The black-headed canary (Serinus alario) is a species of finch found in Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa. It is sometimes placed in the genus Alario as Alario alario

Black-headed canary
Male in Northern Cape, South Africa
Female in Namaqua National Park, South Africa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Fringillidae
Subfamily: Carduelinae
Genus: Serinus
Species:
S. alario
Binomial name
Serinus alario
Global range
  Year-Round Range
  Summer Range
  Winter Range
Synonyms
  • Emberiza alario Linnaeus, 1758
  • Fringilla alario Linnaeus, 1766
  • Crithagra alario (Linnaeus, 1758)

Its habitat is dry open scrub and grassland, the edges of cultivation and suburban gardens.

Description

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The black-headed canary is 12–15 cm in length. The adult male has rich brown upper parts and tail, a white hind collar, and mainly white underparts. The head and central breast are solidly black.

The adult female is similar, but has a dull grey head, and is dark-streaked on the head and upper parts. It has a rich brown wing bar. The juvenile resembles the female, but is paler and has streaking on the breast and a weaker wing bar.

 
Male Damara canary

The Damara canary (Serinus leucolaema) is often considered to be a subspecies of the black-headed canary. The male of that form has a strikingly different head pattern, with a white supercilium, and a white throat and foreneck with a black moustachial stripe. The black of the central breast is therefore separate from the black of the head.

Behaviour

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The Damara canary is a common and gregarious seed-eater, forming flocks of up to 200 birds. Its call is a low tseett, and the male's song is a jumble of unmusical notes.

References

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  1. ^ BirdLife International (2016). "Serinus alario". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22720301A94664136. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22720301A94664136.en. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  • Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN 1-86872-721-1
  • Clement, Harris and Davis, Finches and Sparrows ISBN 0-7136-8017-2
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