The black-and-tawny seedeater is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae.
Region
Southern South America
Typical Environment
Occurs in lowland wetlands and seasonally inundated grasslands of Paraguay, northeastern Argentina, southern Brazil, and adjacent Bolivia. It frequents marsh edges, floodplains, and damp pastures with tall seeding grasses and sedges. Birds shift locally with water levels and seed availability, and may use rice fields and other cultivated wetlands. It generally avoids dense forest, favoring open, grassy cover with scattered shrubs.
Altitude Range
0–600 m
Climate Zone
Subtropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A small grassland tanager, the black-and-tawny seedeater favors seasonally flooded marshes and wet savannas. Males show striking black-and-rufous contrast, while females are plain brown and easily overlooked. It is affected by drainage of wetlands and trapping for the songbird trade, so voice and habitat are often key to detect it. Often moves locally following seeding grasses.
Temperament
shy and often skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats, low undulating flights over grasses
Social Behavior
Typically found singly or in pairs during breeding, with males singing from exposed perches above grasses. Outside the breeding season it may join small mixed flocks of seedeaters. Nests are small open cups placed low in dense grass or sedges. Likely monogamous with both sexes involved in nesting duties.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Male song is a series of clear, tinkling notes and buzzy trills delivered in short phrases, often repeated persistently. Calls include sharp chips and thin metallic notes used to keep contact within cover.
Plumage
Male with black head, mantle, wings, and tail contrasting with rich tawny to rufous underparts and rump; female is warm brown above with buffy to pale brown underparts and faint streaking. Feathers are smooth and close-fitting, giving a neat, compact look.
Diet
Primarily takes seeds of grasses and sedges, including seeding panicles of pasture and marsh plants. During the breeding season it supplements with small invertebrates such as insects and larvae. It often husks seeds with its stout, conical bill and forages both on the ground and on standing seed heads.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in wet meadows, marsh margins, flooded savannas, and occasionally rice fields. Prefers patches with abundant seeding grasses and scattered low shrubs for cover and song perches.
