Serin

There’s a small, noisy flock of birds in the trees in this Italian park. I think they might be Siskins. They’re too small for Greenfinches. I’ve seen Siskins before in Italy:

Siskins

These are different, though.

They look so beautiful against the azure sky. They must be Serins. I’ve seen a Serin in Italy before too:

Could it be a Canary?

I thought it looked like a Siskin then as well, but knew it wasn’t.

There’s a male in the trees:

He’s much brighter; the colour of banana toffee whirls.

Their scientific name is the imaginative Serinus serinus.

I check the RSPB’s website. There are 1-2 breeding pairs in the UK. And the number who pass through the UK in a year? Clickety click 66. That’s a tragically small number.