Description:

Large rosefinch with curved culmen and ridged lower mandible, strong feet and slightly notched tail. On male, red of plumage contrasts with brown crown, eye-stripe and upperparts. Female and first-year male lack supercilium, and have dark and heavily streaked upperparts; breast is variably washed with pale yellow, and rump.

Distribution:

Uncommon high-altitude resident allover Gilgit-Baltistan, except for lower valleys. Usually well above tree-line, on steep rocky slopes, boulderfields, rocky screes and glacier edges with patches of scrub and creeping juniper, between 3500-4500m.

Behavior:

Forages on the ground in the open or under bushes, often at edge of melting snow. Uses powerful bill to dig snow and between rocks; also perches on tops of bushes. Alert, but generally tame and approachable. Feeds largely seeds, buds, flower heads, petals and berries, including those of roses, Caragana and alpine plants.

Photo Gallery:

Range & Occurrence:

Resident Species

Summer Breeder

Winter Visitor

Passage Migrant

Distribution Map of Red-fronted Rosefinch in Gilgit-Baltistan (Status: )

Seasonal Occurrence of Red-fronted Rosefinch

Resources:

Birds of Pakistan: Helm Field Guides (R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
The Birds of Pakistan (T. J. Roberts)
Birds of the Indian Subcontinent (C. Inskipp, R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide (P. Rasmussen & J. Anderton)
Birds of India: Collins Field Guide (N. Arlott)
Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan (S. Ali & S. D. Ripley)
Handbook of the Birds of the World (https://www.hbw.com)
The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 6th Edition
iNaturalist BoGB (inaturalist.org/projects/birds-of-gilgit-baltistan)
Birds of Gilgit-Baltistan (http://fb.me/birdsgb)

*Gallery images on this page are shared from flickr.com, and are copyrighted to their respective creators or owners.