Hawfinch

Scientific name: Coccothraustes coccothraustes
Bird family: Finches
UK conservation status: Red
Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Hawfinch call

Key information

The hawfinch is the UK's largest finch and has a massive, powerful bill. Hawfinches are usually shy and difficult to see, but are getting harder to spot as their traditional breeding areas have declined in recent years. Numbers are hard to determine, however, as hawfinches are easily overlooked, especially in summer.

What they eat:

Seeds, buds and shoots.

Measurements:

Length:: 18cm

Wingspan:: 29-33cm

Weight:: 48-62g

Population:

UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.

UK breeding:: 500-1,000 pairs

UK wintering:: 10-15,000 birds

Identifying features:

Hawfinch

Feather colour: Black Blue Brown Cream/buff Grey Orange White

Leg colour: Brown Pink

Beak: Black Blue Brown Short Powerful Chunky

Natural habitats: Woodland Urban and suburban

Similar birds:

Waxwing

Where and when to see them

Hawfinches are now mostly restricted to England in the UK and have declined in many areas. Parts of western England near the Welsh Borders, the Home Counties and the south-east from Hampshire to Kent remain the most likely places to find them. They can occasionally be seen at RSPB nature reserves such as Nagshead, Gloucestershire and Blean Woods, Kent. Hawfinches may perch high in trees, but also feed on the ground and much more inconspicuously among the foliage.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.

Resident
Passage
Summer
Winter

You can see hawfinches all year round. They are usually more easily seen outside the breeding season when trees are leafless and hawfinches feed more regularly on the ground.

Hawfinch

Hawfinch call