The scientific name includes the Latin word ‘pyrrhula’ derived from the Greek meaning ‘flame-coloured bird’. Finches are typically thick-billed, but bullfinches especially so. These heavily-built birds are plump and quite bull-necked, and both male and female have stout grey-black bills, black wings, nape, crown, and chin, with white rump, under-tail coverts and wing-bar. These white markings, particularly the rump, are very striking when they fly. The other characteristic of the bullfinch is... Read this story
