About Bucanetes githagineus (M.H.K.Lichtenstein, 1823)
The trumpeter finch, with the scientific name Bucanetes githagineus (M.H.K.Lichtenstein, 1823), is a small, long-winged bird. It has a large head and a short, very thick bill. In summer, breeding males have a red bill, grey head and neck, and pale brown upper parts. Their breast, rump and tail are pink; the tail has dark terminal feathers. Winter males, females, and young birds have very faded, paler coloration matching the pattern of breeding males. This species' song is a buzzing nasal trill, similar to the sound of a tin trumpet.
Trumpeter finches breed from the Canary Islands east across North Africa, ranging as far south as Mauritania, Mali, and Chad, with separate isolated populations in Sudan, Ethiopia, and Djibouti. In the Middle East, the species occurs from Egypt east to Iraq, south through the Arabian Peninsula to Yemen and Oman, and north into Turkey and Armenia. In central Asia, its range extends from Iran north to Kazakhstan and east to India. The species has colonized southern Spain, where breeding was first confirmed in 1971. In summer 2005, a large unexpected irruption of trumpeter finches occurred into northwestern Europe, with several individuals reaching as far as England.
This species inhabits desert, semi-desert, and desert margins. It can also be found in large open steppe areas with dry desolate hills and sparse low scrubby vegetation, field edges, mountain slopes, treeless stony plains, cliffs, ravines, gorges, and wadis. In northern African desert regions, it may also occur in villages and gardens, and it frequents oases in open sandy desert areas. The European breeding population occupies treeless habitats with sparse scrub less than one meter in height. On the Canary Islands, the species nests on sandy plains with halophytic and xerophytic scrub, in addition to its more typical habitats.
