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Brimstone Canary - BirdForum Opus

Male, subspecies wilsoni
Photo © by jdbirdman
Cape vidal, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Alternative name: Bully Canary

Crithagra sulphurata

Serinus sulphuratus

Identification

Subspecies sharpii
Photo © by volker sthamer
Kazinga, Uganda, July 2018

13·5–16 cm (5¼-6¼ in)
A large canary with a big bill.
Male

  • Bright yellow underparts
  • Olive-green malar stripe
  • Bright yellow but short supercilliary stripe.

Similar species

Yellow Canary has a supercilium that is much longer and does not narrow so quickly behind the eye.

Distribution

Photo © by Wiganlad
South Africa, 18 October 2014

Africa: Uganda and Kenya, south to eastern and southern South Africa.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 3 subspecies[1]:

  • C. s. sharpii:
  • C. s. wilsoni:
  • C. s. sulphurata:
  • Southern South Africa (southern Western Cape and western Eastern Cape)

Two additional subspecies frommi and shelleyi are not generally recognised, and languens is usually considered invalid[2].

Habitat

Lowland coastal woodland, thicket, coastal scrub and gardens.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet consists mostly of seeds, leaves, flowers, berries, buds and ripened fruit. They also eat some insects such as termites.

They are usually seen either singly or in pairs.

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Avibase
  3. Sinclair I & Ryan P. 2003. Birds of Africa south of the Sahara. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0620207299
  4. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved December 2018)

Recommended Citation

External Links

GSearch checked for 2020 platform.

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