Great-billed seed finch

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Great-billed seed finch
Sporophila maximiliani Great-billed Seed-finch (male), Mato Grosso, Brazil.jpg
male
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Thraupidae
Genus: Sporophila
Species:
S. maximiliani
Binomial name
Sporophila maximiliani
(Cabanis, 1851)
Sporophila maximiliani map.svg
Synonyms

Oryzoborus maximiliani

The great-billed seed finch (Sporophila maximiliani) is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, swamps, and heavily degraded former forest. They are found in two separate general populations, one in the northern Amazon rainforest and the other in the Cerrado.  They live in flooded areas with nests low to the ground.  The adults express strong sexual dimorphism.  Males are black with white under wing-coverts and ivory white bills, and the females are generally light brown with white under wing-coverts and black bills.  Both the male and female have very large, thick bills.  The great-billed seed finch has a melodious call, which has made it a target for trapping.

Although the population is quickly declining due to trapping and loss of habitat, not much is known about its behavior and ecology.  

Taxonomy

The great-billed seed finch was called Fringilla crassirostris when a female was collected on the eastern coast of Brazil in 1815 by Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied. [2]  Twenty years after his description was published, the seed finch was included in the newly proposed genus Oryzoborus by Jean Louis Cabanis (1851).

The seed finches were once categorized in the genus Oryzoborus . [3] They are a group of six species: the chestnut-bellied seed finch (Oryzoborus angolensis), large-billed seed finch (Oryzoborus crassirostris), black-billed seed finch (Oryzoborus atrirostris), thick-billed seed finch (Oryzoborus funereus), great-billed seed finch (Oryzoborus maximiliani), and the Nicaraguan seed finch (Oryzoborus nuttingi). [4] The females of seed finches are very similar in morphology. The taxonomy is therefore almost exclusively based on the male plumages. [5] Categorization of the seed finches had been historically based on male plumage patterning with color groups such as gray and chestnut-colored. [6] Further molecular and morphological analyses of the birds led to the genus Oryzoborus being subsumed into the genus Sporophila . [2]

         The great-billed seed finch includes two subspecies.  The first is the S. m. maximiliani which is found mainly in Cerrado, eastern Bolivia, and in the Brazilian states of Goiás, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Espirito Santo, São Paulo, Mato Grosso, and Mato Grosso do Sul. [2] The second is the S. m. parkesi which is found in southeastern Sucre to Elta Amacuro, northern South America, eastern Venezuela, northern Bolívar, western Guyana, and the northernmost part of Brazil. [2]

Description

great-billed seed finch skull Great-Billed Seed-Finch skull "Sporophila maximiliani" at MAV-USP.jpg
great-billed seed finch skull

The great-billed seed finch is sexually dimorphic.  They have an extremely large and thick bill, that is chalky white in males and black in females. [7]   The beak volume is about 840mm³. [8] The males are black with white or white and black under wing-coverts. [7]   The females have a warm brown back and a buffy brown belly with white under wing-coverts. [7]   The females are very similar to other adult females of the Sporophila genus. [5] Both the male and female great-billed seed finch are very similar in appearance to the male and female large-billed seed finch. [7]   It is a medium-sized finch at around 14.5-16.5 cm in length. [7]   The juvenile is similar in appearance to the female. [7]   Sexual dimorphism presents itself in males when they begin to sing. [9] The male juvenile eventually moults its black feathers, having a patchy appearance for several months until it is fully black. [7]

Due to their similarity with other species, sexual dimorphism, and juvenile appearance, great-billed seed finches can be very difficult to identify morphologically. [10]

The eggs of the great-billed seed finch are grayish white with black blotches and light brown spots. [11]  

Distribution and habitat

The great-billed seed finch exists in two separate populations in South America. [2] The southern population is found in the Cerrado and in the Cerrado enclaves into the transition zones in Atlantic Forest. [2] The northern population is found in the northern Amazon rainforest. [2]

The great-billed seed finch is specialized to live in humid environments and is often associated with flooded areas and marshy borders. [2]

Ecology and behavior

Feeding

The great-billed seed finch is predominantly granivorous and feeds mainly on seeds of many Cyperaceae species.  They are usually found in pairs. [12] Not much more is known.

