Pallas's rosefinch is a species of bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is found in China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Mongolia, and Russia. Birds are occasionally reported from further west and there are records from several European regions, including Britain, but the cage-bird trade makes the origin of some such birds hard to assess. Its natural habitats are boreal forests and boreal shrubland.
Region
Northeast Asia
Typical Environment
Breeds widely across the boreal forests of Siberia and northern Mongolia, with movements into northeastern China. In winter it reaches the Korean Peninsula and Japan, and irregularly parts of northern China and Kazakhstan. It favors larch, birch, and mixed coniferous forests with dense shrub layers, as well as willow and alder thickets along rivers. During non-breeding, it also uses forest edges, weedy fields, and parklands near settlements.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2500 m
Climate Zone
Continental
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
Named after the naturalist Peter Simon Pallas, Pallas's rosefinch breeds across the Siberian taiga and moves south in winter. Males show striking rosy plumage that can look crimson in good light, while females are cryptically streaked for camouflage. It occasionally turns up far west of its core range, but some European records may involve escapes from the cage-bird trade.
Eggs of Carpodacus roseus MHNT
Temperament
alert and active
Flight Pattern
undulating finch-like flight with rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Typically seen in pairs during the breeding season and in small flocks in autumn and winter, sometimes joining mixed finch flocks. Monogamous, nesting in conifers or dense shrubs, where a cup nest holds a small clutch. Both parents participate in feeding the young.
Migratory Pattern
Seasonal migrant
Song Description
Male delivers a sweet, warbling series of clear whistles and trills, often from a mid-canopy perch. Calls include soft chee and tinny twitters used to keep contact within flocks.
Plumage
Male is rosy to crimson-pink on head, breast, and rump with a brownish, lightly streaked mantle and pale wingbars; underparts can show pale streaking on the flanks. Female is brown and heavily streaked overall with a pale supercilium and two faint wingbars. Both sexes have a stout, conical bill typical of finches.
Diet
Primarily eats seeds and buds of birch, alder, willow, and various shrubs, along with berries such as rose hips. In the breeding season it supplements with small insects and other invertebrates for protein. It also takes weed seeds in open areas and may visit feeders in winter.
Preferred Environment
Forages in shrub thickets, forest edges, riverine alder-willow belts, and weedy clearings. In winter it often feeds on the ground or low vegetation and may venture into parks and village margins.
