central Europe. In autumn, they migrate to India, Southeast Asia and southwest China for the winter.

How to identify

About the size of a chaffinch, with a short, stocky beak and black eyes. Adult males have a bright scarlet head, breast and rump. However, most sightings are of young birds in autumn, which are much plainer. They have an olive-brown back with two obvious buffy-white bars on each wing.

Did you know?

It has also been known as the scarlet grosbeak and scarlet rosefinch.