What is in a Bullfinch's Diet?

Several species in the order Passeriformes and the families Fringillidae and Emberizidae can be categorized as bullfinches. However, the common bullfinch, or Pyrrhula pyrrhula is about 6 inches long with black and white coloring. Males have an orange to pink underbelly.

  1. Diet Basics

    • Pyrrhula pyrrhula is also known as the Eurasian bullfinch and lives across Europe, Asia and Japan. It is generally found in woodlands, orchards, parks and gardens, where food sources are accessible. This bird primarily eats seeds, berries, fruit tree buds and insects.

    Diet Shifts With Seasons

    • The bullfinch's diet shifts with the seasons and food availability. For instance, bullfinches living in Britain primarily eat fruits and seeds in the autumn and early winter, while their diet includes leaf and flower buds the rest of the year. The young also eat invertebrates throughout the year.

    Gathering Food

    • Bullfinches rarely venture farther than about 30 feet from cover when gathering food, according to Great Britain's Forestry Commission, feeding on nearby leaves, buds and insects. For seed heads and fruits too large to easily carry back to cover, they extract the seeds where they find them. If these items can be carried, bullfinches bring them back to cover for seed extraction.