Hooded Grosbeak

About the Hooded Grosbeak

The hooded grosbeak or Albiellé's grosbeak (Hesperiphona abeillei) is a passerine bird in the family Fringillidae, the finches and euphonias. It is found in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Mexico. The species was originally described by the French naturalist René Lesson in 1839 with the binomial Guiraca abaillei. It was later reassigned to genus Hesperiphona that Charles Lucien Bonaparte had erected in 1850. Still later it was assigned to genus Coccothraustes that Brisson had erected in 1760. By 2025 most taxonomic systems had restored it to genus Hesperiphona However, the American Ornithological Society (AOS) declined to make that change and retains the species in Cocothraustes.

The hooded grosbeak shares its genus with the evening grosbeak (H. vespertina). It has these four subspecies: H. a. pallida Nelson, 1928 H. a. saturata Sutton & Burleigh, 1939 H. a. abeillei (Lesson, RP, 1839) H. a. cobanensis Nelson, 1928 The hooded grosbeak is a large, stocky bird with a very thick bill. It is 15 to 18.5 cm (5.9 to 7.3 in) long and weighs about 50 g (1.8 oz). The species is sexually dimorphic. Adult males of the nominate subspecies H. a. abeillei... Wikipedia →