The weekend before Christmas we were in a holiday cabin in the forest. We saw lots of birds. My brother and I fed them so we could get a good look. When we were getting ready to go home, my dad shouted: “Come upstairs, now!” We ran up to the bedroom. We looked out of the window, and in the fog stood a little bird!
My brother found the bird book and flicked through it. “It’s a bullfinch!” he cried, and he was right. It was amazing! There were a lot of facts I learned. It’s only 15cm long – that’s half a ruler! These birds’ chests can be orange or pink. Sometimes they look like a robin or a chaffinch. The males have bright colours but the females have dull brown feathers. They feed voraciously on seeds, buds and insects. Their tune is a soft whistle noise. They are endangered so they need help. They breed in May to July and lay up to four or five eggs. They make their nest on the ground. It was amazing that on a cold winter day one was hopping about in front of my eyes. Seeing the bullfinch made my holiday.
Orla, 8
• Read today’s other Young Country Diary piece, ‘Ham sandwiches for lunch, ammonites for afters’
