Common rosefinch

Description

Dimensions : Measure 13-15 cm in length,for 19-23 g of weight.Appearance : These are sturdy but slender-looking little birds,with large heads,large eyes,sturdy and conical beak,elongated eli,and a slightly forked tip tail.The scarlet bullfinch has evident sexual dimorphism : the male,in fact,has a head,chest and a crimson red tail (except the area from the ear to the base of the beak,which forms a brown mask),while the chest and the abdomen are colored white-pinkish,the undertail is white,the back is reddish-brown and wings and tail are blackish,with red-striped coverts.The extension of the red color varies according to the subspecies,covering only the head and chest (with abdomen and white flanks) or the entire ventral area,or extending also to the back: in any case,outside the reproductive period this coloration results more dull.The females,on the other hand,present a more sober and mimetic coloring,dominated by shades of grayish-brown on the whole body,darker dorsally and lighter and tending towards mustard-colored ventrally,while wings and tail are blackish,the former with two wingbars grayish-white.In both sexes,beak and legs are blackish,while the eyes are dark brown.