Syrian Serin
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| Serinus syriacus Bonaparte, 1851 |
The Syrian Serin is a brightly coloured small passerine bird in the finch family fringillidae.
The Syrian Serin is prettily coloured with bright yellow and pale grey feathers. The eyes are large and are surrounded by a bright yellow ring. The beak is grey and the legs are pale pinkish-grey. The Syrian serin has a long trilling call, and may also chirp and twitter.
It breeds not only in Syria as well as Lebanon, Israel and Jordan at altitudes of between 900 – 1,900 metres. The population in Jordan makes local movements in winter, but the birds of Lebanon, Israel and Syria migrate to wintering grounds in Egypt, Turkey and Iraq.
They inhabit rocky areas and grasslands and eat mainly the seeds of grasses.
Males court females with a song display, and each pair builds a nest in a tree once the snow has begun to melt in mid April or May. Four pale blue, glossy eggs are laid in May and June and the female incubates these for 12 – 14 days. The young fledge after just 14 – 16 days and the parents then move up to around 1,750 metres in July and August to produce a second clutch. When conditions allow the pair can produce three broods.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2006). Serinus syriacus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 14 October 2006.Includes justification for why this species is vulnerable
