Bird Tales with a Bite - Their "gross beaks" may be the reason for their renown, but these five species also have some interesting stories to tell.(grosbeaks)

From: National Wildlife | Date: August 1, 2002| Author: Line, Les | Copyright information

UNLESS you've had an evening grosbeak lock its massive mandibles on your index finger and not let go, you have no idea of the strength in the jaws of this boldly dressed songbird whose genus name translates as "kernel-cracker." The first time it happened to me, I wasn't wearing gloves. That's a mistake you never repeat when facing a cage crowded with burly finches that are as pugnacious as they are gluttonous for sunflower seeds. I've got a scar to remind me.

It was th...

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