White-rumped Snowfinch
Cold desert around Gurudongmar. North Sikkim
#IndiAves #indiatourism #birds #birdphotography #nature #NaturePhotography #birdwatching #birding #Luv4Wilds #WaytoWild #WorldofWilds #IndiWild
@Avibase
@orientbirdclub
Cold desert around Gurudongmar. North Sikkim
#IndiAves #indiatourism #birds #birdphotography #nature #NaturePhotography #birdwatching #birding #Luv4Wilds #WaytoWild #WorldofWilds #IndiWild
@Avibase
@orientbirdclub
White-rumped Snowfinch (Onychostruthus taczanowskii) is one of the two species of Snowfinches that can be seen reliably in India only in the Tibetan Plateau region of North Sikkim, generally above 4500 meters (the other being Rufous-necked Snowfinch)
White-rumped Snowfinch associate very strongly with Black-lipped Pika or Plateau Pika , the most abundant mammal in this cold desert. Their burrows are used for nesting and also used for roosting, particularly by the juveniles.
Black-lipped Pikas create a complex burrow system of branched tunnels leading to a chamber at one end . Studies show that White-rumped Snowfinches prefer active pika burrows as nest sites over inactive ones, presumably to gain thermal benefits and avoid epizoic parasites.
The birds were observed carrying insect larvae developing under the pika skin to the chicks. When they feel threatened, they often take shelter inside Pika Burrows. Thus high density of Black-lipped Pikas in an area usually corresponds to a good number of White-rumped Snowfinches
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