Michael Frankis
conehead
I've got Common Crossbill ['spruce crossbill'], and (Parrot + Scottish) Crossbill ['pine crossbill'], on my list, as two ticks.
Michael
Michael
jpoyner said:Presume you saw this bird in the hand then?
pduxon said:Do you reckon you could separate the two with any confidence other than the birds in normal Scottish range?
ColinD said:Absolutely no chance, and to be honest, don't care. I love Crossbills, but have no interest in whether they're Parrot, Scottish or Common. Scottish is on my list, I'm not sure why, but it's as valid as anybody else's Scottish Crossbill.
Colin
CJW said:Seem to remember we also got them on call back in '83 Colin. Weren't you with us?
Mark D said:Hi all,
Sorry I'm late to this discussion.
Someone has stated that most of the crossbills in Speyside are Common, but in a recent survey of breeding Crossbills only 1% of them were Common, whereas 75% were Parrot.
Mark
CJW said:It was actually, but I can remember very little about it (it was over 20 years ago) other than that the chaps who were ringing took great pains to point out to us that the bill measurements were too big for common crossbill. Ofcourse, given what we know now, they could just as easily have been Parrot Crossbills. Kinda feel guilty about it being on my list, but at the time......