Salvadori's seedeater or Salvadori's serin is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found only in Ethiopia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Region
Ethiopian Highlands
Typical Environment
Occurs patchily in dry Afromontane habitats, especially brushy slopes, high-altitude shrublands, and forest edges. It favors areas with scattered bushes, seed-rich weeds, and lightly cultivated mosaics. Birds often use degraded juniper-hagenia fringes and fallow fields near villages. Outside the breeding season, it may descend slightly to drier scrub but remains largely tied to upland landscapes.
Altitude Range
1800–3400 m
Climate Zone
Highland
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Also called Salvadori's serin, this small finch is confined to the Ethiopian Highlands. It inhabits dry montane scrub and edges of Afromontane forest, where it forages quietly in low bushes and on the ground. Habitat loss from overgrazing, fuel-wood collection, and agricultural expansion poses its main threat. Look for a subtle yellow wash on the throat and a fine, tinkling song to pick it out among other seedeaters.
Temperament
wary but quietly active
Flight Pattern
bounding finch-like flight with short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Typically in pairs during the breeding season and in small loose flocks at other times, sometimes mixing with other seedeaters. Nests are small cups placed low in shrubs or bushes. Both parents attend the young, with the male often singing from a perch nearby.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A thin, tinkling series of twitters and trills, delivered from a shrub or during a brief song-flight. Calls are soft chips and buzzes that can be easily overlooked in windy upland scrub.
Plumage
Small, streaky finch with brown to gray-brown upperparts and pale, lightly streaked underparts; subtle yellowish wash on the throat. Fine streaking on breast and flanks, with faint pale wingbars. Short, conical seed-cracking bill.
Diet
Primarily small seeds of grasses, herbs, and composite plants. It also takes buds and flowers when available. During the breeding season it may supplement the diet with small invertebrates to feed nestlings. Foraging is mostly low in shrubs or on the ground, picking seeds directly from seedheads.
Preferred Environment
Weedy clearings, edges of dry montane forest, and scrubby hillsides with scattered bushes. Frequently uses fallow fields and paths where seed availability is high, and often forages along hedgerows and field margins.
