Eurasian Siskin

Carduelis spinus

SUBFAMILY

Carduelinae

TAXONOMY

Carduelis spinus Linnaeus, 1758.

OTHER COMMON NAMES

English: Siskin; French: Tarin des aulnes; German: Erlenzeisig; Spanish: Lúgano.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Eurasian siskins are about 5.1 in (13 cm) in length. They have a thin, pointed beak. The upperparts of the male are colored gray, with yellow bars on the wings, a yellow belly and face, and black on the crown of the head and just beneath the lower mandible. The female is much duller and more heavily streaked, and has a whitish belly and few yellow markings.

DISTRIBUTION

Eurasian siskins range widely across Eurasia, from the United Kingdom, through virtually all of Europe, across Asia to eastern Russia, northern China, and Japan. They winter irregularly in more southern regions within their range, sometimes in large irruptions.

HABITAT

Eurasian siskins breed in various kinds of coniferous forest, including boreal and montane types. They often winter in more open kinds of habitats, including gardens.

BEHAVIOR

Eurasian siskins can be rather tame, and may even perch on people when being fed. They have a bounding flight pattern. Eurasian siskins are migratory, breeding in northern parts of their range and spending the winter in southern reaches. They are highly social bird, particularly during the nonbreeding season when they occur in large flocks, often with other finches. Their courtship and territorial displays include aerial maneuvers and singing by the male. The song is a high-pitched twittering, and there are also distinctive call notes.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Eurasian siskins feed on grains and tree seeds and buds. They also use bird feeders put out by people during the winter.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Eurasian siskins build a cup-shaped nest of grasses and other plant fibers. The nest is usually placed in a conifer tree. The clutch consists of four or five spotted eggs. They build their nest and lay eggs earlier than usual in years when there is an abundant supply of conifer seeds, even doing while snow is still on the ground. This can allow them to raise additional broods during that nesting season.

CONSERVATION STATUS

Not threatened. They are a widespread and abundant songbird.

SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS

None known.

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Eurasian Siskin
Male
Female
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Fringillidae
Genus:	Carduelis
Species:	C. spinus
Binomial name
Carduelis spinus Linnaeus, 1758
Ranges of C spinus      Summer     Resident     Winter

The Eurasian Siskin (Carduelis spinus) is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is very common throughout Europe and Asia. It is found in forested areas, both coniferous and mixed woodland where it feeds on seeds of all kinds, especially of alder and conifers.

This bird breeds across northern temperate Europe and into Russia. There is a separate population in eastern Asia. It is partially resident, but the northern breeders migrate further south in Europe in the winter. The eastern Asian birds winter in China or further south. In some years there are large eruptions into the wintering range, when the preferred food of alder or birch seed fails. This species will form large flocks outside the breeding season, often mixed with redpolls.

Coniferous woodland, especially Spruce, is favoured for breeding. It builds its nest in a tree, laying 2-6 eggs. The British range of this once local breeder has expanded greatly due to commercial conifer plantations.

The food is mainly seeds, as above, and, in the breeding season, insects. This small finch is an acrobatic feeder, often hanging upside-down like a tit. It will visit garden bird feeding stations.

Contents 1 Description 2 Alternative names 3 See also 4 Further reading 4.1 Identification 5 References 6 External links 7 Photo gallery

Description

The Siskin is a small short-tailed bird, 11 and 12.5 cm in length^[2] with a wingspan that ranges from 20 to 23 cm.^[2] It weighs between 10 and 18 g^[2].

The upper parts are greyish green and the under parts grey-streaked white. Its wings are black with a conspicuous yellow wing bar, and the tail is black with yellow sides. The male has a mainly yellow face and breast, with a neat black cap. Female and young birds have a greyish green head and no cap. The song of this bird is a pleasant mix of twitters and trills.

There is a similar and closely related North America counterpart, the Pine Siskin, Carduelis pinus.

Alternative names

Carduelis spinus is also called 'European Siskin', 'Commmon Siskin' or, in Europe, it just 'Siskin'. Other (archaic) names include 'Black-headed Goldfinch',^[3] 'Barley Bird'^[4] and 'Aberdevine'^[4]

See also

• For the bronze statue of a siskin in St. Petersburg, see Chizhik-Pyzhik.

Further reading

Identification

• Lethaby, Nick (1997) Identification of Pine Siskin Birding World 10(10): 383-6 (covers separation of European Siskin from Pine Siskin C. pinus)

References

1. ^ BirdLife International (2004). Carduelis spinus. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
2. ^ ^{a b c} The Birds of the Western Palearctic [Abridged]. OUP. 1997. ISBN 019854099X. 
3. ^ "Eurasian Siskin (Carduelis spinus) (Linnaeus, 1758)". Avibase. 30. http://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?lang=EN&avibaseid=9820CECA12EC737D. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Lockwood, W. B. (1993). The Oxford Dictionary of British Bird Names. OUP. ISBN 0198661967. 

External links

• Eurasian Siskin videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection
• Ageing and sexing (PDF) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta

• Media related to Carduelis spinus at Wikimedia Commons
•  "siskin". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911. 

Photo gallery

Female

Male

Female

Male

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