Editing Atlantic canary

{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{About|the wild bird|the cagebird|Domestic canary}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Atlantic canary
| image = Serinus canaria -Parque Rural del Nublo, Gran Canaria, Spain -male-8a.jpg
| image_caption = Male in Gran Canaria, Spain
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2018 |title=''Serinus canaria'' |volume=2018 |page=e.T22720056A132137153 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22720056A132137153.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| taxon = Serinus canaria
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies
| subdivision = * [[Atlantic canary|Serinus canaria canaria]] (wild canary or common canary)
* Serinus canaria domestica ([[Domestic canary|domestic canary]])
| synonyms = ''Fringilla canaria'' {{small|Linnaeus,&nbsp;1758}}
}}

The '''Atlantic canary''' ('''''Serinus canaria'''''), known worldwide simply as the '''wild canary''' and also called the '''island canary''', '''common canary''', or '''canary''', is a small [[passerine]] [[bird]] belonging to the [[genus]] ''[[Serinus]]'' in the true finch family, [[Fringillidae]]. It is native to the [[Canary Islands]], the [[Azores]], and [[Madeira]]. Wild birds are mostly yellow-green, with brownish streaking on the back. The [[domestic canary|species is common in captivity]] and a number of colour varieties have been bred.

This bird is the natural symbol of the Canary Islands, together with the [[Canary Island date palm]].<ref>{{cite act |type=Ley |index=7/1991 |date=30 April 1991 |title=Símbolos de la naturaleza para las Islas Canarias |trans-title=Natural Symbols for the Canary Islands |url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1991-16276 |language=es |via=[[Boletín Oficial del Estado|BOE]] |volume=151 |pages=20946–20497}}</ref>

==Taxonomy==
The Atlantic canary was [[Species description|formally described]] in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist [[Carl Linnaeus]] in the [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|tenth edition]] of his ''[[Systema Naturae]]''. He placed it with the finches in the [[genus]] ''[[Fringilla]]'' and coined the [[binomial name]] ''Fringilla canaria''.<ref>{{cite book | last=Linnaeus | first=Carl | author-link=Carl Linnaeus | year=1758 | title= Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis | volume=1 | edition=10th | page=181 | publisher=Laurentii Salvii | location=Holmiae (Stockholm) | language=Latin | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/727088 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite book | editor-last=Paynter | editor-first=Raymond A. Jr | year=1968 | title=Check-List of Birds of the World | volume=14 | publisher=Museum of Comparative Zoology | place=Cambridge, Massachusetts | pages=210-211 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14481411 }}</ref> In 1555 the Swiss naturalist [[Conrad Gessner]] had used the [[Latin]] name ''Canaria'' for the species in his book ''[[Historia animalium (Gessner book)|Historia animalium]]''.<ref>{{cite book| last=Gesner | first=Conrad | author-link=Conrad Gessner | title=Historiae animalium liber III qui est de auium natura. Adiecti sunt ab initio indices alphabetici decem super nominibus auium in totidem linguis diuersis: & ante illos enumeratio auium eo ordiné quo in hoc volumine continentur | year=1555 | publisher= Froschauer | location=Zurich | language=Latin | page=234 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/52661116 }}<!--Linnaeus cited a different edition.--></ref> The Atlantic canary is now one of eight species placed in the [[genus]] ''[[Serinus]]'' that was introduced in 1816 by the German naturalist [[Carl Ludwig Koch]]. The wild species is considered to be [[monotypic]]: no [[subspecies]] are recognised.<ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela C. Rasmussen | date=August 2024 | title=Finches, euphonias | work=IOC World Bird List Version 14.2 | url=http://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/finches/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref>

The Atlantic canary's closest relative is the European serin, and the two can produce on average 25% fertile hybrids if crossed.

The bird is named after the Canary Islands. The islands' name is derived from the Latin name ''canariae insulae'' ("islands of dogs") used by [[Arnobius]], referring to the large dogs kept by the inhabitants of the islands.<ref name=oed>''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]''</ref> A legend of the islands, however, states that it was the conquistadors who named the islands after a fierce tribe inhabiting the largest island of the group, known as the 'Canarii'. The colour [[yellow|canary yellow]] is in turn named after the yellow [[domestic canary]], produced by a mutation which suppressed the melanins of the original dull greenish wild Atlantic canary colour.

