# European serin

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The **European serin**, or simply the **serin** (***Serinus serinus***), is the smallest species of the family of [finches](/source/Finch) (Fringillidae) and is closely related to the [Atlantic canary](/source/Atlantic_canary). Its diet consists mainly of a combination of [buds](/source/Bud) and [seeds](/source/Seed).

## Taxonomy

The European serin was described by [Carl Linnaeus](/source/Carl_Linnaeus) in 1766 in the 12th edition of his *[Systema Naturae](/source/Systema_Naturae)* under the [binomial name](/source/Binomial_nomenclature) *Fringilla serinus*.[1][2] The Latin *serinus* comes from the French word *serin* for a canary. The French word may be a corruption of the Latin word *citrinus* meaning "lemon-coloured".[3]

## Description

The European serin is a small short-tailed bird, 11–12 cm in length. The upper parts are dark-streaked greyish green, with a yellow rump. The yellow breast and white belly are also heavily streaked. The male has a brighter yellow face and breast, yellow wing bars and yellow tail sides. The song of this bird is a buzzing trill, very familiar in [Mediterranean](/source/Mediterranean) countries.

It breeds across southern and central [Europe](/source/Europe) and North [Africa](/source/Africa). Southern and Atlantic coast populations are largely resident, but the northern breeders [migrate](/source/Bird_migration) further south in Europe for the winter. Open woodland and cultivation, often with some [conifers](/source/Conifer), is favoured for breeding. It builds its nest in a shrub or tree, laying 3–5 eggs. It forms flocks outside the breeding season, sometimes mixed with other finches.

The food is mainly seeds, and, in the breeding season, insects. This small [serin](/source/Serin) is an active and often conspicuous bird.

## References

1. Linnaeus, C. (1766). [*Systema Naturæ per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis, Volume 1*](https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/42946516) (in Latin). Vol. 1. 12th ed. Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 320.

1. Paynter, Raymond A. Jnr. (ed.) (1968). [*Check-list of birds of the world, Volume 14*](https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14481411). Vol. 14. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 210.

1. Jobling, James A (2010). [*The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names*](https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling). London: Christopher Helm. p. [354](https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling/page/n354). ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.

## External links

- [Audio recordings from Xeno-canto](http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Serinus-serinus)
- [European Serin videos, photos & sounds](http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/european-serin-serinus-serinus) on the Internet Bird Collection
- [Ageing and sexing by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze](http://aulaenred.ibercaja.es/wp-content/uploads/428_SerinS.serinus.pdf)
- [Oiseaux](http://www.oiseaux.net/birds/photos/european.serin.html) Photographs, text, map.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [European serin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_serin) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_serin?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.