European greenfinch

    Carduelis chloris

Castilian: Verderón común

Catalan: Verdum

Gallego: Verderolo

Euskera: Txorru arrunta

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Fringillidae

Migratory status: Permanent resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Not Evaluated”.

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THREATS

It is not particularly threatened given its capacity to adapt. However, it suffers from the abuse of pesticides and herbicides in olive groves and on other crops. Also, illegal trapping causes thousands of these birds to die or be encaged.

Length / size: 15 cm / 24,5-27,5 cm

Identification: Bird that is larger than a serin or a citril finch, with a large head and a strong, sharp bill. Its colouration is a uniform emerald green with yellow on the edges of its primaries and tail. Males and females are similar, but juveniles are browner and have brown stripes on their belly.

Song: Its call is a short and energetic "hoop", with different variations, like "hoop-oop-oop". Three fast verses: "chow-row-row chee-ree-ree chooing chooing chooing" that end in "proooing".

Diet: It feeds on different varieties of seeds and also on the pulp of fleshy fruits. It hunts insects in spring to feed to its chicks.

Reproduction: The breeding period begins in March. They position the nest near other pairs and use thin branches, roots and hair to build it. The female incubates the eggs and the male feeds the chicks.

HABITAT

It occupies very varied environments with wooded areas up to an elevation of 2,000 metres.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: Present throughout the entire peninsula and in the archipelagos.

In Castile and León: Widely distributed in all the provinces. The densest concentrations are located in Burgos, León, Salamanca and Segovia, and it is rarest in Ávila.

Movements and migrations: It is a species that migrates partially. During the wintering period, European specimens arrive. The peninsular populations are considered sedentary or migratory, arriving in Africa in October and returning in March.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 1 to 1.3 million breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: