Gran Canaria blue chaffinch

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Gran Canaria blue chaffinch
Pinzon azul de Gran Canaria (macho), M. A. Pena.jpg
Male
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Fringillidae
Subfamily: Fringillinae
Genus: Fringilla
Species:
F. polatzeki
Binomial name
Fringilla polatzeki
Hartert, 1905
Synonyms

Fringilla teydea polatzeki Hartert, 1905

The Gran Canaria blue chaffinch (Fringilla polatzeki) is a species of passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is endemic to Gran Canaria in Spain's Canary Islands.

Contents

Taxonomy

Until 2015, the species Fringilla teydea was classified with two subspecies: Fringilla teydea polatzeki from Gran Canaria and Fringilla teydea teydea from Tenerife. However, a study published in March 2016 showed that a classification as different species, Frigilla polatzeki and Fringilla teydea, is justified. [3]

Description

Female Pinzon azul de Gran Canaria (hembra), M. A. Pena.jpg
Female

Gran Canaria blue chaffinches resemble common chaffinches, and are smaller in size than Tenerife blue chaffinches. Other differences are that they have two white bands in the wings, a whiter belly, or less blue shades.

Females are a dull grey-brown.

Distribution

This bird is found only in the highlands of Gran Canaria, mainly in the Inagua Natural Reserve. The species' primary habitat is mountain Canary Island pine (Pinus canariensis) forest in 1.000 m. It is most common in coniferous forest areas with dense, old trees.

Behavior

It primarily eats Canary Island pine seeds. Like the common chaffinch, but, unlike most other finches, its young are fed extensively on insects. Breeding from the end of April to late July or early August, it builds a nest from pine needles and broom branches and lays two eggs. This bird is not migratory. This bird breeding success is low with the cause of predation, mostly by the Great Spotted Woodpecker.

In danger of extinction

The Gran Canaria blue chaffinch is one of the most endangered species of birds on the planet. [4] Unlike the Tenerife blue chaffinch, which has a much wider distribution and compared to that island's population of its species, [5] the Gran Canaria blue chaffinch has an extremely smaller population and is restricted to the area of the pine forests of Ojeda, Inagua and Pajonales. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canary Islands</span> Spanish archipelago and region in the Atlantic Ocean

The Canary Islands, also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in Macaronesia in the Atlantic Ocean. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are 100 kilometres west of Morocco. They are the southernmost of the autonomous communities of Spain. The islands have a population of 2.2 million people and are the most populous special territory of the European Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finch</span> Family of birds

The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches generally have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usually resident and do not migrate. They have a worldwide native distribution except for Australia and the polar regions. The family Fringillidae contains more than two hundred species divided into fifty genera. It includes the canaries, siskins, redpolls, serins, grosbeaks and euphonias, as well as the morphologically divergent Hawaiian honeycreepers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic canary</span> Species of bird

The Atlantic canary, known worldwide simply as the wild canary and also called the island canary, common canary, or canary, is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Serinus in the finch family, Fringillidae. It is native to the Canary Islands, the Azores, and Madeira. Wild birds are mostly yellow-green, with brownish streaking on the back. The species is common in captivity and a number of colour varieties have been bred.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurasian chaffinch</span> Species of bird

The Eurasian chaffinch, common chaffinch, or simply the chaffinch is a common and widespread small passerine bird in the finch family. The male is brightly coloured with a blue-grey cap and rust-red underparts. The female is more subdued in colouring, but both sexes have two contrasting white wing bars and white sides to the tail. The male bird has a strong voice and sings from exposed perches to attract a mate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenerife blue chaffinch</span> Species of bird

The Tenerife blue chaffinch is a species of passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is endemic to Tenerife in Spain's Canary Islands. This bird is the natural symbol of this island, together with the Canary Islands dragon tree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gran Canaria</span> Spanish island of the Canary Islands

Gran Canaria, also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the Atlantic coast of Northwest Africa and is part of Spain. As of 2019 the island had a population of 851,231 that constitutes approximately 40% of the population of the archipelago. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the capital of the island, is the biggest city of the Canary Islands and the ninth of Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenerife</span> Largest and most populous of Spains Canary Islands

Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of 2,034 square kilometres (785 sq mi) and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of January 2022, it is also the most populous island of Spain and of Macaronesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Palma</span> Most northwestern Canary Island

La Palma, also known as La isla bonita and officially San Miguel de La Palma, is the most northwesterly island of the Canary Islands, Spain. La Palma has an area of 708 square kilometres (273 sq mi) making it the fifth largest of the eight main Canary Islands. The total population at the end of 2020 was 85,840, of which 15,716 lived in the capital, Santa Cruz de La Palma and about 20,467 in Los Llanos de Aridane. Its highest mountain is the Roque de los Muchachos, at 2,423 metres (7,949 ft), being second among the peaks of the Canaries after the Teide massif on Tenerife.

