The crossbills are birds in the finch family Fringillidae. The three to five (or possibly many more) species are all classified in the genus Loxia. These birds are characterised by the mandibles crossing at their tips, which gives the group its English name.
These are specialist feeders on conifer cones, and the unusual bill shape is an adaptation to assist the extraction of the seeds from the cone. These are birds typically found in higher northern hemisphere latitudes, where their food sources grows. They will erupt out of the breeding range when the cone crop fails.