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;[[:Category:Serinus|Serinus]] alario | ;[[:Category:Serinus|Serinus]] alario | ||
| + | ''Alario alario'', ''Crithagra alario'' | ||
[[Image:Swartkopkanarie.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by Twinspot. <br />Tankwa Karoo National Park, Northern Cape Province, South Africa.]] | [[Image:Swartkopkanarie.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by Twinspot. <br />Tankwa Karoo National Park, Northern Cape Province, South Africa.]] | ||
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
Revision as of 15:03, 17 August 2008
Includes Damara Canary
- Serinus alario
Alario alario, Crithagra alario
Identification
Length 12 cm, mass 11-13 g. A striking canary with bold colouration.
Adult male (S. a. alario): Head, neck, chin, throat and centre of upper breast black, extending in an inverted 'V' to the lower breast; belly, centre of lower breast, flanks, and sides of the upperbreast white; back, rump, tail and wing coverts chestnut.
Adult female: Grey head, throat and breast, and white belly; chestnut back, tail and wing coverts.
Distribution
South Africa, Namibia and Lesotho.
Taxonomy
This species has two subspecies:1
- S. a. alario
- Southern Namibia, South Africa from the west coast to Lesotho, and Lesotho.
- S. a. leucolaemus
- Range overlaps with S. a. alario, but extends further north in Namibia, and not as far south or west in South Africa.
- Male has a pied (rather than black) head, with a white eyebrow, cheeks, chin and throat; female has a faint whitish head pattern similar to that of the male.
Some authorities2,3 consider S. a. leucoleamus a separate species, the Damara Canary, Serinus leucolaemus.
Habitat
Arid to semi-arid shrublands and grasslands; also weedy road verges, croplands and gardens.
Behaviour
Found in pairs or family groups when breeding; when not breeding, forms flocks of up to several hundered birds.
Forages on the ground and in shrubs, trees and grasses for seeds; also eats buds, petals, fruit and termites.
Breeding
Probably monogamous and territorial. The nest is a cup built by the female using dry grass, twigs and bark and lined with plant down; placed within a metre of the ground in a shrub or small tree. Two to five eggs are laid; incubated for 13-14 days by the female.
References
- Hockey PAR, Dean WRJ & Ryan PG (eds) 2005. Robert's Birds of Southern Africa, 7th edition. John Voelcker Bird Book Fund, Cape Town, South Africa. ISBN 0620340533
- Sinclair I & Ryan P. 2003. Birds of Africa south of the Sahara. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0620207299
- Clements JF. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2008. Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
