Plum-headed finch

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Plum-headed finch

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Estrildidae
Genus: Aidemosyne
Reichenbach, 1862
Species:
A. modesta
Binomial name
Aidemosyne modesta
(Gould, 1837)
Approximate range

The plum-headed finch (Aidemosyne modesta) also known as cherry finch is a common species of

estrildid finch found in Australia
. It is the only species placed in the genus Aidemosyne. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 100,000 – 1,000,000 km2.

Taxonomy

The plum-headed finch was

monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.[6]

Description

The plum-headed finc is a robust bird, with a stocky, strong beak and a long tail. It measures some 15 cm long. The scientific name emphasizes the absence of the flamboyant livery typical of many Australian species, as the brown tones predominate in the plumage of this bird; the upper part of the body (nape, back, wings and tail) is in fact a deep brown color, with a tendency to darken on the tail, while the ventral area (cheeks, throat, chest, abdomen and hips) is beige color that turns towards white in the central part of the belly and on the undertail. The bird distinguishes for its fine zebra like colouring, which is white and present on the eyebrows, neck, chest, hips and tail, while on the remiges are two rows of white spots. The beak is black, the legs are flesh-colored and the eyes are dark brown. In the male there are also a rust colored bib and a frontal stain of the same color (often with a brighter color tending to purple red), which in the female are reduced or absent, in any case with a predominance of brown on red; they also have less dense stripes. The female is similar to the male but lacks the male's black chin spot.

Distribution and habitat

It is found in dry savannah and subtropical/tropical (lowland) dry shrubland in Australia.

Behaviour

Breeding

The plum-headed finch breeds mainly from September to January in the south and from August to March in the north. The nest is round, laterally compressed chamber of green grass and is built in thick bushes. Four to six pure white eggs are laid.

Helidon, south-east Queensland, Australia

Status

The

References

  1. ^ a b BirdLife International (2012). "Neochmia modesta". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. .
  3. ^ Paynter, Raymond A. Jr, ed. (1968). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 14. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 368.
  4. .
  5. ^ Reichenbach, Ludwig (1862). Die Singvögel als Fortsetzung de vollständigsten Naturgeschichte und zugleich als Central-Atlas für zoologische Gärten und für Thierfreunde. Ein durch zahlreiche illuminirte Abbildungen illustrirtes Handbuch zur richtigten Bestimmung und Pflege der Thiere aller Classen (in German). Dresden and Leipzig: Expedition Vollständigsten Naturgeschichte. p. 14.
  6. ^ . IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  7. .