Crithagra is a genus of small passerine birds in the finch family (Fringillidae). They live in Africa and Arabia.
The species in this genus were formerly assigned to the genus Serinus, but phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences found that the genus was polyphyletic. It was therefore split into two monophyletic genera. Eight species, including the European serin (Serinus serinus), were retained in Serinus, while the other species were assigned to the resurrected genus Crithagra. Species The genus was introduced in 1827 by the English ornithologist William Swainson. The type species was subsequently designated as the brimstone canary. The name comes from the classical Greek krithē for "barley" and agra for "hunting".
The genus contains 38 species: Image Common name Scientific name DistributionPríncipe seedeater Crithagra rufobrunnea São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé grosbeak Crithagra concolorSão ToméAfrican citril Crithagra citrinelloides Ethiopia, Eritrea to western Kenya.Western citril Crithagra frontaliscentral AfricaSouthern citril Crithagra hypostictaSouth Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Malawi. Black-faced canary Crithagra capistrata Angola, Burundi, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and Zambia. Papyrus canary Crithagra koliensis Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and UgandaForest canary Crithagra scotopsCameroon, Congo, and Kenya.White-rumped seedeater Crithagra leucopygiaSudanBlack-throated canary Crithagra atrogularis Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Yellow-rumped seedeater Crithagra xanthopygiaEritrea, Kenya and Ethiopia.Reichenow's seedeater Crithagra reichenowieastern AfricaArabian serin Crithagra rothschildi Southwestern Arabian foothills savanna Yellow-throated seedeater Crithagra flavigula Ethiopia.Salvadori's seedeater Crithagra xantholaemaEthiopia.Lemon-breasted canary Crithagra citrinipectusMalawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.Yellow-fronted canary Crithagra mozambica Africa south of the Sahara Desert.White-bellied canary Crithagra dorsostriataEthiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Ankober serin Crithagra ankoberensisEthiopiaYemen serin Crithagra menachensis Southwestern Arabian foothills savanna Cape siskin Crithagra totta South Africa. Drakensberg siskin Crithagra symonsi South Africa, Northern grosbeak-canary Crithagra donaldsoniEthiopia, Kenya, and Somalia.Southern grosbeak-canary Crithagra buchananiKenya and Tanzania. Yellow canary Crithagra flaviventrissouthern AfricaBrimstone canary Crithagra sulphurata central and southern Africa. Stripe-breasted seedeater Crithagra striatipectusSudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Reichard's seedeater Crithagra reichardiZambia, Malawi and TanzaniaStreaky-headed seedeater Crithagra gularis southern Africa. West African seedeater Crithagra canicapillaGuinea, Sierra Leone, southern Mali and northern Ivory Coast across to southern Niger and northern CameroonBlack-eared seedeater Crithagra mennelliAngola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Brown-rumped seedeater Crithagra tristriataEthiopia, Eritrea and Somalia.White-throated canary Crithagra albogularisAngola, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and South Africa. Thick-billed seedeater Crithagra burtoniAngola, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. Streaky seedeater Crithagra striolataBurundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. Yellow-browed seedeater Crithagra whytiiMalawi, Tanzania, and Zambia. Kipengere seedeater Crithagra melanochroa TanzaniaProtea canary Crithagra leucopteraSouth Africa.
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