Pine Grosbeak

Pinicola enucleator

Big, slow, ridiculously tame boreal finch. Will let you walk up and hand it the message yourself.

Population: Sources disagree on magnitude/trend: BirdLife DataZone (IUCN assessment) gives global population >4,000,000 individuals with a decreasing trend (North American BBS/CBC data show ~-72.5% decline over 40 years), while Partners in Flight (cited via Cornell AllAboutBirds life history) estimates ~11 million global breeding individuals with a stable 1966–2019 BBS trend; widespread and numerous across the boreal Holarctic either way, and status remains LC under either figure since range/total size are both far above threatened thresholds
Habitat: Open boreal and subalpine coniferous forest — spruce, fir, and pine woodland, including forest edges and clearings
Fun fact: The Pine Grosbeak is the only species in its monotypic genus, Pinicola (established 1808), and both sexes grow gular (throat) pouches during breeding season to carry seeds back to the nest for their young.
Range: Circumpolar boreal belt: Alaska and western mountains through Canada, plus subarctic Scandinavia (Fennoscandia) across the Palearctic to Siberia (eight recognized subspecies span Scandinavia to Japan); winters irrupt irregularly into the northern contiguous US
Diet: Primarily seeds, buds, and needles of conifers, plus fruits (especially rowan/mountain-ash berries) in winter; both sexes develop gular (throat) pouches during breeding season to carry seeds/food back to feed nestlings
Size: 0.225 m
Wingspan: 0.33 m
Lifespan: 9 years

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