Yellow-throated seedeater  (Serinus flavigula)

IUCN Red List species status – Endangered
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Facts – Yellow-throated seedeater

French: Serin à gorge jaune
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyFringillidae
GenusSerinus (1)
SizeLength: 11 cm (2)
Wingspan: 64 – 70 mm (3)

Status – Yellow-throated seedeater

Classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List 2007 (1).

Description – Yellow-throated seedeater

Very few specimens have ever been collected of this small canary species (3); since being discovered around 1886, the yellow-throated seedeater was not found again until one hundred years later (2). It has mostly greyish-brown plumage, with a white belly and, as the name suggests, a pale primrose-yellow patch on the throat and upper breast (2) (3). The sides of the face are grey, the chin is white and a blackish band runs across the lower neck (3). The yellow-throated seedeater belongs to the finch family, Fringillidae, a group of birds which all have bills that have evolved for feeding efficiently on seeds (4).

Range – Yellow-throated seedeater

Endemic to eastern Ethiopia, where it has been found in the Shoa province (3).

Habitat – Yellow-throated seedeater

The yellow-throated seedeater is thought to prefer semi-arid desert scrub, savannah with scattered trees, thick patches of scrub on rocky hill sides, and grasslands (2).

Biology – Yellow-throated seedeater

Very little is known about the biology or ecology of the yellow-throated seedeater. Only one nest of this bird has ever been found, situated on top of a small Acacia bush (2). Like other Serinus species it is likely to feed on seeds, and is also know to feed on the small shrub Lavandula (2).

Threats – Yellow-throated seedeater

Habitat alteration and disturbance is the greatest threat facing the rare yellow-throated seedeater (2). Conversion to farmland is the main threat to the natural habitat of eastern Ethiopia, along with exploitation of trees for timber and fuelwood (5). As the yellow-throated seedeater has never been recorded from cultivated or highly degraded land it is likely to be intolerant of such habitat alteration (2). These threats extend even into so-called protected areas; increasing human pressure and tribal conflicts have impacted the Awash National Park, and people and their livestock have moved into the park, where fires are now a regular occurrence (2).

Conservation – Yellow-throated seedeater

The yellow-throated seedeater occurs in Awash National Park, but as mentioned above, this is unlikely to confer much protection. There are no specific conservation measures known to be in place for this species at present, but actions, such as distribution and population surveys, have been recommended (2). It appears that action is urgently required, before the tiny population and range of the yellow-throated seedeater shrinks any further.

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Find out more – Yellow-throated seedeater

For further information on the yellow-throated seedeater see:

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Glossary

  • Endemic: a species or taxonomic group that is only found in one particular country or geographic area.

References

  1. IUCN Red List (September, 2007)
    http://www.iucnredlist.org
  2. BirdLife International (September, 2007)
    http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=8774&m=0
  3. Mackworth-Praed, C.W. (1980) Birds of Eastern and North-Eastern Africa. Longman, London.
  4. Burnie, D. (2001) Animal. Dorling Kindersley, London.
  5. World Wildlife Fund: Ecoregion Profile (September, 2007)
    http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/at/at0112_full.html
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Yellow-throated seedeater perched Yellow-throated seedeater perched

 
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Yellow-throated seedeater perched
Yellow-throated seedeater perched

© Nik Borrow

Nik Borrow
n.borrow@btinternet.com
http://web.mac.com/nikborrow

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