Breeding

Breeding season generally begins around November or December during spring and summer in central and southern Brazil and extends until the end of February or early March. [2] Breeding in the great-billed seed finch is stimulated by the first torrential rains of spring. [2] The spring rains cause the fruiting of the Cyperaceae species, which then produce mature seeds in the middle of the rainy season. [2] During breeding season, the seed finch is especially territorial and aggressive. [2] Their nests are cup-shaped and anywhere from one to three meters high. [11] They lay eggs in clutch sizes of two to three eggs which are incubated by the female. [11]

Relationship with humans

The three larger seed finches (large-billed seed finch, black-billed seed finch, and great-billed seed finch), have been hunted by bird trappers and have thus had a severe and steady decline in population. [2] They are sought after for their melodious song. [2] The species are also facing a decline in population due to the loss of habitat. [11] The native grasslands that the seed finches nest in are being converted into agricultural fields. [11] Manmade fires for the purpose of agriculture and cattle ranching as well as aerial pesticides also impact the population of the seed finch. [13]

Status

It is rare to uncommon. [7] The population size is decreasing and there is estimated to be anywhere from 1000-2499 individuals. [14]  The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers the species to be a species that is endangered globally.

Related Research Articles

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

The tanagers comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has a Neotropical distribution and is the second-largest family of birds. It represents about 4% of all avian species and 12% of the Neotropical birds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue-black grassquit</span> Species of bird

The blue-black grassquit is a small Neotropical bird in the tanager family, Thraupidae. It is the only member of the genus Volatinia. It is a common and widespread bird that breeds from southern Mexico through Central America, and South America as far as northern Chile, Argentina, and Paraguay, and in Trinidad and Tobago. A male was also observed in Graham County, Arizona on July 15 and July 17, 2023.

The seedeaters are a form taxon of seed-eating passerine birds with a distinctively conical bill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-faced grassquit</span> Species of bird

The black-faced grassquit is a small bird. It is recognized as a tanager closely related to Darwin's finches. It breeds in the West Indies except Cuba, on Tobago but not Trinidad, and along the northern coasts of Colombia and Venezuela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Variable seedeater</span> Species of bird

The variable seedeater is a passerine bird which breeds from southern Mexico through Central America to the Chocó of northwestern South America. The taxonomy is confusing, and it was formerly considered a subspecies of Sporophila americana. Even within the variable seedeater as presently defined, there are great variations in plumage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-faced grassquit</span> Species of bird

The yellow-faced grassquit is a passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae and is the only member of the genus Tiaris. It is native to the Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestnut-bellied seed finch</span> Species of bird

The chestnut-bellied seed finch is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae, but was until recently placed in Emberizidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thick-billed seed finch</span> Species of bird

The thick-billed seed finch is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae, but was until recently placed in Emberizidae. It is found widely in shrubby and grassy areas from southern Mexico, through Central America, to the Chocó in Colombia and Ecuador. It is replaced by the closely related chestnut-bellied seed finch in South America east of the Andes, as well as the valleys of Cauca and Magdalena in Colombia. The two have often been considered conspecific as the lesser seed-finch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bay-chested warbling finch</span> Species of bird

The bay-chested warbling finch is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is endemic to southeastern Brazil.

<i>Sporophila</i> Genus of birds

Sporophila is a genus of Neotropical birds in the tanager family Thraupidae. The genus now includes the six seed finches that were previously placed in the genus Oryzoborus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Copper seedeater</span> Species of bird

The copper seedeater is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It was lumped with the pearly-bellied seedeater, and known together as the capped seedeater before being split in February 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lesson's seedeater</span> Species of bird

Lesson's seedeater is a bird species in the family Thraupidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double-collared seedeater</span> Species of bird

The double-collared seedeater is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestnut-throated seedeater</span> Species of bird

The chestnut-throated seedeater is Neotropical songbird in the family Thraupidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wing-barred seedeater</span> Species of bird

The wing-barred seedeater is a passerine bird from coastal regions of north-eastern South America in north-eastern Venezuela, Tobago, the Guianas, Amapá and north-eastern Pará, Brazil, and along the Amazon River upstream to around Manaus. Formerly, it included the mainly Central American Sporophila corvina and the west Amazonian S. murallae as subspecies, in which case the combined species had the common name Variable Seedeater. Following the split, this common name is now restricted to S. corvina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pearly-bellied seedeater</span> Species of bird

The pearly–bellied seedeater is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It was lumped with the copper seedeater, and known together as the capped seedeater before being split in February 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morelet's seedeater</span> Species of bird

Morelet's seedeater is a passerine bird in the typical seedeater genus Sporophila.

