Which species of crossbill would you go for? They each have unique attractions, as ANDY JOHNSON finds out from some top breeders. Article continues from the April 10 issue
EXPERIENCED breeders Chris and Neville Jones report that – with the exception of the two-bar, which is a little more challenging – the crossbill species are free and easy breeders. Crossbills often come into breeding condition early in the year, around the middle of February, and indeed fanciers report eggs being laid and chicks reared in both January and February.
Chris, Neville and Francis Brankin all have their own preferences when it comes to nests and nest sites and this shows how flexible crossbills can be. Chris gives his birds a nest-pan which he covers with artificial Christmas trees. He says: “I use a nest felt for the base and they are supplied with coconut fibre and also use the pine needles off their branches as nesting material.” He is quite inventive with his birds and has found that normal kitchen sieves work very well as nest-pans!
A slightly later start
Francis uses various types of nesting sites, including chapel boxes and open-fronted boxes. Even though crossbills can be early nesters, he doesn’t let his birds go down too soon but instead holds them back a little. Because he has to balance the care of his birds with his job, he doesn’t put them into their aviaries until the first week of March. Some people do breed crossbills in cages, but Francis prefers aviaries for his. That said, when he does use cages, he uses the wire ones to reduce the chances of any cage chewing.
Chris doesn’t start his birds too early, either. “I don’t give mine the opportunity to nest until the middle of March,” he tells me. “They are free nesters and I’ve had a couple which built their own nest between branches in the aviary. But they were unsuccessful, so I always supply a nest-pan and material.
“This year I had a hen which built three nests and had three clutches, but for some reason they never successfully reared the last brood.”
Crossbills lay clutches of between four and six white eggs and incubation takes 12-15 days, depending on the species. The hen takes full responsibility for incubation and will sit for the entire time. In Neville’s experience, the parrot crossbill cock birds do not appear to be as fertile in their first year as the other crossbills, and this is taken into account when he makes his pairings for the forthcoming breeding season.
As with all British birds, crossbills need to be ringed with closed metal rings. Common, Scottish and two-barred crossbills take size “J”, whereas the parrot crossbills – as they are slightly bigger birds – require size “K”. The Himalayan crossbill, which is a little smaller than the typical common, also takes a size “J” ring and offers the benefit of being able to be bred in pastel mutations, too.
Crossbill youngsters grow very quickly and the breeder must keep a close eye on them to make sure they don’t get too big for the ring to go on. Failure to ring any British bird means that it cannot be sold, it can only be gifted.
Any fancier who adds crossbills to their collection may find it worth joining the British Bird Council. This organisation can provide a wealth of information, including breed standards, ring data, cage standards, etc.
Mules and hybrids
Another reason fanciers keep crossbills is that they readily breed with other finches and canaries to produce a range of interesting mules and hybrids. Unlike many other native finches, however, both the cock and the hen can be used for muling. Examples of hybrids include the crossbill x bullfinch, crossbill x greenfinch, crossbill x goldfinch and crossbill x chaffinch. If the fancier is to try muling, the Norwich is readily accepted as the best partner for a crossbill, but essentially they will breed with any canary.
Francis Brankin is keen to recognise the achievements of other fanciers who have had some excellent success in this field. He says: “There have been some beautiful mules and hybrids bred from the crossbill. Don Footitt, Ron Phillips and Mike Holland have bred excellent hybrid examples, and I must mention Stacey Turner’s siskin x crossbill – the first of its kind to be bred. Jim Dalrymple was the first to breed the crossbill x canary and won the National Exhibition with it. Ron Phillips and Mick Footitt have also exhibited some beautiful examples of crossbill mules.”
Exhibiting
Historically, crossbills have not held down a firm place on the show bench and when they have been exhibited, have not done very well. However, their popularity has grown over the past few years, as was indicated at the Lancashire British Bird & Mule show in 2022 at which Francis’s crossbill x canary took best exhibit. It also won at the North East the week after. This bird is the offspring of a clear yellow Norwich cock and a common crossbill hen.
Last year Francis achieved even more success with his birds when one of his crossbills won best hardbill at the Yorkshire British show in November. Another big success for the crossbill was achieved by Derek Smith, who won best mule or hybrid with his crossbill mule at the 2023 All-British show.
Crossbills are exhibited in the English Pattern size 4 show cage and the Scottish Pattern size 4 show cage. (The English Pattern is 14in long x 12in high x 6in deep, while the Scottish Pattern is 12in long x 11in high x 5in deep).
In the wild
Common crossbills are native to all of the UK and can be found in or around pine and other coniferous woodlands, whereas the Scottish crossbill is confined to forests of native Caledonian pine. Common crossbills are not considered an at-risk species and are currently green on the UK conservation list. Outside the breeding season, crossbills can be found in family groups or, if food is readily available, large flocks. Their diet consists predominantly of conifer seeds.
Summary
Crossbills are wonderful birds to keep, are full of character and are available in several species (and colour mutations with the Himalayan). For the novice, or first-time crossbill keeper, the common is the clear choice. A final word from Francis: “Common crossbills are the best bird to start off with, as they seem to be early starters and are usually excellent parents. They are very intelligent and so confiding too!”
● Thanks to Neville Jones, Christopher Jones and Francis Brankin for their help with this article.
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