<i>Pinus canariensis</i> Species of conifer in the family Pinaceae

Pinus canariensis, the Canary Island pine, is a species of gymnosperm in the conifer family Pinaceae. It is a large, evergreen tree, native and endemic to the outer Canary Islands of the Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teide</span> Volcano in Tenerife

Teide, or Mount Teide, is a volcano on Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. Its summit is the highest point in Spain and the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic. If measured from the ocean floor, its height of 7,500 m (24,600 ft) makes Teide the third-highest volcano in the world, and is described by UNESCO and NASA as Earth's third-tallest volcanic structure. Teide's elevation above sea level makes Tenerife the tenth highest island in the world.

<i>Fringilla</i> Genus of birds

The genus Fringilla is a small group of finches from the Old World, which are the only species in the subfamily Fringillinae. The genus name Fringilla is Latin for "finch".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teide National Park</span> National park in Tenerife, Spain

Teide National Park is a national park located in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African blue tit</span> Species of bird

The African blue tit is a species of bird in the family Paridae. It is found in northern Africa, Pantelleria (Italy) and the Canary Islands (Spain). Its natural habitat is temperate forests. This species and the Eurasian blue tit were formerly considered conspecific. The status of this species has not been assessed because it is noted to be common on the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The species has been used in many research studies due to its island populations and relevance to evolutionary hypotheses.

Tourism is an essential part of the economy of the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago located in the Atlantic Ocean, 100 kilometres west of Morocco. Seven main islands and six islets make up the Canary Islands. They had more than 9 million foreign incoming tourists in 2007. Tourists seeking sunshine and beaches first began to visit the Canaries in large numbers in the 1960s. The Canary Islands are a leading European tourist destination with very attractive natural and cultural resources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Palma chaffinch</span> Subspecies of bird

The La Palma chaffinch, also known as the Palman chaffinch or, locally in Spanish as the pinzón palmero or pinzón hembra, is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is a subspecies of the common chaffinch that is endemic to La Palma in the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago that forms part of Macaronesia in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Chaffinch is a name applied to some birds in the genus Fringilla and may refer to:

Blue chaffinch may refer to one of two different bird species:

As in the rest of Spain, the majority religion in the Canary Islands is the Catholic Church. The Catholic religion has been the majority since the Conquest of the Canary Islands in the fifteenth century. This religion would largely replace the Canarian aboriginal religion through the prohibition of the latter and syncretism. According to a survey conducted in 2019, Canary Islands is the fifth autonomous community in Spain with the highest percentage of people who declare themselves to be Catholics after the Region of Murcia, Extremadura, Galicia, Aragon, and Castile and León. 76.7% of the population is Catholic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canary Islands dry woodlands and forests</span>

The Canary Islands dry woodlands and forests is a Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregion in the Canary Islands. It encompasses the western group of the Canary Islands – La Palma, El Hierro, La Gomera, Tenerife, and Gran Canaria – in the Atlantic Ocean. These volcanic islands are an autonomous community of Spain, and lie southwest of the Spanish mainland and west of the North African coast.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2017). "Fringilla polatzeki". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T103822640A111091107. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T103822640A111091107.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. Integrative taxonomy reveals Europe’s rarest songbird species, the Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch Fringilla polatzeki
  3. George Sangster, Felipe Rodríguez Godoy, C. S. Roselaar, Magnus S. Robb y Jolanda A. Luksenburg.«Integrative taxonomy reveals Europe’s rarest songbird species, the Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch Fringilla polatzeki
  4. Un experto plantea que el pinzón azul de Gran Canaria sea especie única
  5. Un experto plantea que el pinzón azul de Gran Canaria sea especie única
  6. Un experto plantea que el pinzón azul de Gran Canaria sea especie única

[1]

  1. Iñigo, L., & E, G.-del-R. (n.d.). Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch Fringilla polatzeki. Gran Canaria blue chaffinch (Fringilla polatzeki) - birdlife species factsheet. Retrieved March 19, 2023, from http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/gran-canaria-blue-chaffinch-fringilla-polatzeki/text