Vampire Ground-Finch Geospiza septentrionalis

A rarely-seen Galápagos finch restricted to the islands of Darwin and Wolf. These islands are usually visited only by divers, so few birders have a chance to see this species. It was formerly considered a subspecies of Sharp-beaked Ground-Finch, and it has a similarly-shaped sharp, thin bill with nearly straight edges. Bill is black on breeding male and dull orange on female and nonbreeding male. Male’s plumage is sooty-black; female is brown with paler underparts that are streaked with gray. Its ominous name comes from its occasional habit of drinking blood, which it extracts from other animals by pecking until the skin is broken.