The yellow-bellied siskin is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It breeds from Costa Rica south to southern Ecuador, central Bolivia and the highlands of northwestern Venezuela.
Region
Central America and northern Andes
Typical Environment
Occurs from the highlands of Costa Rica and western Panama south through the Andean slopes of Colombia, northwestern Venezuela, Ecuador, and into central Bolivia. It favors montane and submontane zones, using forest edges, clearings, second growth, and nearby agricultural areas. Birds are commonly seen along roadsides with weedy seed sources and in highland gardens. Local abundance varies, with trapping pressure reducing numbers near settlements in some regions.
Altitude Range
800–3000 m
Climate Zone
Highland
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
Males are strikingly black above with a bright yellow belly, while females are olive with yellowish underparts, making the species strongly sexually dimorphic. It often forms small flocks outside the breeding season and may join mixed-species finch groups. In some areas it is affected by trapping for the cage-bird trade, though it remains locally common in suitable habitat.
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with bouncy, undulating flight
Social Behavior
Outside the breeding season it forms small, loose flocks that forage together and may mix with other siskins and finches. Pairs are territorial when nesting, building a small cup nest in trees or tall shrubs. Breeding occurs in the highland wet season, with both parents involved in chick care.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
A lively series of high, tinkling trills and twittering notes, often delivered from exposed perches. Flight calls are thin, buzzy twitters given repeatedly as flocks pass overhead.
Plumage
Male is glossy black on head, back, and wings with a vivid yellow belly, vent, and wing patches; female is olive to dusky olive above with paler, yellow-washed underparts and faint streaking. Both sexes have a short, conical finch bill and show yellow in the wings during flight.
Diet
Primarily consumes small seeds from weeds and composite flowers (Asteraceae), grasses, and highland trees such as alders. It also takes buds and tender plant material, and occasionally small insects, especially when feeding young. Birds often pick seeds directly from seed heads or glean them from the ground and road margins. Acrobatic foraging, including hanging from flower heads, is common.
Preferred Environment
Feeds along forest edges, clearings, second-growth thickets, pastures with weedy patches, and highland gardens or plantations. It frequently uses sunny openings where seed-bearing plants are abundant and will move along roadsides with prolific weed growth.