== Description ==
The Atlantic canary can range from {{convert|10|to|12|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length, with a wingspan of {{convert|21|to|23.7|cm|in|abbr=on}} and a weight of {{convert|8.4|to|24.3|g|oz|abbr=on}}, with an average of around {{convert|15|g|oz|abbr=on}}.<ref name=bwpc>Snow, D. W. & Perrins, C. M. (1998). ''The Birds of the Western Palearctic'' concise ed. Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|0-19-854099-X}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php|title=Tubeworm (Lamellibrachia) longevity, ageing, and life history|website=genomics.senescence.info}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thesprucepets.com/pet-canaries-1236727|title=A Canary Is an Ideal Pet Bird for Beginners|website=The Spruce Pets}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mbe.oxfordjournals.org/content/16/1/2.full.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150718190213/http://mbe.oxfordjournals.org/content/16/1/2.full.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2015-07-18 |title=Rapid Radiation of Canaries |website=mbe.oxfordjournals.org }}</ref><ref name = "CRC">''CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses'' by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), {{ISBN|978-0-8493-4258-5}}.</ref><ref name="Clement">''Finches and Sparrows'' by Peter Clement. Princeton University Press (1999). {{ISBN|978-0691048789}}.</ref> The male has a largely yellow-green head and underparts with a yellower forehead, face and [[supercilium]].<ref name=finches>Clement, P., Harris, A., & and Davis, J. (1993). ''Finches and Sparrows''. Helm {{ISBN|0-7136-8017-2}}.</ref> The lower belly and undertail-coverts are whitish and there are some dark streaks on the sides. The upperparts are grey-green with dark streaks and the rump is dull yellow.<ref name=Atlantic>Tony Clarke, Chris Orgill & Tony Dudley (2006) ''Field Guide to the Birds of the Atlantic Islands'', Christopher Helm, London.</ref> The female is similar to the male but duller with a greyer head and breast and less yellow underparts. [[Juvenile (organism)|Juvenile]] birds are largely brown with dark streaks.

It is about 10% larger, longer and less contrasted than its relative the [[European serin]], and has more grey and brown in its [[plumage]] and relatively shorter wings.<ref name=bwpc/>

The [[Bird vocalization|song]] is a silvery twittering similar to the songs of the European serin and [[citril finch]].<ref name=bwpc/><ref name=finches/>

== Distribution and habitat ==
[[File:Serinus canaria -Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain-8 (1).jpg|right|thumb|Juvenile on [[Gran Canaria]], Canary Islands, Spain]]
It is [[endemism|endemic]] to the Canary Islands, Azores and Madeira in the region known as [[Macaronesia]] in the eastern [[Atlantic Ocean]]. In the Canary Islands, it is common on [[Tenerife]], [[La Gomera]], [[La Palma]] and [[El Hierro]], but more local on [[Gran Canaria]], and rare on [[Lanzarote]] and [[Fuerteventura]], where it has only recently begun breeding.<ref name=Atlantic/><ref>Clarke, Tony & Collins, David (1996). ''A Birdwatchers' Guide to the Canary Islands''. Prion, Huntingdon. {{ISBN|1-871104-06-8}}.</ref> It is common in Madeira including [[Porto Santo]] and the [[Desertas Islands]], and has been recorded on the [[Savage Islands]]. In the Azores, it is common on all islands.<ref name=Atlantic/> The population has been estimated at 80,000-90,000 pairs in the Canary Islands, 30,000-60,000 pairs in the Azores and 4,000-5,000 pairs in Madeira.<ref name=bwpc/>

It occurs in a wide variety of [[habitat]]s from [[pine]] and [[laurel forest]]s to sand dunes. It is most common in semiopen areas with small trees such as [[orchard]]s and copses. It frequently occurs in man-made habitats such as parks and gardens. It is found from sea-level up to at least 760&nbsp;m in Madeira, 1,100&nbsp;m in the Azores and to above 1,500&nbsp;m in the Canary Islands.<ref name=bwpc/>

