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| − | [[Image:Swartkopkanarie.jpg|thumb| | + | [[Image:Swartkopkanarie.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Photo by {{user|Twinspot|Twinspot}} <br />[[Tankwa Karoo National Park]], Northern Cape Province, [[South Africa]]]] |
;[[:Category:Serinus|Serinus]] alario | ;[[:Category:Serinus|Serinus]] alario | ||
''Alario alario'', ''Crithagra alario''<br /> | ''Alario alario'', ''Crithagra alario''<br /> | ||
'''Includes Damara Canary''' | '''Includes Damara Canary''' | ||
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
| − | Length | + | [[Image:S64A6176-2.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Damara Canary, subspecies ''leucolaemus''<br />Photo by {{user|max1|max1}}<br />West Coast Nat Park, Cape, [[South Africa]], October 2017]] |
| + | Length 12–13 cm (4¾-5 in), mass 11-13 g. A striking canary with bold colouration.<br /> | ||
'''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.<br /> | '''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.<br /> | ||
'''Adult female''': Grey head, throat and breast, and white belly; chestnut back, tail and wing coverts. | '''Adult female''': Grey head, throat and breast, and white belly; chestnut back, tail and wing coverts. | ||
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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. | 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== | ==References== | ||
| − | # | + | #{{Ref-Hockeyetal05}}#{{Ref-SinclairRyan03}}#{{Ref-Clements6thAug17}} |
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{{ref}} | {{ref}} | ||
==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
{{GSearch|Serinus+alario}} | {{GSearch|Serinus+alario}} | ||
[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Serinus]] | [[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Serinus]] | ||
Revision as of 23:35, 1 November 2017
- Serinus alario
Alario alario, Crithagra alario
Includes Damara Canary
Identification
Photo by max1
West Coast Nat Park, Cape, South Africa, October 2017
Length 12–13 cm (4¾-5 in), 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.
This species was formerly placed in genus Alario by Clements.
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.
Diet
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, WRJ Dean, and PG Ryan, eds. 2005. Roberts' Birds of Southern Africa. 7th ed. Cape Town: John Voelcker Bird Book Fund. ISBN 978-0620340533
- Sinclair, I and P Ryan. 2003. Birds of Africa South of the Sahara. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0691118154
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black-headed Canary. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 17 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-headed_Canary
