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Hooded Grosbeak - BirdForum Opus

Photo by sungrebe
Pine-Oak forest, Northeast Mexico, Feb 2005
Hesperiphona abeillei

Coccothraustes abeillei

Identification

Photo by Stanley Jones
Cerro Tecpan, Guatemala, April 2010

6.7-7.2in (17-18.5cm)
Males have completely black head, throat, wings (with whitish patch), and tail. Bill very heavy, pale greenish.
Females have black caps and lores; wings (with pale grey patch) and tail black; outer tail feathers partly white tipped.

Distribution

Central America: rare and local resident in Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala.

Taxonomy

Some authorities now place this species in the genus Coccothraustes[1].

Subspecies[1]

  • C. a. pallidus:
  • Sierra Madre Occidental of Mexico (Chihuahua, Sinaloa, Durango)
  • C. a. saturatus:
  • Mountains of eastern Mexico (San Luis Potosí and south-western Tamaulipas)
  • C. a. abeillei:
  • Mountains of central and southern Mexico
  • C. a. cobanensis:

Habitat

Cloud forest, humid pine-oak or fir forest, lush gardens, partial clearings, borders at higher elevation

Behaviour

Occurs in pairs or small groups, locally in flocks of 50+ in winter, often seen flying high overhead, calling.

Diet

Feeds quietly at mid to upper levels.

Breeding

Nest at mid to upper levels in trees.

References

  1. 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.
  2. Avibase

Recommended Citation

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