Birds of Panama

    PASSERIFORMES: Thraupidae (Tanagers & Allies)  
Genus: Sporophila (7 species, 41 worldwide)

Genus Sporophila contains small to tiny seedeaters in the tanager (Thraupidae) family. They have thick bills used mostly to eat grass seeds. The female is often plain and brown, but may show hints of the male's characteristics.


Variable Seedeater
Variable Seedeater (Sporophila corvina) Male
Soberania National Park, Panama  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Variable Seedeater
Variable Seedeater (Sporophila corvina) Female
Cerro Azul, Panama  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

All black in the north part of range (Central America), while birds further south have a white breast with a crescent-shaped band across the chest.
Male from back with tail spread.

Thick-billed Seed Finch
Thick-billed Seed Finch (Sporophila funerea ochrogyne) Male
Bahia Solano, Choco, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Thick-billed Seed Finch
Thick-billed Seed Finch (Sporophila funerea) Female
Darien, Panama  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.


Ruddy-breasted Seedeater
Ruddy-breasted Seedeater (Sporophila minuta minuta) Male
Puerto Boyacá, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Ruddy-breasted Seedeater
Ruddy-breasted Seedeater (Sporophila minuta parva) Female
Sabaneta, Antioquia, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

As seen from the latin name minutus, a tiny seedeater that favors grass seeds.
Eating grass seeds

Morelet's Seedeater
Morelet's Seedeater (Sporophila morelleti morelleti) Male
Costa Rica
  Race without cinnamon colors found from east Mexico to Panama.
   
Photograph by Jorge Obando Gutierrez   © Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved.

Morelet's Seedeater
Morelet's Seedeater (Sporophila morelleti) Female
Caño Negro, Costa Rica
  Note wing bars.
   
Photograph by Tom Benson     Copyright and usage info


Yellow-bellied Seedeater
Yellow-bellied Seedeater (Sporophila nigricollis nigricollis) Male
Recinto del Pensamiento, Manizales, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Yellow-bellied Seedeater
Yellow-bellied Seedeater (Sporophila nigricollis nigricollis) Female
Otún Quimbaya Wildlife Sanctuary, Pereira, Risaralda, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.


Nicaraguan Seed Finch
Nicaraguan Seed Finch (Sporophila nuttingi) Male
Medio Queso, Los Chiles, Costa Rica  
   
Photograph by Jorge Obando Gutierrez   © Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved.

Nicaraguan Seed Finch
Nicaraguan Seed Finch (Sporophila nuttingi) Female
Medio Queso, Los Chiles, Costa Rica  
   
Photograph by Jorge Obando Gutierrez   © Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved.


Slate-colored Seedeater
Slate-colored Seedeater (Sporophila schistacea schistacea) Male
Jaco, Puntarenas, Costa Rica  
   
Photograph by Jorge Obando Gutierrez   © Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved.

Slate-colored Seedeater
Slate-colored Seedeater (Sporophila schistacea longipennis) Female
Zafra Reserva Natural, Antioquia, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Note white eye-ring compared to very similar Grey Seedeater. Generally a lowland species. Not reliable (wanders), but often found in flocks at bamboo when seeds are present (HBW). Note smaller bill with more curved culmen than Grey Seedeater (hard to be sure about).
Female eating bamboo seed.


© Tom Friedel - All Rights Reserved, except for images and data otherwise noted.       Colombia       Panama       Ecuador       Costa Rica       Mexico
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Really Experimental sites:       Guyana       Cuba