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Cardinals (Cardinalidae)

Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris) - HBW 16, p. 426

French: Passerin nonpareil German: Papstfink Spanish: Azulillo Sietecolores
Other common names: Nonpareil

Taxonomy: Emberiza ciris Linnaeus, 1758, South Carolina, USA.
Genus sometimes placed in family Emberizidae. In the wild, present species rarely hybridizes with other members of genus; crosses with P. cyanea and P. versicolor described. In captivity has hybridized with P. cyanea and with domestic Island Canary (Serinus canaria). Races poorly differentiated and widely separated geographically, and they differ significantly in migration and moult strategies, suggesting that there is very little gene flow between them, and that they perhaps warrant treatment as two separate species; further study required. Two subspecies currently.. View all taxonomy...

Taxonomy: Emberiza ciris Linnaeus, 1758, South Carolina, USA.
Genus sometimes placed in family Emberizidae. In the wild, present species rarely hybridizes with other members of genus; crosses with P. cyanea and P. versicolor described. In captivity has hybridized with P. cyanea and with domestic Island Canary (Serinus canaria). Races poorly differentiated and widely separated geographically, and they differ significantly in migration and moult strategies, suggesting that there is very little gene flow between them, and that they perhaps warrant treatment as two separate species; further study required. Two subspecies currently recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

  • ciris (Linnaeus, 1758) - breeds on US Atlantic seaboard from North Carolina S to C Florida; migrates to S Florida, Bahamas and Cuba.
  • pallidior Mearns, 1911 - breeds in S USA (SE Kansas E to W Tennessee and Mississippi, S to C & S New Mexico and Texas) and adjacent Mexico (Chihuahua E to NW Tamaulipas); migrates to Mexico (S from C Sinaloa, S San Luis Potosí and S Tamaulipas, but absent from central highlands) and S to W Panama.

Sounds

1 recording
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