Saffron Finch
Sicalis flaveola
Widespread and common but patchily distributed. Male is bright yellow with saturated orange on forehead. Typically shows less brownish-olive tone on back and wings than many yellowfinches, but southern populations of Saffron are duller and browner above. Females are duller than males, with southern populations even browner and streakier. Could be confused with Grassland Yellow-Finch, but that species is usually duller and more heavily streaked above. Orange-fronted Yellow-Finch is smaller. Saffron Finch is found in dry open habitats including agricultural land and towns. Often in flocks.
Identification
The male is bright yellow with an orange crown which distinguishes it from most other yellow finches (the exception being the orange-fronted yellow finch). The females are more difficult to identify and are usually just a slightly duller version of the male, but in the southern subspecies S. f. pelzelni they are olive-brown with heavy dark streaks.
Taxonomy
The saffron finch was formally described in 1766 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the 12th edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Fringilla flaveola. The specific epithet is a diminutive of the Latin flavus meaning "golden" or "yellow". The type locality is Suriname. The saffron finch is now placed in the genus Sicalis that was introduced in 1828 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie.<p>Five subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Sicalis flaveola
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thraupidae
- Genus
- Sicalis
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
White Woodpecker
Melanerpes candidus
Strikingly-plumaged medium-sized woodpecker, mostly white with dark wings and back contrasting with yellow goggles with a dark eye stripe. Males have a yellowish nape. Often seen in small groups foraging in open areas, savannas, and dry forests. Makes a series of ternlike “krreee, krreeee” calls.
White-cheeked Bullfinch
Pyrrhula leucogenis
A medium-sized bird of low- to mid-elevation montane forest and edge on Mindanao. Overall pale brown with a slightly paler belly, a black face, crown, tail, bottom half of the wing, and shoulder patch, a white rump, and a prominent white cheek. Note the thick black bill. Feeds on berries and flowers and joins mixed-species flocks in the non-breeding season. No similar birds occur in its range. Voice includes medium-pitched clear, downslurred piping calls, “piuu! piuu,” sometimes with a flat first note: “piii! piuu!”
Black-capped Petrel
Pterodroma hasitata
A long-winged, black-and-white bird that is most often found far out at sea, coming to land only to breed on remote cliffs from November into May. Adults visit the nest sites only at night, when it is possible to hear this species vocalizing. The rather similar Bermuda Petrel lacks this species’ white collar and white rump. Black-capped Petrels also have a darker headed or “cowled” appearance than Bermuda Petrels. Calls at nesting areas include a drawn out “awwwww” that often grows louder towards the end and is usually given in series, sometimes with a squeaky hiccuplike terminal note that has an oddly donkey-like quality. Also gives a puppy-like yelp.
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