Morelet's Seedeater - BirdForum Opus

Male
Photo by fishercl
Ixtapa, Mexico, January, 2010

Sporophila torqueola

Identification

Typical overall appearance of a seedeater. The male is easily identified in its range, with a dark head and back, A single while collar, stubby dark bill with curved culmen, buffy belly, short tail and double white wingbars. The female is overall a drab light brown.

Variation

The black bib in the male varies between weak in subspecies sharpei and much stronger in e.g., moreletti^[1].

Distribution

North America and Central America
Eastern and western Mexico and the far southern Rio Grande Valley in Texas; additionally along the Caribbean slope south to western Panama.

Taxonomy

Subspecies^[2]

This is a polytypic species consisting of four subspecies:

• S. t. sharpei:

• Southern Texas (lower Rio Grande Valley) to eastern Mexico (Veracruz)

• S. t. morelleti:

• Caribbean slope of southern Mexico (Veracruz) to extreme western Panama

• S. t. mutanda:

• Pacific slope of southern Mexico (Chiapas) to Guatemala and El Salvador

• S. t. torqueola: (Cinnamon-rumped)

• South-western Mexico (Jalisco to Guanajuato, western Puebla and southern Oaxaca)

Habitat

Grassy and weedy areas near cane.

Behaviour

Diet

The diet includes seeds.

References

1. Birdforum thread discussing id of White-collared Seedeater
2. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Morelet's Seedeater. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 25 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Morelet%27s_Seedeater

External Links

Search for photos of Morelet's Seedeater in the gallery