Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris)
Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
Breeding plumage: Yellow face with broad black moustache stripes and black lores. Black forecrown and thin black horns. Black breast band with blunt vertical extension towards throat (sometimes connects to moustache stripes). Black tail with white sides. Juveniles covered in small pale spots with only faint facial markings. May be confused with juvenile Skylark, but note shorter bill and yellowish face of young Shore larks.
Sound:Song a stream of thin and tinkling, squeaking notes with a recurring, drawn, ringing and slightly ascending chirp. Timbre resemblant to Lapland Bunting. Often given from high in the air, being difficult to locate. More hesitantly when given from the ground with a stumbling introduction. Flight call quite similar to Meadow Pipit's "tseep" call, but less anxious.
Song:
Distribution:
Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCVery similar to Parrot Crossbill, but has thinner neck, smaller head, steeper forehead and slender bill. Upper mandible is less curved towards the tip than in Parrot Crossbill, and the lower is straight, with no bulge. The tip of the lower mandible protrudes from behind the upper (tips of mandibles visibly crossing). The chest is less deep, and birds are not so front heavy. Large individuals may be difficult to identify because of overlapping characters with Parrot Crossbill. Plumage similar to Parrot, with dark wings and tail. Males with rufous red head and body, females green. Juveniles greyish green with streaking. Posture more erect than Parrot Crossbill, especially when foraging on ground.
Sound:Contact call similar to Parroy Crossbill's "tupp", but is on average higher and less powerful, with a "cut-off" ending. In sum: Parrot Crossbill; hard attack, soft ending, Crossbill: softer attack, cut-off ending. Beware regional variations and overlap in pitch of calls with Parrot. The song consist of improvised, resonant twittering, and series of contact calls with no apparent phrases. It is generally faster, with less marked pauses than in Parrot Crossbill, and the phrasing seems more random.
Contact call and song:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CC