Carrizal Seedeater
Encyclopedia
The Carrizal Seedeater, Amaurospiza carrizalensis, is a recently discovered species of seedeater
. These are bird
s in the family
Cardinalidae, long placed with the American sparrow
s in the Emberizidae
.
This bird
lived on Isla Carrizal in the Caura River
, in northern Venezuela
.
The males are gray with blue flecks, and the females are yellow.
The species has been described based on three specimens found in 2001; its only known habitat
– spiny bamboo on that island – has been cleared to allow construction of a dam
, but researchers are hopeful of finding the birds living elsewhere.
Seedeater
The seedeaters are a form taxon of seed-eating passerine birds with a distinctively conical bill.Most are Central and South American birds that were formerly placed in the American sparrow family , but are now known to be tanagers closely related to Darwins finches...
. These are bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Cardinalidae, long placed with the American sparrow
American sparrow
American sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming part of the family Emberizidae. American sparrows are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns....
s in the Emberizidae
Emberizidae
The Emberizidae are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill.In Europe, most species are called buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the sparrows, the...
.
This bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
lived on Isla Carrizal in the Caura River
Caura River (Venezuela)
The Caura is a tributary of the Orinoco River, located in Bolívar State in Venezuela. Its flow is the second after the Caroni River among the affluents of the Orinoco River, with almost 3.000 m³/s....
, in northern Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
.
The males are gray with blue flecks, and the females are yellow.
The species has been described based on three specimens found in 2001; its only known habitat
Habitat (ecology)
A habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant or other type of organism...
– spiny bamboo on that island – has been cleared to allow construction of a dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
, but researchers are hopeful of finding the birds living elsewhere.