Eurasian Chaffinch

Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758

14–16 cmLength26 cmWingspan24 gWeight

The male has a blue-gray crown and rusty breast, with 2 conspicuous white bands on the wings.

Busiest months: March–May and October · Most records: United Kingdom, Spain, New Zealand

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

2 conspicuous white bands on the upperwing
Male of the nominate subspecies has a black forehead and blue-gray crown and nape
Male of the nominate subspecies has dark rusty sides of the head, throat and breast
Outer tail feathers on both sides have white wedge-shaped patches

Male, female and young

Female is plain, with a gray-brown head and upperparts and an olive rump; juvenile resembles the female.

Voice

Flight call is “tupe”; gives “chink” when separated or alarmed; male sings loudly from a conspicuous perch.

Where and when it's recorded

Eurasian Chaffinch has been recorded at 1,597 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 81 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Titchwell Marsh RSPB ReserveUnited Kingdom5,923 records
Amwell HMWT NRUnited Kingdom5,653 records
Minsmere RSPB ReserveUnited Kingdom5,205 records

More places

Txingudi – PlaiaundiSpain4,417 records
Urdaibai RB – bird center y laguna de OruetaSpain3,175 records
Rutland WaterUnited Kingdom3,123 records
Walthamstow WetlandsUnited Kingdom2,691 records
Otmoor RSPB ReserveUnited Kingdom2,418 records
Spurn Bird Observatory Recording AreaUnited Kingdom2,304 records
WWT London Wetland CentreUnited Kingdom2,243 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United Kingdom Spain New Zealand Portugal Germany France Czechia Switzerland

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The Eurasian chaffinch, common chaffinch, or simply the chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) is a common and widespread small passerine bird – in the finch family. The male bird has a strong voice and sings from exposed perches to attract a mate.

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