Main content
This programme will be available shortly after broadcast

Dominic Couzens on the Crossbill

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

A new series of Tweet of the Day for Sunday morning revealing personal and fascinating stories from some fresh voices who have been inspired by birds, their calls and encounters.

Crossbills are not born with crossed bills, not only that but as they develop their crossing bills, after their 27th day from hatching, their bills can cross either to the left, or cross to the right. It is a 50:50 split. A superb evolutionary adaption but as ornithologist Dominic Couzens explains, it means their diet is limited to conifer seeds or nothing.. In Britain we have the common crossbill and the Scottish crossbill. Whether these are separate species or the same species, the argument continues.

Producer : Andrew Dawes, 麻豆社 Audio, Bristol
Studio Engineer : Ilse Lademann

Release date:

1 minute

On radio

Sun 5 Jan 2025 08:58

Broadcast

  • Sun 5 Jan 2025 08:58

Podcast: Planet Puffin

Podcast: Planet Puffin

Exploring all things puffin - the silly and the serious, the scientific and the cultural.

Try this new podcast

Five stories of birds and birdsong are told by the people inspired by them.

Podcast