Red Crossbill    Loxia curvirostra

Conservation Status

General Status in Canada : Secure

COSEWIC Status : Endangered

Breeding Bird Surveys indicate that Canadian populations have changed little between 1966 and 2007. Boreal populations of Red Crossbills are particularly nomadic, making population trend assessment difficult. Regional fluctuation in numbers is likely linked to local cone production. Extensive logging of conifer forests can affect local populations by reducing nesting and foraging habitat. Climate change, particularly drying trends, may change Red Crossbill demographics, perhaps reducing numbers of spruce (Picea spp.) and hemlock-eating varieties, while potentially increasing populations of pine cone specialists. Recent mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) epidemics have killed vast areas of pine in the west and undoubtedly have had negative effects on populations in those areas. In winter, Red Crossbills frequently congregate on highways, consuming salt and grit. Large numbers are killed each year by fast-moving traffic.

Reference(s)

Adkisson, C. S. 1996. Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra), The Birds of North America Online, . A. Poole, Ed. Ithaca: Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology; Retrieved from The Birds of North America Online database: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/256