Red-billed Chough

The Red-billed Chough is a glossy black corvid found along sea cliffs, mountain grasslands, and rocky coasts from Britain and Ireland through southern Europe, North Africa, and into Asia. Its long, slender, downcurved red bill and red legs set it apart from all other black corvids at a glance. It favors short-cropped turf where it probes for invertebrates, and it is closely tied to traditional grazing landscapes.

Body feathers are entirely black with a glossy blue-green or purplish iridescence in good light. The flight feathers are broad and the wingtips show deeply splayed, finger-like primaries in flight, giving a distinctive silhouette. The tail is squared and also glossy black. Unlike jackdaws or crows, no gray or pale feathering appears anywhere on the body, and the long curved bill and red legs (though not feathers) are the quickest confirming features alongside the plumage.

Sexes are alike in plumage, both fully glossy black year-round. Juveniles are duller and sootier black with an orange-yellow rather than red bill and duller legs, gradually acquiring full adult coloration over the first year or two. Adults undergo a single annual molt after breeding.

Red-billed Choughs inhabit sea cliffs, coastal grassland, and mountain pastures across a range spanning the British Isles, southern Europe, North Africa, and parts of Asia. Most populations are resident, though some birds shift to lower elevations in harsh winters.

This species forages by probing short grassland turf with its curved bill for invertebrates, often in flocks. It is renowned for spectacular aerial displays, including tumbling and diving flight over cliffs, aided by its buoyant, acrobatic flight style. Calls are a distinctive, ringing "chee-ow" or "chow," giving the bird its name. Nests are built in cliff crevices, caves, or old buildings, often in loose colonies.