Yellow-green Grosbeak
Caryothraustes canadensis
A well-named grosbeak that is olive-greenish above and brighter yellow below, with a distinctive black face and a stout bill with a silver base. Disjunct range stretches from eastern Panama to southeast Brazil. Occurs in the subcanopy of lowland forest, up to around 1,000 m. Typically found in small groups, sometimes as a part of a larger mixed-species flock. Often draws attention to itself with piercing buzzy and squeaky calls. Not likely confused, but compare with female Red-and-black Grosbeak, which has entirely black head.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the yellow-green grosbeak in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Cayenne in French Guiana. He used the French name Le Gros-bec de Cayenne and the Latin name Coccothraustes Cayanensis. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the yellow-green grosbeak. Linnaeus included a terse description, used the binomial name Loxia canadensis and cited Brisson's work. Linnaeus mistakenly claimed that the species occurred in Canada rather than Cayenne and introduced the specific name canadensis for Canada where the bird does not occur. This species is now placed in the genus Caryothraustes that was introduced by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach in 1850. There are four subspecies.
- Scientific name
- Caryothraustes canadensis
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Cardinalidae
- Genus
- Caryothraustes
Range and habitat
It is found in Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Suriname, and Venezuela.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and heavily degraded former forest.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Little Bee-eater
Merops pusillus
A small, mostly grass-green bee-eater with a canary-yellow throat separated from buff underparts by a black line across the throat. Singles and pairs occupy grassy savanna and wetland edges. They often perch lower than 1.5 m above the ground, and dart around hunting flying insects, then returning to the same small twig. Calls include a sibilant “s-lip” and other high-pitched notes. The Blue-breasted Bee-eater is slightly larger and has a white patch on the cheek. The much larger Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater has burnt orange underparts, and it prefers highland forest above 1800 m.
Puff-throated Bulbul
Alophoixus pallidus
A large crested bulbul of tropical forests, usually found in the canopy foraging on berries. Body is a light yellow-green, while the wings, tail, and crown are brown. “Puff” of the white throat is slight and not an obvious feature. In the northwestern part of its range, it overlaps with the similar White-throated Bulbul, which has a more scraggly crest, more extensive white on the throat and face, and olive-green wings. Chatters with explosively harsh and barking quality; groups can be very loud and cacophonous.
Rock Pratincole
Glareola nuchalis
Small, dark, short-legged pratincole. In flight, shows a white rump and white stripes under the wings. Found mainly on rocks in fast-flowing rivers. Locally will also use sandbars in rivers and rocky islands in lakes. The call is a high-pitched and quickly repeated “kek.” Separated from other pratincoles by its combination of small size, dark coloration, and stripes under the wings.
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