Chough Bird Information & Facts

Britain, France, Switzerland, Italy, Sicily, Spain and the Alps are the home of the chough.

Chough-Bird-information-and-facts

Length: 38 cm. The male and female have like plumage.
Voice: A jackdaw. like ‘kyaw’, a characteristic ‘tchuff’ and a gull- like ‘kwuk-uk-uk’ call.
Size of Egg: 34.3—42.0 X 21.5—29.5 mm.

Chough Bird Inhabit

This bird with its brightly coloured bill may be seen in large numbers on coastal cliffs or high in the mountains, generally at elevations of about 1500 metres, but even at more than 3500 metres above sea level. It is faithful to its breeding grounds, remaining there even in winter, but descending into the valleys when the cold weather sets in.

Bird’s Nesting

Chough bird congregates in groups and is also colonial nesters, a single colony comprising 40 to 60 pairs of birds. The nest of twigs, roots, dry grass, wool and hair is built at the end of April or in May in rock cavities or crevices, sometimes on a church steeple, castle ruins or the roofs of tall buildings.

Chough Bird Breeding

The female usually lays 3 to 6 eggs, and these may show marked variation in coloration. The period of incubation is 17 to 21 days, the task falling solely to the hen. The young are fed insects and their larvae by both parents, who make only seven trips a day between 8 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon.

Feed

Adult birds occasionally capture small vertebrates, and in winter will feed on seeds if a more normal diet is scarce. The young leave the nest at the age of 32 to 38 days, but remain in the company of their parents. They can be distinguished from the adult birds by their orange beaks.

On fledging, the chough shows little fear of man and groups often visit mountain chalets where they are fed by the guests, Groups of choughs regularly visit water to drink.

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