Cinereous Warbling Finch Microspingus cinereus Scientific name definitions

The globally threatened Cinereous Warbling Finch has pale plumbeous upperparts, slightly darker lores, with dusky wings and tail, a white throat and underparts, and a blackish bill. It is most similar to the White-banded Tanager (Neothraupis fasciata), which is significantly larger and has a much more obvious black mask. The Cinereous Warbling Finch is endemic to Brazil and its range appears to have declined significantly over recent decades, to the extent that there are modern-day records only from the states of Minas Gerais (its core range), Goiás, and the Distrito Federal. The combined effects of grazing, invasive grasses, annual burning, and conversion to agriculture, which have adversely affected many other Cerrado endemics, have presumably been factors in this species’ decline. Its natural history is poorly known, and even this warbling finch’s habitat requirements have been subject to recent refinement: it is now considered to prefer degraded areas, especially burnt areas of campo rupestre, orchards, old pastures, and abandoned mines, mostly at 600–1400 m. There is speculation that the Cinereous Warbling Finch might be semi-nomadic in response to fire succession.

13 cm; 8·4–15·2 g. A small, compact and relatively short-tailed warbling finch with small, triangular bill. Male has forehead, crown and nape grey, contrasting blackish mask (lores and most of ear-coverts) cleanly demarcated on lower edge by white moustachial and malar area; upperparts blue-grey; tail blackish, white outer feathers; upperwing blackish, blue-grey shoulder and blue-grey edging on upperwing-coverts and flight-feathers; throat and underparts gleaming white, except for pale grey flanks ; iris deep chestnut; bill black, sometimes grey base of lower mandible; legs black. Female has less extensive and less dark mask, may appear duller in direct comparison with males; iris not so bright as male’s. Immature has head washed brown.

S interior Brazil from C Mato Grosso E to S Goiás, Minas Gerais and N São Paulo.

Occupies cerrado woodlands, open dry woodlands and scrub; thought to like fairly open wooded habitats. Woodland edges of native vegetation might be important for this species (1 Marques-Santos, F., Wischhoff, U. and Rodrigues, M. (2014). New insights on the rarity of the vulnerable Cinereous Warbling-finch (Aves, Emberizidae) based on density, home range, and habitat selection. Brazilian Journal of Biology. 74(4): 795–802. Close ). Also campo rupestre habitats, favouring orchards, old pastures and even burnt-over scrub. Mainly 600–1400 m.

Sedentary.

It forages gleaning in foliage, flowers and fruits, at variable heights, attacking mostly small invertebrates; insects identified in field include Lepidoptera, Hemiptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and Orthoptera; it moves constantly and quickly (more than ten times per minute) among the vegetation and performs frequent hops and short-distance flights between patches; it typically forages in intraspecific groups (2 Wischhoff, U., Marques-Santos, F. and Rodrigues, M. (2014). Foraging behavior and diet of the vulnerable Cinereous Warbling-finch Poospiza cinerea (Aves, Emberizidae). Brazilian Journal of Biology. 74(4): 821–827. Close ).

Song apparently unrecorded; high-pitched lively warbles described, possibly song. Call a muffled “chupf”, sometimes in series.

A nest in Minas Gerais was a low cup in the fork of an Australian pine (Casuarina equisetifolia) at a roadside, c. 3 m above ground; three eggs were laid in Oct; eggs light cream with irregular reddish-brown spots forming a cap at the large end; one egg measured 19·7 mm × 14·9 mm and weighed 2·2 g; only the female incubated; the nest was parasitized by a Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) and finally abandoned (3 Wischhoff, U., Marques-Santos, F. and Rodrigues, M. (2012). Nesting of the Cinereous Warbling Finch (Poospiza cinerea) in Southeastern Brazil. Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 124(1): 166–169. Close ). Another breeding record in Sept. No other information.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Formerly considered Vulnerable. Uncommon to rare, and locally distributed. Suspected to have suffered rapid and continuing decline owing to reduction in area of suitable habitat. Recent records from eight sites in Minas Gerais, four in Goiás, and one (near Brasília) in Distrito Federal. Not recorded in Mato Grosso since 1904 and none in São Paulo since 1901, and possibly extinct in these regions. Although this species has probably always been rather scarce, extent of habitat loss suggests that it has probably undergone significant reduction in numbers. Since c. 1950 much of the cerrado habitat has been destroyed or severely altered by combined effects of grazing, invasive grasses, annual burning, and conversion to eucalypt (Eucalyptus) plantations, soybean-growing and pastures for exportable crops (encouraged by government land reform). On the other hand, recent reports suggest that it is able to tolerate, and perhaps even favour, degraded areas, perhaps indicating that it is more numerous than previously believed; possibly semi-nomadic in response to fire succession, and seems to be extending its range towards degraded areas in E Minas Gerais (4 Lopes, L.E., Malacco, G.B., Alteff, E.F., de Vasconcelos, M.F., Hoffmann, D. and Silveira, L.F. (2010). Range extensions and conservation of some threatened or little known Brazilian grassland birds. Bird Conserv. Int. 20(1): 84–94. Close ). Positive selection of urban tree vegetation, despite availability of natural habitats, has also been recorded in Minas Gerais (1 Marques-Santos, F., Wischhoff, U. and Rodrigues, M. (2014). New insights on the rarity of the vulnerable Cinereous Warbling-finch (Aves, Emberizidae) based on density, home range, and habitat selection. Brazilian Journal of Biology. 74(4): 795–802. Close ). Species is protected under Brazilian law; it occurs in various reserves and parks, including Das Emas National Park, Brasília, Serra do Cipó and Chapada dos Veadeiros National Parks, Peti Reserve, Serra do Brigadeiro State Park and Mangabeiras Park.

Alvaro began birding as an 11 year old in Canada, and eventually trained in Evolutionary Ecology studying, creatures as varied as leaf-cutter ants and Argentine cowbirds. But his career has been focused on birding tourism, both as a guide and owner of his tour company, as well as a avitourism consultant to various organizations. He is the author of Birds of Chile, New World Blackbirds: The Icterids, as well as the ABA Field Guide to the birds of California. He lives in Half Moon Bay, California where he is known for his pelagic birding trips. Email: alvaro@alvarosadventures.com.