Small Ground Finch - BirdForum Opus

Photo by GordonH
Photo taken: Santa Cruz in the Galapagos Islands.

Geospiza fuliginosa

Identification

The smallest ground finch. Like other species in this group, Black plumage is supposed to signal a male in full breeding (with white tips to undertail coverts), but males can also be much more similar to females, with brown and gray plumage and striped underside. Bill color can go from black to pink. Bill shape is usually distinctive, with a small bill that is more pointed than in other ground finches (significantly longer than it is tall), with the culmen slightly curved. The size of the bill varies between islands depending on what food is available and which other species are competing.

Distribution

Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) - on main islands, except Culpepper, Genovesa and Wenman.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species¹.

Habitat

Mostly breeding in coastal and arid zones and occasionally higher, moving higher into woodland when not breeding; to 1700m.

Behaviour

Feeds on smaller seeds and the like, but also on ectoparasites found on reptiles including iguanas and tortoises.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Small Ground Finch. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 4 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Small_Ground_Finch

External Links

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