Citril Finch
Encyclopedia
The Citril Finch is a small songbird
, a member of the true finch
family
Fringillidae. For a long time, this cardueline finch was placed in the genus
Serinus
, but it is apparently very closely related to the European Goldfinch
(C. carduelis).
This bird
is a resident breeder in the mountains of southwestern Europe
from Spain to the Alps
. Its northernmost breeding area is found in the Black Forest
of southwestern Germany
. Individuals recorded further north are probably escaped from captivity, as most such records are from some time ago. For example, Staatliches Museum für Tierkunde Dresden
specimen 582 is a first-year male shot supposedly in Saxony
earlier than 1849; that museum's specimen 21956 was the skull of another Citril Finch presumably taken in Saxony 1915, but it was destroyed in World War II
.
Sexes are similar, although young females may be duller below, and juvenile birds – unlike in European Serinus
species – are brown, lacking any yellow or green in the plumage.
The song
is a silvery twittering resembling that of the European Goldfinch
(C. carduelis) and that of the European Serin
(Serinus serinus). The main call is a tee-ee quite similar to the Eurasian Siskin
(C. spinus).
The Corsican Finch
(C. corsicana) is regarded as a subspecies
of the Citril Finch, but it differs in morphology
and vocalizations as well as mtDNA sequence
, so it is also considered a distinct species by some authors.
in habitat
selection. While the mainland Citril Finch is rather restricted to subalpine
coniferous forests and alpine
meadows, the insular Corsican Finch may be found in different habitats from sea level to the highest mountain slopes. The Citril Finch nest
s mainly in conifers such as pine
s (Pinus) and spruce
s (Picea) while the Corsican Finch uses also lower bushes such as Tree Heath
(Erica arborea), juniper
(Juniperus) and bramble
(Rubus).
Ranging more widely than its equally common eastern relative, the Citril Finch is classified as a Species of Least Concern
by the IUCN.
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
, a member of the true finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Fringillidae. For a long time, this cardueline finch was placed in the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Serinus
Serinus
The genus Serinus is a large genus of birds in the finch family Fringillidae found mostly in the Afrotropical region with some outlying species in Europe and Asia. The genus contains several species groups including canaries, seedeaters and the African siskins...
, but it is apparently very closely related to the European Goldfinch
European Goldfinch
The European Goldfinch or Goldfinch is a small passerine bird in the finch family.-Habitat and range:The goldfinch breeds across Europe, North Africa, and western and central Asia, in open, partially wooded lowlands. It is resident in the milder west of its range, but migrates from colder regions...
(C. carduelis).
This bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
is a resident breeder in the mountains of southwestern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
from Spain to the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. Its northernmost breeding area is found in the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
of southwestern Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Individuals recorded further north are probably escaped from captivity, as most such records are from some time ago. For example, Staatliches Museum für Tierkunde Dresden
Staatliches Museum für Tierkunde Dresden
The State Museum of Zoology in Dresden is a natural history museum that houses 10,000-50,000 specimens, including skeletons and large insect collections. Many are types. The collection suffered war damage and whilst catalogued the database is not computerized. Loans are possible and material can...
specimen 582 is a first-year male shot supposedly in Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
earlier than 1849; that museum's specimen 21956 was the skull of another Citril Finch presumably taken in Saxony 1915, but it was destroyed in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Description and systematics
12 cm (not quite 5 in) long, the Citril Finch is greyish above, with a brown tinge to the back which also has black streaks. The underparts and the double wing bars are yellow. It shares with its relatives a bright face mask which in this species is also yellow.Sexes are similar, although young females may be duller below, and juvenile birds – unlike in European Serinus
Serinus
The genus Serinus is a large genus of birds in the finch family Fringillidae found mostly in the Afrotropical region with some outlying species in Europe and Asia. The genus contains several species groups including canaries, seedeaters and the African siskins...
species – are brown, lacking any yellow or green in the plumage.
The song
Bird song
Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs are distinguished by function from calls.-Definition:The distinction between songs and calls is based upon...
is a silvery twittering resembling that of the European Goldfinch
European Goldfinch
The European Goldfinch or Goldfinch is a small passerine bird in the finch family.-Habitat and range:The goldfinch breeds across Europe, North Africa, and western and central Asia, in open, partially wooded lowlands. It is resident in the milder west of its range, but migrates from colder regions...
(C. carduelis) and that of the European Serin
European Serin
The European Serin, or just Serin is the smallest European species of the family of finches and is closely related to the Canary. Its diet consists mainly of a combination of buds and seeds.-Description:...
(Serinus serinus). The main call is a tee-ee quite similar to the Eurasian Siskin
Eurasian Siskin
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 names include Black-headed Goldfinch, barley bird and aberdevine. It is very common throughout Europe and Asia...
(C. spinus).
The Corsican Finch
Corsican Finch
The Corsican Finch is a bird in the finch family, Fringillidae.It was formerly regarded a subspecies of the Citril Finch, but it differs in morphology and vocalizations as well as mtDNA sequence and they are now considered distinct...
(C. corsicana) is regarded as a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Citril Finch, but it differs in morphology
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
and vocalizations as well as mtDNA sequence
DNA sequence
The sequence or primary structure of a nucleic acid is the composition of atoms that make up the nucleic acid and the chemical bonds that bond those atoms. Because nucleic acids, such as DNA and RNA, are unbranched polymers, this specification is equivalent to specifying the sequence of...
, so it is also considered a distinct species by some authors.
Ecology
The Citril Finch differs from the Corsican Finch C. corsicanaCorsican Finch
The Corsican Finch is a bird in the finch family, Fringillidae.It was formerly regarded a subspecies of the Citril Finch, but it differs in morphology and vocalizations as well as mtDNA sequence and they are now considered distinct...
in habitat
Habitat (ecology)
A habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant or other type of organism...
selection. While the mainland Citril Finch is rather restricted to subalpine
Subalpine
The subalpine zone is the biotic zone immediately below tree line around the world. Species that occur in this zone depend on the location of the zone on the Earth, for example, Snow Gum in Australia, or Subalpine Larch, Mountain Hemlock and Subalpine Fir in western North America.Trees in the...
coniferous forests and alpine
Alpine climate
Alpine climate is the average weather for a region above the tree line. This climate is also referred to as mountain climate or highland climate....
meadows, the insular Corsican Finch may be found in different habitats from sea level to the highest mountain slopes. The Citril Finch nest
Bird nest
A bird nest is the spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young. Although the term popularly refers to a specific structure made by the bird itself—such as the grassy cup nest of the American Robin or Eurasian Blackbird, or the elaborately woven hanging nest of the...
s mainly in conifers such as pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
s (Pinus) and spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
s (Picea) while the Corsican Finch uses also lower bushes such as Tree Heath
Tree heath
Erica arborea, the tree heath, is a shrub or small evergreen tree found mostly in the macchia-matorral-maquis shrublands, dry evergreen scrublands, surrounding the Mediterranean Basin and west to Portugal and the Canary and Madeira Islands....
(Erica arborea), juniper
Juniper
Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
(Juniperus) and bramble
Bramble
Brambles are thorny plants of the genus Rubus, in the rose family . Bramble fruit is the fruit of any such plant, including the blackberry and raspberry. The word comes from Germanic *bram-bezi, whence also German Brombeere , Dutch Braam and French framboise...
(Rubus).
Ranging more widely than its equally common eastern relative, the Citril Finch is classified as a Species of Least Concern
Least Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
by the IUCN.