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Alpine Chough

Pyrrhocorax graculus

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernInvertebratesRockyCup nestMedium · 211 g
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 1
Photo: Samuel Paitreault · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 2
Photo: Claude Kolwelter · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 3
Photo: Claude Kolwelter · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 4
Photo: Bianca · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 5
Photo: Bianca · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 6
Photo: Donsky · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 7
Photo: Henrysz · CC BY 4.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 8
Photo: Jim Higham from UK · CC BY 2.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 9
Photo: gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K · CC BY 2.0
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), photo 10
Photo: Michael Pollak from Österreich · CC BY 2.0

What the Alpine Chough sounds like

Sonogram of the Alpine Chough: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Pascal Christe · Call · Kandersteg, Frutigen, Bern, Switzerland · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Alpine Chough: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Marie-Lan Taÿ Pamart · Alarm call · Fiè allo Sciliar, Südtirol, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Alpine Chough: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Marie-Lan Taÿ Pamart · Alarm call, flight call · Cogne, Valle d'Aosta, Valle d'Aosta, Italy · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

The adult of the nominate subspecies of the Alpine chough has glossy black plumage, a short yellow bill, dark brown irises, and red legs. It is slightly smaller than the red-billed chough, at 37–39 centimetres (15–15 inches) length with a 12–14 cm (4.7–5.5 in) tail and a 75–85 cm (30–33 in) wingspan, but has a proportionally longer tail and shorter wings. It has a similar buoyant and easy flight. The sexes are identical in appearance, although the male averages slightly larger than the female. The juvenile is duller than the adult, with a dull yellow bill and brownish legs.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Alpine Chough

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is July, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Alpine Chough

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 37 countries with regular records, and 2 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

France Spain Switzerland India Austria Italy Germany Morocco Türkiye Nepal Georgia China Greece Kyrgyzstan Slovenia Kazakhstan Montenegro Iran Croatia Bulgaria Andorra Russia Bhutan Tajikistan Azerbaijan Bosnia & Herzegovina Albania Liechtenstein Armenia Pakistan Lebanon North Macedonia Serbia Mongolia Uzbekistan Iraq Afghanistan

Recorded as a rare visitor in Sweden, Poland.

About the Alpine Chough

The Alpine chough or yellow-billed chough is a bird in the crow family, one of only two species in the genus Pyrrhocorax. Its two subspecies breed in high mountains from Spain eastwards through southern Europe and North Africa to Central Asia and Nepal, and it may nest at a higher altitude than any other bird. Its eggs have adaptations to the thin atmosphere that improve oxygen take-up and reduce water loss.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Red-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) Red-billed ChoughPyrrhocorax pyrrhocoraxThe adult of the "nominate" subspecies of the red-billed chough, P. p. pyrrhocorax, is 39–40 centimetres (15–16 inches) in length, has a 73–90 centimetres (29–35 inches) wingspan, and weighs an average 310 grammes (10.9 oz).

Side by side: Alpine Chough vs Red-billed Chough

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