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 Sicalis was introduced in 1828 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie. The name is from the Ancient Greek σικαλίς/sikalis, a small, black-headed bird, mentioned by Epicharmus, Aristotle, and other authors. It was perhaps a warbler in the genus Sylvia. The type species is the saffron finch. The genus now contains 13 species.
Image Scientific name Common name Distribution Sicalis citrina Stripe-tailed yellow finch Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela Sicalis taczanowskii Sulphur-throated finch Ecuador and Peru Sicalis uropigyalis Bright-rumped yellow finch the Altiplano of Peru, Bolivia and northern Chile and Argentina Sicalis flaveola Saffron finch Ecuador, western Peru, eastern and southern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, northern Argentina, and Trinidad and Tobago Sicalis columbiana Orange-fronted yellow finch Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela Sicalis luteola Grassland yellow finch Colombia south and east to the Guianas and central Ecuador, Peru and Brazil. Birds which breed further south in Argentina and Uruguay migrate to Bolivia and southern Brazil in the austral winter. There are also isolated populations in Central America and Mexico Sicalis luteocephala Citron-headed yellow finch Andes of Bolivia and far northern Argentina Sicalis lebruni Patagonian yellow finch Argentina and Tierra del Fuego; also Chile. Sicalis olivascens Greenish yellow finch the Andes of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru Sicalis mendozae Monte yellow finch western Argentina. Sicalis auriventris Greater yellow finch Argentina and Chile Sicalis raimondii Raimondi's yellow finch Peru Sicalis lutea Puna yellow finch Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru
References