Finches · Perching birds
European Serin
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Serinus serinus
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Voice
Song
Sonothèque ADVL
Call
Sonothèque ADVL
Call
Jochem verweij
How to recognize it
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11–12 cm, smaller than a sparrow
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Small short-tailed finch, fine conical bill
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Grey-green upperparts with dark streaking
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Yellow rump; male with yellow face and breast, yellow wing bars
About the species
The European Serin is a small finch that often moves in quick, busy bursts. Its song is a fast, buzzing trill, and the flight call is a neat little “cir-r-rl.”
Outside the breeding season it gathers in flocks, sometimes with other finches. It stays active and can be fairly easy to notice when it sings from treetops or gives its sharp alarm call.
Look for it in parks, gardens, groves, open woodland, and other human-shaped landscapes. It feeds mainly on seeds, and during the breeding season it also takes insects. Some populations stay through the winter, while others move south.
Where to find
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In mature city parks and small groves with old deciduous trees or conifers, European Serin gives itself away with a fast buzzing trill from the treetops.
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Along the edges of paths and beside seeding shrubs, it often feeds on the ground in short hops, picking up fallen seeds.
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In gardens and courtyard greenery in spring and early summer, listen for its bright, almost continuous trilling song.
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Where young plantings meet open lawns, it may lift off from a branch in a wavering, fluttery flight, then settle back high in the canopy.
You might also see
Sources
- eBird — Serinus serinus Sightings map and full description on eBird
- Wikipedia — European serin Encyclopedia article