The choughs are medium-sized corvids; the red-billed chough is 39–40 centimetres (15–16 in) in length with a 73–90 centimetres (29–35 in) wingspan, and the Alpine chough averages slightly smaller at 37–39  (14.5–15.5 in) length with a 75–85 cm (30–33 in) wingspan.
These birds have black plumage similar to that of many Corvus crows, but they are readily distinguished from members of that genus by their brightly coloured bills and legs.
The Alpine chough has a yellow bill and the red-billed chough has a long, curved, red bill; both species have red legs as adults.
The sexes are similar, but the juvenile of each species has a duller bill and legs than the adult and its plumage lacks the glossiness seen in older birds.
Other physical distinctions are summarised in the table below.

The two choughs are distinguishable from each other by their bill colour, and in flight the long broad wings and short tail of the red-billed give it a silhouette quite different from its slightly smaller yellow-billed relative.
Both species fly with loose deep wing beats, and frequently use their manoeuvrability to perform acrobatic displays, soaring in the updraughts at cliff faces then diving and rolling with fanned tail and folded wings.

The red-billed chough's loud, ringing chee-ow call is similar in character to that of other corvids, particularly the jackdaw, although it is clearer and louder than the call of that species.
In contrast, the Alpine chough has rippling preep and whistled sweeeooo calls quite unlike the crows.
Small subspecies of both choughs have higher frequency calls than larger races, as predicted by the inverse relationship between body size and frequency.
The choughs are medium-sized corvids; the red-billed chough is 39–40 centimetres (15–16 in) in length with a 73–90 centimetres (29–35 in) wingspan, and the Alpine chough averages slightly smaller at 37–39  (14.5–15.5 in) length with a 75–85 cm (30–33 in) wingspan. These birds have black plumage similar to that of many Corvus crows, but they are readily distinguished from members of that genus by their brightly coloured bills and legs. The Alpine chough has a yellow bill and the red-billed chough has a long, curved, red bill; both species have red legs as adults. The sexes are similar, but the juvenile of each species has a duller bill and legs than the adult and its plumage lacks the glossiness seen in older birds. Other physical distinctions are summarised in the table below.
The two choughs are distinguishable from each other by their bill colour, and in flight the long broad wings and short tail of the red-billed give it a silhouette quite different from its slightly smaller yellow-billed relative. Both species fly with loose deep wing beats, and frequently use their manoeuvrability to perform acrobatic displays, soaring in the updraughts at cliff faces then diving and rolling with fanned tail and folded wings.
The red-billed chough's loud, ringing chee-ow call is similar in character to that of other corvids, particularly the jackdaw, although it is clearer and louder than the call of that species. In contrast, the Alpine chough has rippling preep and whistled sweeeooo calls quite unlike the crows. Small subspecies of both choughs have higher frequency calls than larger races, as predicted by the inverse relationship between body size and frequency.
Chough