Tibetan serin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tibetan serin |
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| Female Tibetan serin from Varsey Rhododendron Sanctuary, Sikkim, India | |
| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Fringillidae |
| Subfamily: | Carduelinae |
| Genus: | Spinus |
| Species: |
S. thibetanus
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| Binomial name | |
| Spinus thibetanus (Hume, 1872)
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The Tibetan serin (Spinus thibetanus) is a small bird also known as the Tibetan siskin. It is a type of true finch, belonging to the finch family called Fringillidae.
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About Its Name
Scientists group animals together based on how they are related. The Tibetan serin used to be in a group called Serinus. But after looking closely at its DNA, scientists moved it to a different group called Spinus.
A British bird expert named Allan Octavian Hume first described this bird in 1872. He gave it the scientific name Chrysomitris thibetanus. Long ago, in the 1800s, people also called it the Sikkim siskin. The Lepcha people in Sikkim had their own name for it: tŭk nyil nyón, which means 'fierce wormwood'.
What Does the Tibetan Serin Look Like?
This bird is about 12 cm (4.7 in) long, including its tail. It does not have bright yellow patches on its wings, no matter its age.
- Adult males have olive-green feathers on their backs. Their bellies are yellow, and their rumps (the area above their tail) are yellowish-green. They have a yellow stripe above their eyes and behind their ears. Their wing and tail feathers have yellowish-green edges.
- Adult females look a bit different. They have dark greyish-green feathers on their backs with black stripes. The yellow patches on their wings are clearer than on males. Their throats are a lighter yellow, and their chests have black stripes on the sides.
- Young birds (juveniles) are a duller green. They might have a brownish-yellow tint on their backs and duller rumps. Their bellies can be paler or have many stripes.
Where Do Tibetan Serins Live?
You can find the Tibetan serin in several countries across Asia. These include Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal.
Their favorite places to live are temperate forests. In the winter, they move to the central and eastern Himalayas. In March 2013, a group of bird watchers found these birds in Hee Village, near the Varsey Rhododendron Sanctuary in Sikkim, India.
What Kind of Home Do They Like?
Tibetan serins usually make their nests and raise their young in mixed forests. When winter comes, they often spend their time in forests with alder trees.
What Does a Tibetan Serin Sound Like?
These birds make a soft, chattering sound. It often sounds like twang twang.
 | George Robert Carruthers |
 | Patricia Bath |
 | Jan Ernst Matzeliger |
 | Alexander Miles |
