Black Rosy-Finch
Leucosticte atrata

Conservation status | Rather uncommon and local. Numbers probably stable at the moment, but its mountaintop habitats are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. |
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Family | Finches |
Habitat | Rocky summits, alpine snowfields and tundra; winters in open country at lower levels. Breeds on barren tundra of mountain peaks, mostly in rocky areas and often near persistent snowfields. Winters in open country of mountains and nearby valleys, often coming into towns. |
Photo Gallery
Eggs
4-5, sometimes 3. White, unmarked. Incubation is by female only, about 12-14 days. Young: Both parents feed the nestlings, although the female may do most of it at first. Young probably leave the nest about 20 days after hatching, are fed by their parents for at least another 2 weeks. 1 brood per year.
Young
Both parents feed the nestlings, although the female may do most of it at first. Young probably leave the nest about 20 days after hatching, are fed by their parents for at least another 2 weeks. 1 brood per year.
Diet
FEEDING. Diet and feeding behavior are very similar to those of Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch
Nesting
Males apparently outnumber females, and during the breeding season a male who has a mate usually attends her closely to keep rival males away. Nest: Located in a well-protected site in a crevice or hole in a cliff, usually in an inaccessible place; sometimes in a niche among boulders of a rockslide. Nest (built by female) is a bulky open cup of grass and moss, lined with fine grass, animal hair, and sometimes feathers.
Illustration © David Allen Sibley.
Learn more about these drawings.
Text © Kenn Kaufman, adapted from
Lives of North American Birds
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Migration
Most apparently move downhill in late fall, with flocks appearing in high valleys and plateaus in winter, including areas some distance to south of breeding range.

- All Seasons - Common
- All Seasons - Uncommon
- Breeding - Common
- Breeding - Uncommon
- Winter - Common
- Winter - Uncommon
- Migration - Common
- Migration - Uncommon
See a fully interactive migration map for this species on the Bird Migration Explorer.
Learn moreSongs and Calls
A variety of low cheep notes are used in various situations: as a contact call in flight and in proclaiming an occupied nesting territory.Learn more about this sound collection.