Scarlet bullfinch
| Scarlet bullfinch | ||||||||||||
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Drawing of a pair of scarlet bullfinches by John Gould , 1850–54 |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Carpodacus sipahi | ||||||||||||
| ( Hodgson , 1836) |
The scarlet bullfinch ( Carpodacus sipahi , syn .: Haematospiza sipahi ) is a songbird from the finch family . The colorful species was the only one in the monotypic genus Haematospiza , which, however , was incorporated into the related genus Karmingimpeln after molecular genetic studies . It inhabits parts of the Himalayas and western China , where it occurs mainly in high mountain spruce forests.
description
Appearance
With a length of 18–19 cm, the scarlet bullfinch is about the same size as a grosbeak . The 16-20 mm long, large and strong beak is brownish pink above and yellowish horn-colored below. The feet are brownish pink. In the male, the wing length is 98-108 mm, the tail length 59-70 mm and the weight 38-42.5 g. In the female, the wing length is between 95 and 103 mm, the tail length between 55 and 66 mm and the weight between 39 and 40 g.
The sexes differ so clearly in the plumage that one could mistake them for different species. The male is intense scarlet red almost all over its body. The forehead and reins are a bit browner, the coverts under the tail show dark feathers. The wing feathers are dark brown to black with scarlet borders, which are very fine on the wing and coverts and widest on the inner coverts and umbrella feathers. The rather short, straight tail is blackish to black with pale red edges.
The female is olive-colored to yellowish green on the upper head and back and appears blotchy to scaly due to darker, brownish feather centers. The rump is bright yellow, the upper tail-coverts are olive-colored and show pale yellow hems and tips. The chin and throat are mottled gray with a yellowish green shade. The underside is also gray and appears spotted or scaled due to dark feather centers and some whitish feather bases. The thighs are brownish, the coverts whitish. The wing plumage and the control feathers are dark or colorless brown with olive-green to olive-brown edges.
The youth dress is practically indistinguishable from that of the female. In the first summer, young males begin to develop orange-red areas on the rump, crown, breast and the feather edges of the large plumage. Freshly adult males are the most intensely red in color, as the intensity decreases with age. Some males show olive-yellow feathers on the wing feathers, perhaps they are subadult birds.
The flight of this species is strong and arched with rapid wing beats.
voice
The call is a loud, pleasant tuu-iee , plieeau , kwie-iu or tschiu-wie-au . The singing consists of a clear, fluid pa-ri-rieeee .
Distribution and existence
The distribution of the monotypical scarlet bullfinch extends in the Himalayas from central Nepal through northern Assam , northeastern Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya and from the extreme north of Bangladesh to northern and western Yunnan . Other occurrences may be found in eastern Laos or northern Vietnam , but these could be winter observations.
The species is rare or absent-minded, but its population is not threatened.
Way of life
The scarlet bullfinch lives at altitudes between 1600 and 3355 m. In winter it migrates to lower altitudes, which are 1,400 m or lower in Nepal and up to 600 m in Sikkim . However, the migration behavior has not yet been very well researched. There are also winter occurrences south of Brahmaputra and in eastern and northeastern Myanmar . Rare observations have been made from the north-west of Thailand .
During the breeding season, the species predominantly inhabits spruce forests; in winter it can also be found in bamboo and oak forests. One meets mostly single birds or scattered associations of up to 30 individuals. In winter, flocks often form which are only composed of birds of one sex. The diet consists of various seeds, buds, berries and occasionally insects. Little is known about the breeding biology.
Systematics
The phylogenetic status of the genus Haematospiza was not exactly known for a long time. Investigations of the mitochondrial DNA have shown that the scarlet bullfinch is closely related to the old-world carmine raspberry species and especially the carmine raspberry ( Carpodacus erythrinus ). The epithet of the scientific name refers to the Sipahi - mounted soldiers in the Ottoman Empire who wore red coats.
literature
- P. Clement, A. Harris, J. Davis: Finches and Sparrows. Helm Identification Guides, London 1993/1999, ISBN 0-7136-5203-9 .
Individual evidence
- ^ A. Arnaiz-Villena, J. Moscoso, V. Ruiz-del-Valle, J. Gonzalez, R. Reguera, M. Wink, JI Serrano-Vela: Bayesian phylogeny of Fringillinae birds: status of the singular African Oriole Finch ( Linurgus olivaceus) and evolution and heterogeneity of genus Carpodacus , Acta Zoologica Sinica 53 (5), pp. 826-834, 2007 ( PDF ).
Web links
- Carpodacus sipahi inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.3. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Carpodacus sipahi in the Internet Bird Collection
- Photos of Haematospiza sipahi in the Oriental Bird Club image database , accessed April 1, 2010