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Male Crimson-winged Finch in breeding plumage have black crown; scaly pattern on forehead, which formed by narrow buffy edges of feathers. Mantle, nape, head-flanks, throat and body-flanks are brown-buff. Mantle has clear pattern of dark-brown triangle patches, but on body-flanks the feathers have only narrow shaft-streaks. On cheeks and over eyes there are buffy feather with intensive crimson tinge. Underparts are white pinkish tinged. Flight feathers are black with broad fluffed crimson-pink borders of outer webs, which formed large reddish patch on furled wing. Central tail feathers are black with narrow white or white-pink borders of webs and with broad white terminal edges; outer pair is white with dark shaft; two next pairs have large black terminal spots. Uppertail is pale-buff or off-white pink-tinged. On males having brighter pink-red tones the brownish-buff tone is darker, almost chestnut. Legs are from pale-horn-color to black. Eyes are dark-brown, bill is plain yellow-horn or with blackish tip of upper mandible. In autumn plumage all head and most of underparts are plain buff-brownish, slightly spotted; red-pinkish tones are paler. Female is distinguished from male by browner color of mantle and by plain buffy underparts. Crown not black, but with dark-brown broad washed streaks. Reddish tones on wing are easy expressed and lack on uppertail. Flight and tail feathers are dark-brown not black. Juveniles in first plumage are brownish without streaks. Its flight and tail feathers are dark-brown with broad buff terminal edges. On females bases of secondaries and borders of outer webs are white or slightly pink, on males – bright-pink. Sizes: males – wing 95-108, tail 55-70, tarsus 18.2-22.5, bill 11.0-14.6; females – wing 91-103, tail 53-64, tarsus 18.0-22.5, bill 10.8-13.3 mm. Weight: males 32.7-47.7, females 32.4-45.7 gr.

Biology

Crimson-winged Finch is rare or in places accidental breeding migrant. It inhabits dry well-heat stony slopes with rocks; from foothills up to alpine meadow, in Talasskiy Alatau up to 2800-3000 m. In spring it arrives in end February - early March, but in cold spring at mid-April only. Nest is built on ground under stone or grass; nest is from dry grass and rootlets and is lined with thin grass and bast of grass stems; Female only constructs nest (male escort her). Clutches of 4-5 eggs is founded from May to early July. Only female incubates for 12-13 days, male feed her. Food for juveniles Crimson-winged Finch gathers in under-tongue sack, such as Leucosticte Finches do it. Both parents feed juveniles, which fledge at 16-17 days old. Broods dependent from parents recorded up to mid-August. One brood per season, repeated breeding after losing of first nest is possible. First time after breeding Crimson-winged Finches disperse on mountain slopes in flocks of 10-30, sometimes of 50-100 birds. On Chokpak Pass dispersing birds observed from mid-August. Autumn migration mainly in September - October, latest flocks observed near Dzhabagly village at 27 November 1964 and 1 December 1973.

References

"Птицы Казахстана" том 5. "Наука". Алма-Ата, 1974. Э.И.Гаврилов. "Фауна и распространение птиц Казахстана". Алматы, 1999. Gavrilov E. I., Gavrilov A. E. "The Birds of Kazakhstan". Almaty, 2005.