{{Unreferenced, date=December 2007 The seedeaters are a

form taxon Form classification is the classification of organisms based on their morphology, which does not necessarily reflect their biological relationships. Form classification, generally restricted to palaeontology, reflects uncertainty; the goal of s ...

of seed-eating

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

s with a distinctively conical bill. Most are Central and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

n birds that were formerly placed in the American sparrow

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(Passerellidae), but are now known to be

tanager The tanagers (singular ) comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has a Neotropical distribution and is the second-largest family of birds. It represents about 4% of all avian species and 12% of the Neotropica ...

s (Thraupidae) closely related to Darwins finches. Indeed, some of the birds listed here seedeaters are closer to these "finches", while the more "true" seedeaters form a clade with some tanagers. A few "atypical" seedeaters are closely related to certain tanagers, many of which (such as the

flowerpiercer ''Diglossa'' is a genus in the family Thraupidae. They are commonly known as flowerpiercers because of their habit of piercing the base of flowers to access nectar that otherwise would be out of reach. This is done with their highly modified bill ...

s) have peculiarly adapted bills. In addition, there are some

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

n passerines called seedeaters. They belong to the

serin ''Serinus'' is a genus of small birds in the finch family Fringillidae found in Europe and Africa. The birds usually have some yellow in their plumage. The genus was introduced in 1816 by the German naturalist Carl Ludwig Koch. Its name is New L ...

genus (''Serinus'') of the

true finch The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...

family (Fringillidae), but might need to be separated with their closest relatives in ''Crithagra''.

American seedeaters

True seedeaters * ''

Amaurospiza ''Amaurospiza'' is a genus of birds in the cardinal family Cardinalidae. Taxonomy and species list The genus ''Amaurospiza '' was introduced by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis in 1861 with Cabanis's seedeater as the type species. The name ...

'' – blue seedeaters (4 species, tentatively placed here) * '' Dolospingus'' – white-naped seedeater * '' Oryzoborus'' – seed-finches (6 species, sometimes included in ''Sporophila'') * '' Sporophila'' – typical seedeaters (some 30 species, 1 possibly recently extinct) Related to Darwin's finches * '' Euneornis'' – orangequit * ''

Loxigilla ''Loxigilla'' is a genus of passerine birds in the tanager family Thraupidae. The two species are both endemic to the Lesser Antilles. Taxonomy The genus ''Loxigilla'' was introduced in 1831 by the French naturalist René Lesson. The type speci ...

'' – Antillean bullfinches (4 species) * '' Loxipasser'' – yellow-shouldered grassquit * ''

Melanospiza ''Melanospiza'' is a genus of Neotropical birds in the tanager family Thraupidae. Taxonomy and species list The genus ''Melanospiza '' was introduced in 1897 by the American ornithologist Robert Ridgway with the Saint Lucia black finch as the ty ...

'' – St. Lucia black finch * ''

Melopyrrha ''Melopyrrha'' is a genus of passerine birds in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is made up of four extant species endemic to the Greater Antilles, along with 1 possibly extinct species from the island of Saint Kitts in the Lesser Antilles. Ta ...

'' – Cuban bullfinch * ''

Tiaris The yellow-faced grassquit (''Tiaris olivaceus'') is a passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae and is the only member of the genus ''Tiaris''. It is native to the Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. Taxonomy In 1760 the F ...

'' – typical grassquits (5 species) NBII Image Gallery -Catamenia inornata-a00269

Atypical seedeaters * '' Acanthidops'' – peg-billed finch * '' Catamenia'' (3 species) * '' Haplospiza'' (2 species) Relatives of true seedeaters These tanagers are the true seedeaters' closest relatives: * '' Charitospiza'' – coal-crested finch * '' Lophospingus'' (2 species) * ''

Sicalis ''Sicalis'' is a genus of birds in the tanager family Thraupidae. Sometimes classified in the bunting and American sparrow family Emberizidae, more recent studies have shown it to belong in the Thraupidae. Taxonomy and species list The genus ''S ...

'' – yellow-finches (12 species) * '' Volatinia'' – blue-black grassquit

African seedeaters

Streaky-headed Seedeater (Serinus gularis)

* Southern yellow-rumped seedeater, ''Serinus atrogularis'' * Thick-billed seedeater, ''Serinus burtoni'' * Lemon-breasted seedeater, ''Serinus citrinipectus'' * Yellow-throated seedeater, ''Serinus flavigula'' * Streaky-headed seedeater, ''Serinus gularis'' * Protea seedeater, ''Serinus leucopterus'' *

White-rumped seedeater The white-rumped seedeater (''Crithagra leucopygia'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found throughout the Sahel and the eastern part of the Sudan region. Its natural habitat is dry savanna. It is known elsewhere and in ...

, ''Serinus leucopygius'' * Black-eared seedeater, ''Serinus mennelli'' * Reichard's seedeater, ''Serinus reichardi'' * Principe seedeater, ''Serinus rufobrunneus'' *

Streaky seedeater The streaky seedeater (''Crithagra striolata'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. Phylogeny T ...

, ''Serinus striolatus'' * Brown-rumped seedeater, ''Serinus tristriatus'' * Abyssinian yellow-rumped seedeater, ''Serinus xanthopygius''

External links

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Emberizidae
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