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With a body length of 23 cm and a weight of up to 80 g, the masked grosbeak(Eophona personata) is a large representative of the finch family (Fringillidae). Its distribution area extends in East Asia from China and Russia to Korea and Japan.
The most important trademark of the masked grosbeak is its large, bright yellow coloured beak. The plumage is grey overall, but often takes on a greyish-yellow colour on the underside of the body. The head, tail and wings are blue-black in colour and thus stand out clearly from the rest of the plumage.
The masked grosbeak's habitat is open deciduous and mixed forests in valleys or hilly areas. However, it can also be found in parks, gardens and other urban areas. It feeds mainly on a vegetarian diet of seeds, fruits and berries, which it finds in the foliage of trees and bushes. Thanks to its powerful beak, it has no problem cracking hard seeds and nuts. Especially in summer, it supplements its diet with various insects such as beetles and caterpillars.
The masked grosbeak's breeding season is between May and July. The nest is built from twigs, leaves and grass at a height of around 2 m to 6 m in a tree. The clutch consists of 3 to 4 black-spotted, blue eggs. Nothing more is known about the breeding behaviour of the masked grosbeak.
Although the masked grosbeak is mainly caught and hunted in China for the cage bird trade, its population is currently not endangered. It has a large distribution area and is common to very common in East Asia.