Double-barred finch
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The double-barred finch (Stizoptera bichenovii) is an estrildid finch found in dry savannah, tropical (lowland) dry grassland and shrubland habitats in northern and eastern Australia. It is sometimes referred to as Bicheno's finch or as the owl finch, the latter of which owing to the dark ring of feathers around the face. It is the only species placed in the genus Stizoptera .
TaxonomyEdit
The double-barred finch was formally described in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Vigors and Thomas Horsfield from specimens collected near Shoalwater Bay and Broad Sound in Queensland, Australia. They coined the binomial name Fringilla bichenovii.<ref name=vigors>Template:Cite journal The title page is dated 1826.</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The species was formerly placed in the genus Taeniopygia. A molecular phylogenetic study of the Estrildidae published in 2020 found that the genus Taeniopygia was not monophyletic.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In the reorganization to create monophyletic genera, the double-barred finch was moved to the resurrected genus Stizoptera that had been introduced in 1899 by the American ornithologist Harry C. Oberholser.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=ioc>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The genus name combines the Ancient Greek stizō meaning "to tattoo" with pteron meaning "wing". The specific epithet commemorates James Ebenezer Bicheno, a colonial secretary of Van Diemen's Land appointed in September 1842.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Two subspecies are recognised:<ref name=ioc/>
- S. b. annulosa (Gould, 1840) – north Western Australia and Northern Territory (northwest, north Australia)
- S. b. bichenovii (Vigors & Horsfield, 1827) – north Queensland to southeast New South Wales (east Australia)
DescriptionEdit
The double-barred finch is a 10–11 cm long munia-like bird. It has a white face bordered with black, brown upperparts and throat, and white underparts. The throat and underparts are separated by another black line. The wings are patterned in brown and white. The sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller and browner. The subspecies S. b. annulosa differs from the nominate in having a black rather than a white Template:Birdgloss.<ref name=BOTW>Payne, R. B. (2021). Double-barred Finch (Stizoptera bichenovii), version 1.1. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.dobfin1.01.1</ref>
BehaviourEdit
The double-barred finch is granivorous and highly gregarious. Nests are built in grass, bushes or low trees, with four to six eggs laid per clutch. The call is a soft tet or a louder peew, and the song is a soft fluting, which is somewhat like the zebra finch.<ref name=BOTW/>
GalleryEdit
- Taeniopygia bichenovii 1 - Glen Alice.jpg
Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia
- Double-barred finch 8066-2.jpg
Gregory River, Queensland
- Double-barred Finch94.ogg
South-east Queensland, Australia
- National Aviary (13020192503).jpg
Nesting in captivity
ReferencesEdit
- Finches and Sparrows by Clement, Harris and Davis, Template:ISBN