Altai Accentor Prunella himalayana Scientific name definitions

15 cm; 25–29 g. Has grey head with some black streaking; mantle and back chestnut-brown with dark streaks, rump paler brown; wings dark rufous-brown , two white wingbars; tail brown, pale terminal spots; chin and throat white, bordered by black dots; breast , upper belly and flanks striped rufous and white, lower belly creamy white; iris reddish; bill black, base of lower mandible yellow; legs yellowish. Sexes alike. Juvenile is similar to adult but paler, throat mottled grey, breast rich buff and belly creamy buff, both with dark streaks.

Mountains from S Russia (Altai region E to mountains E of L Baikal) and NW Mongolia S to Tien Shan and Pamirs and NE Afghanistan; non-breeding in Himalayas (E at least to Bhutan). Range limits not well known.

In summer, stony alpine meadows and bare rocky hillsides with sparse cover, usually avoiding scree and boulders; 2800–5500 m. In winter, on grassy, rocky hillsides and valleys at lower altitude, typically 2000–4500 m, exceptionally down to 1000 m.

Poorly known. Post-breeding migration to lower altitudes, particularly from N slopes and ridges in Tien Shan; non-breeding range includes Himalayas from N Pakistan E to Bhutan, and perhaps other regions where not recorded in summer. In Tien Shan , returns to breeding grounds in Apr.

Mostly invertebrates  in summer; in winter, seeds supplemented by berries. Recorded as feeding flies (Diptera), lepidopterans, beetles (Coleoptera), orthopterans, spiders (Araneae) and small snails to nestlings. Forages inconspicuously on ground , with low crouching gait. In winter forages in flocks of 30–100 or more individuals, sometimes accompanied by P. collaris and Plain Mountain Finches (Leucosticte nemoricola).

Male song, from rock perch and in aerial pursuit of female, a loud warbling with trills and fluted whistles, similar to that of P. collaris but less musical and more trilling; also reminiscent of song of Red-fronted Serin (Serinus pusillus). Call “tee-tee”, like that of a finch (Fringillidae); low twitter or constant warble during foraging while on passage.

Season May–Aug; probably double-brooded, but details poorly known. Has been described as monogamous, but mating system and parental roles not determined; observations of 4–5 birds in flight pursuit during courtship, reminiscent of polygynandrous P. collaris. Some aggression among males and among females recorded, but no information on territoriality. Nest a bulky cup of roots, grass and other plant fibres and moss, lined with hair and fur, placed on ground in hollow under grass tussock or rock. Clutch 4–6 eggs; incubation by female alone, period 13 days at one nest; chicks fed by both sexes, no information on nestling period. Productivity little studied; 4·45 young reared per successful nest, and two out of nine nests destroyed by predators in Tien Shan.

Not globally threatened. Locally common. No estimates of numbers available; in S Siberia, described as second most abundant species in alpine tundra area of Sayano-Shushensky Reserve, with 10 birds/km², and common also in W Sayan Mts. In winter, fairly common to uncommon in N Indian Subcontinent ; occasional breeding-season records in e.g. N Pakistan and Kashmir, but no confirmed breeding there.