Rose-bellied Bunting

Overview

The rose-bellied bunting, also known as Rosita's bunting, is a species of bird in the family Cardinalidae. It is endemic to a very small area of southern Mexico and is currently assessed as Near Threatened by the IUCN.

Identification

• Adult males feature a purplish-blue crown, electric blue upperparts, blue throat and chest, and salmon pink belly and vent.
• Adult females have gray-brown head and upperparts with a bluish tinge at the rump, and pinkish buff undersides that are warmer on the throat.
• The bird measures 13.5 to 14.5 cm in length and weighs between 19.5 and 20.5 g.
• The song is described as a sweet, slightly burry warble, while the call is a wet 'plik' or 'plek'.

Habitat

The species inhabits arid to semiarid thorn forest, moister gallery forest, and swamp forest at elevations between 180 and 800 m. Its core range is a narrow strip along the Pacific slope of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in eastern Oaxaca and western Chiapas, with an additional record in El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve.

Diet

The rose-bellied bunting feeds on seeding grasses and fruit from trees and bushes. It forages alone or in pairs in the lower to mid-level of its habitat.

Did you know?

Only two nests of this species have been documented, revealing open cup structures made of dead leaves and bark lined with finer material, placed in the crotches of small saplings.