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2019). "Sporophila maximiliani". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T22723537A155473409. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22723537A155473409.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Ubaid, Flávio Kulaif; Silveira, Luís Fabio; Medolago, Cesar a. B.; Costa, Thiago V. V.; Francisco, Mercival Roberto; Barbosa, Karlla V. C.; Júnior, Adir D. S. (July 2018). "Taxonomy, natural history, and conservation of the Great-billed Seed-Finch Sporophila maximiliani (Cabanis, 1851) (Thraupidae, Sporophilinae)". Zootaxa. 4442 (4): 551–571. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4442.4.4. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   30313951.
  3. ↑ Lijtmaer, Darío A.; Sharpe, Nadine M. M.; Tubaro, Pablo L.; Lougheed, Stephen C. (December 2004). "Molecular phylogenetics and diversification of the genus Sporophila (Aves: Passeriformes)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 33 (3): 562–579. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.07.011. ISSN   1055-7903. PMID   15522788.
  4. ↑ Olson, Storrs L. (1981). "A Revision of the Subspecies of Sporophila ("Oryzoborus") Angolensis (Aves: Emberizinae)" (PDF). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 94 (1): 43–51.
  5. 1 2 Stiles, F. Gary (1996). "When Black Plus White Equals Gray: The Nature of Variation in the Variable Seedeater Complex (Emberizinae: Sporophila)" (PDF). Ornitologia Neotropical. 7: 75–107 – via The Neotropical Ornithological Society.
  6. ↑ Mason, Nicholas A.; Burns, Kevin J. (2013). "Molecular Phylogenetics of the Neotropical Seedeaters and Seed-Finches (Sporophila, Oryzoborus, Dolospingus)". Ornithologia Neotropical. 24: 139–155. S2CID   53057957.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Ridgely, Robert S.; Tudor, Guy; Brown, William L. (1989). The birds of South America. Austin, TX, USA: University of Texas Press. ISBN   0-292-70756-8. OCLC   18381347.
  8. ↑ Porzio, Natália S.; Repenning, Márcio; Fontana, Carla S. (March 2019). "Evolution of Beak Size and Song Constraints in Neotropical Seedeaters (Thraupidae: Sporophila)". Acta Ornithologica. 53 (2): 173–180. doi:10.3161/00016454AO2018.53.2.007. ISSN   0001-6454.
  9. ↑ Goldschmidt, Beatriz; Nogueira, Denise Monnerat; Silva, Katia Pacheco Araujo; Souza, Lucia Moreno de (June 2000). "Study of the karyotype of Oryzoborus maximiliani (Passeriformes - Aves) using young feather pulp cultures". Genetics and Molecular Biology. 23 (2): 271–273. doi: 10.1590/S1415-47572000000200022 . ISSN   1415-4757.
  10. ↑ Ludwig, Sandra; Martins, Ana Paula Vimieiro; Queiroz, Ana Luiza Lemos; Carmo, Anderson Oliveira do; Oliveira-Mendes, Bárbara Bruna Ribeiro; Kalapothakis, Evanguedes (2017-12-12). "Complete mitochondrial genome of Sporophila maximiliani (Ave, Passeriformes)". Mitochondrial DNA Part B. 2 (2): 417–418. doi: 10.1080/23802359.2017.1347840 . PMC   7800134 .
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Medolago, Cesar A. B.; Ubaid, Flávio K.; Francisco, Mercival R.; Silveira, Luís F. (September 2016). "Description of the nest and eggs of the Great-billed Seed-Finch (Sporophila maximiliani)". The Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 128 (3): 638–642. doi:10.1676/1559-4491-128.3.638. ISSN   1559-4491.
  12. ↑ "Great-billed Seed-finch (Sporophila maximiliani)". www.hbw.com. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  13. ↑ Machado, Ricardo Bomfim; Silveira, Luís Fábio; da Silva, Maria Izabel Soares Gomes; Ubaid, Flávio Kulaif; Medolago, Cesar Augusto; Francisco, Mercival Roberto; Dianese, José Carmine (2019-08-08). "Reintroduction of songbirds from captivity: the case of the Great-billed Seed-finch (Sporophila maximiliani) in Brazil". Biodiversity and Conservation. 29 (5): 1613–1636. doi:10.1007/s10531-019-01830-8. ISSN   1572-9710.
  14. ↑ "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017. doi: 10.2305/iucn.uk.2017-3.rlts.t22723537a118849676.en . Retrieved 2019-12-05.


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