Gray-crested Finch

About the Gray-crested Finch

The grey-crested finch (Lophospingus griseocristatus) is a species of bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is found in Bolivia and northwestern Argentina where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland and heavily degraded former forest. The bird was first described in 1837 by the French ornithologist Frédéric de Lafresnaye and the French zoologist Alcide d'Orbigny after the latter had collected it on an expedition he undertook for the Paris Museum to South America between 1826 and 1833.

The grey-crested finch has a distinctive erect, spiky grey crest. Other parts of the bird are grey also, with the underparts being paler than the upper parts, and the belly being whitish. The wings and tail are deeper grey, except for the outer corners of the tail which are white and particularly noticeable in flight. The beak is yellow, pink and grey. The adult length of this finch is about 14 cm (5.5 in).

The grey-crested finch is native to South America. Its range includes the Andean foothills of western Bolivia and northwestern Argentina, where it occurs at altitudes of between 1,500 and 3,100 m (4,900 and 10,200... Wikipedia →