Red-fronted Serin
Encyclopedia
The Red-fronted Serin or Fire-fronted Serin (Serinus pusillus) is a small passerine
bird
in the finch
family Fringillidae. It prefers high mountain regions and is 11–12 cm long.
This bird breeds in the Caucasus
and the higher mountain
s of Turkey
and Iran
, with vagrants occasionally reaching the Greek
Eastern Aegean Islands in winter. This bird is also found in Ladakh
India
. Outside the breeding season, it occurs in small flocks, typically seen searching through thistle patches. It is a popular cagebird, and escapes from captivity are occasionally found throughout Europe.
The bird is variable in plumage, with adults resembling very dark redpoll
s. The foreparts are sooty and the forehead is red; juveniles have buff-brown heads. The call is a rapid, shrill "titihihihihihi", resembling that of a Linnet
.
The bird will breed in captivity and thrives on a diet of canary grass seed, millet, and other small seeds. They bathe daily if water is accessible.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
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...
in the 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 Fringillidae. It prefers high mountain regions and is 11–12 cm long.
This bird breeds in the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
and the higher mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
s of Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, with vagrants occasionally reaching the Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
Eastern Aegean Islands in winter. This bird is also found in Ladakh
Ladakh
Ladakh is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of the Republic of India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent...
India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Outside the breeding season, it occurs in small flocks, typically seen searching through thistle patches. It is a popular cagebird, and escapes from captivity are occasionally found throughout Europe.
The bird is variable in plumage, with adults resembling very dark redpoll
Redpoll
The Redpolls are a group of small passerine birds in the finch family Fringillidae which have characteristic red markings on their heads. They were formerly placed into the genus Acanthis together with the linnets and the twite, but their closest relatives are actually the crossbills, that are...
s. The foreparts are sooty and the forehead is red; juveniles have buff-brown heads. The call is a rapid, shrill "titihihihihihi", resembling that of a Linnet
Linnet
The Linnet is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae.The Linnet derives its scientific name from its fondness for hemp and its English name from its liking for seeds of flax, from which linen is made.- Description :...
.
The bird will breed in captivity and thrives on a diet of canary grass seed, millet, and other small seeds. They bathe daily if water is accessible.