Species

Justification
Widespread and illegal trade is apparently resulting in a rapid population reduction, qualifying this species as Vulnerable (Collar et al. 1992).

Taxonomic source(s)
SACC. 2006. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.html.
Sibley, C. G.; Monroe, B. L. 1990. Distribution and taxonomy of birds of the world. Yale University Press, New Haven, USA.
Stotz, D. F.; Fitzpatrick, J. W.; Parker, T. A.; Moskovits, D. K. 1996. Neotropical birds: ecology and conservation. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

Identification
10 cm. Small, bright yellow finch. Male has black crown contrasting with bright yellow face, sides of neck and underparts. Pale yellow-olive upperparts with short, dark olive stripes. Yellow rump. Black wings, with olive-yellow edging to wing-coverts, and bright yellow wing-bar, wing-patch and tertial fringes. Black tail with yellow base. Female has bright yellowish-olive crown and upperparts with yellower rump. Similar spp. Sympatric siskins show dark hoods. Voice Complex and varied, high-pitched and strident warble.

Distribution and population
Carduelis yarrellii is known from two widely disjunct regions 3,500 km apart in north Venezuela and north-east Brazil. In Brazil, remaining populations appear to be concentrated in Alagoas, with recent records from Pedra Talhada, Murici and Usina Laginha. There are recent records from more than 20 sites in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest (S. Aline Roda in litt. 2007), including Saltinho, Sierra Grande Caramarigbe, Bitury, Caetes, Caruaru, Ibimirim and Serra Negra in Pernambuco, Serra da Capivara in Piauí (Olmos 1993), and near Jeremoabo in Bahia. There have been no records from Ceará or Paraíba since 1958 and 1957, respectively. It was considered locally common in Pernambuco and Alagoas, but rare elsewhere, in the 1980s. There are just two recent records from Pernambuco (S. Aline Roda et al. 2003), one of which may have involved individuals released after confiscation by inspectors of the illegal animal trade. Very few birds observed were at Murici in 1996-1999 (A. Whittaker in litt. 1999). This suggests a sharp decline in range and numbers. The population in Venezuela is confined to two sites in south-east Carabobo (Rojas-Suárez and Sharpe 2008) and is likely derived from escaped cagebirds (Ridgely and Tudor 1989, C. J. Sharpe in litt. 2011); indeed, several other exotic cagebird species have become established as feral populations in the same area (e.g. Sharpe et al. 1997). There are additional unverified reports from Carabobo (R. Restall in litt. 2000) and from Monagas and southern Bolívar states (Rojas-Suárez and Sharpe 2008).

Population justification
The population size is preliminarily estimated to fall into the band 10,000-19,999 individuals. This equates to 6,667-13,333 mature individuals, rounded here to 6,000-15,000 mature individuals.

Trend justification
Despite the lack of data, a rapid decrease in the population is suspected, owing to this species's prevalence in the wild bird trade (with numbers apparently decreasing), as well as the rarity of recent sightings in the wild.

Ecology
It has been found in caatinga, forest edge, second growth, plantations, croplands and even large urban centres at elevations below 550 m. Very little is known of its ecology but it may, like its congener the Red Siskin C. cucullatus, need to utilise forest seasonally or even daily. In Saltinho, nests were found in exotic pine Pinus spp. trees (S. Aline Roda in litt. 2007).

Threats
It suffers from high volume, illegal trade on both national and international markets. In the 1980s, up to 700 birds were seen at the Fortaleza bird market, and 60-100 appeared seasonally at the Caxias market in Rio de Janeiro. It may also be threatened by pesticide applications (Rodríguez and Rojas-Suárez 1995, Rojas-Suárez and Sharpe 2008).

Conservation actions underway
CITES Appendix II and legally protected in Brazil and Venezuela. In Brazil, it has been recorded in Pedra Talhada, Serra Negra and Saltinho Biological Reserves, Serra da Capivara National Park and Tapacurá Ecological Station.

Conservation actions proposed
Survey to determine its current range, abundance and ecological requirements, especially in Alagoas and Pernambuco. Determine its current status in Venezuela (Rodríguez and Rojas-Suárez 1995, Rojas-Suárez and Sharpe 2008). Investigate the impact of pesticides on food availability and condition of the birds (Rodríguez and Rojas-Suárez 1995, Rojas-Suárez and Sharpe 2008). Designate Murici as a biological reserve and ensure its de facto protection. Enforce legal measures on trapping and trade.

References
Ridgely, R. S.; Tudor, G. 1989. The birds of South America. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas.

Collar, N. J.; Gonzaga, L. P.; Krabbe, N.; Madroño Nieto, A.; Naranjo, L. G.; Parker, T. A.; Wege, D. C. 1992. Threatened birds of the Americas: the ICBP/IUCN Red Data Book. International Council for Bird Preservation, Cambridge, U.K.

Olmos, F. 1993. Birds of Serra da Capivara National Park in the "caatinga" of north-eastern Brazil. Bird Conservation International 3: 21-36.

Rodríguez, J. P.; Rojas-Suárez, F. 1995. Libro Rojo de la fauna Venezolana. Provita, Caracas.

Roda, S. A.; Carlos, C. J.; Rodrigues, R. C. 2003. New and noteworthy records for some endemic and threatened birds of the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 123: 227-236.

Further web sources of information
Detailed species account from the Threatened birds of the Americas: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 1992). Please note, taxonomic treatment and IUCN Red List category may have changed since publication.

Hear sounds for this species from xeno-canto, the community database of shared bird sounds from around the world.

Recuento detallado de la especie tomado del libro Aves Amenazadas de las Americas, Libro Rojo de BirdLife International (BirdLife International 1992). Nota: la taxonomoa y la categora de la Lista Roja de la UICN pudo haber cambiado desde esta publicacin.

View photos and videos, and hear sounds of this species from the Internet Bird Collection

Text account compilers
Gilroy, J., Pople, R., Sharpe, C J

Contributors
Aline Roda, S., Davis, B., Restall, R., Sharpe, C J, Whittaker, A.

IUCN Red List evaluators
Butchart, S., Symes, A.

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2013) Species factsheet: Carduelis yarrellii. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 24/05/2013. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2013) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 24/05/2013.

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife

To contribute to discussions on the evaluation of the IUCN Red List status of Globally Threatened Birds, please visit BirdLife's Globally Threatened Bird Forums.

Additional resources for this species

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