It has become established on [[Midway Atoll]] in the northwest [[Hawaiian Islands]], where it was first [[introduced species|introduced]] in 1911. It was also introduced to neighbouring [[Kure Atoll]], but failed to become established there.<ref>Pratt, H. Douglas; Bruner, Philip L. & Berrett, Delwyn G. (1987). ''A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific'', Princeton University Press, Chichester.</ref> Birds were introduced to [[Bermuda]] in 1930 and quickly started breeding, but they began to decline in the 1940s after [[scale insect]]s devastated the population of [[Bermuda cedar]], and by the 1960s they had died out.<ref>Amos, Eric J. R. (1991). ''A guide to the Birds of Bermuda''.</ref> The species also occurs in [[Puerto Rico]], but is not yet established there.<ref>American Ornithologists Union (1998). ''[http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 Checklist of North American Birds] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211170240/http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 |date=11 December 2007 }}'', 7th ed.</ref> They are also found on [[Ascension Island]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nature Notes – Atlantic canary |url=https://www.ascension.gov.ac/nature-notes-atlantic-canary |access-date=2024-07-09 |website=Ascension Island Government |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Behavior ==

=== Reproduction ===
[[File:Serinus canaria MHNT 223 Tenerife 2000m pin RdN.jpg|thumb|Eggs of ''Serinus canaria canaria'' [[Tenerife]] [[MHNT]]]]
It is a gregarious bird which often nests in groups with each pair defending a small territory. The cup-shaped [[bird nest|nest]] is built 1–6&nbsp;m above the ground in a tree or bush, most commonly at 3–4&nbsp;m.<ref name=Atlantic/> It is well-hidden amongst leaves, often at the end of a branch or in a fork. It is made of twigs, grass, moss and other plant material and lined with soft material including hair and feathers.<ref name=bwpc/>

The [[egg]]s are laid between January and July in the Canary Islands, from March to June with a peak of April and May in Madeira and from March to July with a peak of May and June in the Azores. They are pale blue or blue-green with violet or reddish markings concentrated at the broad end. A clutch contains 3 to 4 or occasionally 5 eggs and 2–3 broods are raised each year. The eggs are [[egg incubation|incubated]] for 13–14 days and the young birds leave the nest after 14–21 days, most commonly after 15–17 days.<ref name=bwpc/>

[[Inbreeding depression]] occurs in ''S. canaria'' and is more severe during early development under the stressful conditions associated with hatching asynchrony.<ref name="deBoer2015">{{Cite journal |last1=de Boer |first1=Raïssa A. |last2=Eens |first2=Marcel |last3=Fransen |first3=Erik |last4=Müller |first4=Wendt |date=2015 |title=Hatching asynchrony aggravates inbreeding depression in a songbird (Serinus canaria): an inbreeding-environment interaction |journal=Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution |volume=69 |issue=4 |pages=1063–1068 |doi=10.1111/evo.12625 |pmid=25689753|hdl=10067/1266040151162165141 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>  Hatching asynchrony leads to differences in age and thus in size, so that the environment of the first hatched is relatively benign, compared to that of the last hatched.<ref name = deBoer2015/>

=== Feeding ===
It typically feeds in flocks, foraging on the ground or amongst low vegetation. It mainly feeds on seeds such as those of weeds, grasses and [[ficus|fig]]s. It also feeds on other plant material and small [[insect]]s.<ref name=bwpc/>

== See also ==
* [[List of animal and plant symbols of the Canary Islands]]
* [[Domestic canary]]
* [[Australian plainhead]]
* [[Harz Roller]]
* [[Red factor canary]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons}}
{{EB1911 poster|Canary}}
* [http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/island-canary-serinus-canaria Canary videos, photos & sounds] on the Internet Bird Collection

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[[Category:Serinus|Atlantic canary]]
[[Category:Birds of the Canary Islands]]
[[Category:Birds of Madeira]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Azores]]
[[Category:Birds of Macaronesia]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1758|Atlantic canary]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus|Atlantic canary]]
[[Category:Birds of Africa]]