Tenerife blue chaffinch

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Tenerife blue chaffinch
Teidefink.jpg
Male
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Fringillidae
Subfamily: Fringillinae
Genus: Fringilla
Species:
F. teydea
Binomial name
Fringilla teydea

The Tenerife blue chaffinch (Fringilla teydea) 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. [2]

Contents

Taxonomy

Until 2015, the species Fringilla teydea was classified into two subspecies: Fringilla teydea polatzeki from Gran Canaria and Fringilla teydea teydea from Tenerife. [3] However, a study published in March 2016 showed that a classification as different species, Fringilla polatzeki and Fringilla teydea, is justified. [4]

Description

Tenerife blue chaffinches resemble common chaffinches, but they are noticeably larger, and have a thicker bill. They are characteristically more uniform in their plumage, and they lack a dark cap. Females are a dull grey-brown, but can be distinguished from chaffinches by their weaker wing bars. Breeding males are unmistakable, with the namesake largely blue plumage and a grey bill. [3]

Distribution

This bird is found only in the highlands of Tenerife.

The species' primary habitat is mountain Canary Island pine (Pinus canariensis) forest. It is most common in coniferous forest areas with dense undergrowth, but it is also found in laurel and pine woodland, tree-heath, and scrub. [3] It prefers habitat at around 1,100–2,000 m (3,600–6,600 ft), but it will descend in bad weather. [1]

Behaviour

The Tenerife blue chaffinch's song is shorter and weaker than that of the common chaffinch, and the flight call is croakier. It primarily eats Canary Island pine seeds. Like the common chaffinch, but unlike most other finches, its young are fed extensively on insects. [3] 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. [5] This bird is not migratory. Individuals may form small flocks outside the breeding season, sometimes associating with common chaffinches and other finches. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<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

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

The 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">Spanish sparrow</span> Species of bird

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

The brambling is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It has also been called the cock o' the north and the mountain finch. It is widespread and migratory, often seen in very large flocks.

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

The Eurasian siskin is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is also called the European siskin, common siskin or just siskin. Other (archaic) names include black-headed goldfinch, barley bird and aberdevine. It is very common throughout Europe and Eurosiberia. It is found in forested areas, both coniferous and mixed woodland where it feeds on seeds of all kinds, especially of alder and conifers.

<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">Bolle's pigeon</span> Species of bird

Bolle's pigeon, Bolle's laurel pigeon or dark-tailed laurel pigeon is a species of the genus Columba of family Columbidae, doves and pigeons, endemic to the Canary Islands, Spain. This bird is named after the German naturalist Carl Bolle, who was the first to distinguish it from the laurel pigeon. This wood pigeon is endemic to the laurel forest habitat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurel pigeon</span> Species of bird

The laurel pigeon or white-tailed laurel pigeon is a species of bird in the Columba genus in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Canary Islands, Spain, and resides in laurel forest habitat. It is the animal symbol of the island of La Gomera.

<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">Canary Islands oystercatcher</span> Species of bird

The Canary Islands oystercatcher, Canarian oystercatcher, or Canarian black oystercatcher , was a shorebird of uncertain taxonomy endemic to Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, and their offshore islets in the Canary Islands in Spain. It is now considered to be extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canary Islands chiffchaff</span> Species of bird

The Canary Islands chiffchaff is a species of leaf warbler endemic to the Canary Islands, Spain. Sometimes the English name is spelled Canary Island chiffchaff.

<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.

<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:

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

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

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2017). "Fringilla teydea". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T103822567A111091603. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T103822567A111091603.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. "Símbolos de la naturaleza para las Islas Canarias" [Natural Symbols for the Canary Islands]. Ley No. 7/1991 of 30 April 1991 (in Spanish). Vol. 151. pp. 20946–20497 via BOE.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Clement, Peter; Harris, Alan; Davis, John (1993). Finches and Sparrows. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. pp. 167–168. ISBN   0-691-03424-9.
  4. Sangster, G.; Rodríguez‐Godoy, F.; Roselaar, C. S.; Robb, M. S.; Luksenburg, J. A. (2016). "Integrative taxonomy reveals Europe's rarest songbird species, the Gran Canaria blue chaffinch Fringilla polatzeki". Journal of Avian Biology. 47 (2): 159–166. doi:10.1111/jav.00825.
  5. Heredia, Borja; Rose, Laurence; Painter, Mary, eds. (1996). Globally Threatened Birds in Europe: Action Plans. Strasbourg, France: Council of Europe Publishing. p. 344. ISBN   92-871-3066-3.