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Yellow-faced Grassquit - BirdForum Opus

Revision as of 23:23, 24 February 2012 by Deliatodd-18346 (talk | contribs) (Picture of female. Attempt to disguise some copied text. Distribution, Taxonomy. References.)
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Photo of male by Stanley Jones
Alajuela Province, Costa Rica, March, 2006
Tiaris olivaceus

Identification

Length: 10.0-10.7 cm; weight: 9.5-10.0 g

  • Conical bill, sharper than that of the related seedeaters

Adult male

  • Olive-green back
  • Black face and breast
  • Bright yellow throat, supercilium, and lower eyelid spot
  • Greyish-olive underparts

Adult female

  • Dull olive-green upperparts
  • Paler grey underparts
  • Dark breast smudges may be visible
  • The face pattern is much weaker and duller, and may be almost invisible

Young birds: duller and greyer than the female
Young males: begin to acquire full adult plumage in their first year.

Distribution

Photo by COLOMBIA birding
Photo taken: W. Andes

Central and South America and the Caribbean
Central America: Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, uas Caribbean (West Indies): Greater Antilles, Cuba, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Haiti, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
South America: Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 5 subspecies[1]:

  • T. o. pusillus:
  • T. o. intermedius:
  • Cozumel Island and Holbox Island (off Yucatan Peninsula)
Female
Photo by Stanley Jones
Road to Rincon de la Vieja towards Dos Rios, Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica, November 2011
  • T. o. ravidus:
  • T. o. olivaceus:
  • T. o. bryanti:

The scientific name has been spelled olivacea in the past.

Habitat

Rain forest, open grassy areas, woodlands and grassland. Observed at heights around 275 meters.

Behaviour

Diet

They feed mainly on seeds (mostly grass), berries and some insects.

Breeding

The female builds the globular nest, which is formed from stems of grass and weeds. They sometimes nest in loose colonies. The clutch consists of two or three brown-speckled white eggs, which are incubated by the female alone for 12-14 days to hatching.

Vocalisation

Call: a weak buzzing trilled ttttt-tee
The male vibrates his wings as he sings to the female from only a few centimetres away.

References

  1. Clements, JF. 2011. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to August 2011. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
  2. Avibase
  3. everything.explained

Recommended Citation

External Links

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