Wikipedia:POTD column/September 25, 2006



Two male Common Crossbills (Loxia curvirostra), a small passerine bird in the finch family. The crossbill is characterised by mandibles that cross at their tips, lending the group its English name. They feed on conifer cone seeds, particularly of spruce, Douglas fir, and pine. The unusual bill shape is an adaptation to assist the extraction of the seeds from the cone.

credit: Elaine R. Wilson Archive - More featured pictures...