European serin

The European serin, or simply the serin (Serinus serinus), is the smallest species of the family of finches (Fringillidae) and is closely related to the Atlantic canary. Its diet consists mainly of a combination of buds and seeds.

European serin
Male
Female
both Souss-Massa National Park, Morocco
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Fringillidae
Subfamily: Carduelinae
Genus: Serinus
Species:
S. serinus
Binomial name
Serinus serinus
(Linnaeus, 1766)
Range of S. serinus
  Breeding
  Resident
  Non-breeding
Synonyms

Fringilla serinus Linnaeus, 1766

Taxonomy

The European serin was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the 12th edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Fringilla serinus.[2][3] The Latin serinus comes from the French word serin for a canary. The French word may be a corruption of the Latin word citrinus meaning "lemon-coloured".[4]

Description

The European serin is a small short-tailed bird, 11–12 cm in length. The upper parts are dark-streaked greyish green, with a yellow rump. The yellow breast and white belly are also heavily streaked. The male has a brighter yellow face and breast, yellow wing bars and yellow tail sides. The song of this bird is a buzzing trill, very familiar in Mediterranean countries.

It breeds across southern and central Europe and North Africa. Southern and Atlantic coast populations are largely resident, but the northern breeders migrate further south in Europe for the winter. Open woodland and cultivation, often with some conifers, is favoured for breeding. It builds its nest in a shrub or tree, laying 3–5 eggs. It forms flocks outside the breeding season, sometimes mixed with other finches.

The food is mainly seeds, and, in the breeding season, insects. This small serin is an active and often conspicuous bird.

  • male
    male
  • A video of the serin
  • Another video of the serin with its distinctive call
Egg, collection of the Museum Wiesbaden, Germany

References
  1. BirdLife International (2018). "Serinus serinus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T22720049A132136209. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22720049A132136209.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. Linnaeus, C. (1766). Systema Naturæ per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis, Volume 1 (in Latin). Vol. 1 (12th ed.). Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 320.
  3. Paynter, Raymond A. Jnr., ed. (1968). Check-list of birds of the world, Volume 14. Vol. 14. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 210.
  4. Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 354. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.

Media related to Serinus serinus at Wikimedia Commons

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