Black-faced grassquit

The black-faced grassquit (Melanospiza bicolor) is a small bird. It is recognized as a tanager closely related to Darwin's finches. It breeds in the West Indies except Cuba, on Tobago but not Trinidad, and along the northern coasts of Colombia and Venezuela.

Black-faced grassquit
Male, Jamaica
Female, Jamaica
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Thraupidae
Genus: Melanospiza
Species:
M. bicolor
Binomial name
Melanospiza bicolor
(Linnaeus, 1766)
Synonyms
  • Fringilla bicolor Linnaeus, 1766
  • Melanospiza bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766)

Taxonomy

The first formal description of the black-faced grassquit was by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He introduced the binomial name Fringilla bicolor.[2] Linnaeus based his description on the "Bahama Sparrow" that was described and illustrated by Mark Catesby in his The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands which was published between 1729 and 1732.[3] The black-faced grassquit was traditionally placed in the genus Tiaris.[4] A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that this genus was polyphyletic and that the black-faced grassquit was closely related to the Saint Lucia black finch in the monospecific genus Melanospiza.[5] In the resulting reorganization of the genera, the black-faced grassquit was moved to Melanospiza.[6][7]

An adult female

Eight subspecies are recognised:[7]

Description

A male black-faced grassquits is around 10 cm (3.9 in) long and weighs approximately 10 g (0.35 oz). It has a short conical black bill, a black head and breast with an olive green back. Females and immature birds have dull olive-grey upperparts and head, and paler grey underparts becoming whiter on the belly.[8]

Males on the South American mainland have more extensively black underparts, shading to a grey belly.

The male has a display flight in which he flies for short distances, vibrating his wings and giving a buzzing dik-zeezeezee call.[8]

Behaviour and ecology

Breeding

This is a common bird in long grass or scrub in open or semi-open areas, including roadsides and ricefields. It makes a domed grass nest, lined with finer grasses, and placed low in a bush or on a bank. The typical clutch is two or three whitish eggs blotched with reddish brown.[8]

Food and feeding

The black-faced grassquit feeds mainly on seeds, especially of grasses and weeds. It is often found in small groups.[8]

References
  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Melanospiza bicolor". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Linnaeus, Carl (1766). Systema naturae : per regna tria natura, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Volume 1, Part 1 (12th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 324.
  3. Catesby, Mark (1729–1732). The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands (in English and French). Volume 1. London: W. Innys and R. Manby. p. 37, Plate 37.
  4. Paynter, Raymond A. Jr, ed. (1970). Check-List of Birds of the World. Volume 13. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 156.
  5. Burns, K.J.; Shultz, A.J.; Title, P.O.; Mason, N.A.; Barker, F.K.; Klicka, J.; Lanyon, S.M.; Lovette, I.J. (2014). "Phylogenetics and diversification of tanagers (Passeriformes: Thraupidae), the largest radiation of Neotropical songbirds". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 75: 41–77. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2014.02.006.
  6. Burns, K.J.; Unitt, P.; Mason, N.A. (2016). "A genus-level classification of the family Thraupidae (Class Aves: Order Passeriformes)". Zootaxa. 4088 (3): 329–354. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4088.3.2.
  7. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2020). "Tanagers and allies". IOC World Bird List Version 10.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  8. Rising, J.D. (2020). del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J.; Christie, D.A.; de Juana, E. (eds.). "Black-faced Grassquit (Melanospiza bicolor), version 1.0". Birds of the World. Ithaca, NY, USA: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
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