WELCOME TO THE BLACK-THROATED FINCH WEBSITE
Our website is currently under construction. Please visit again soon.
The objectives of this site are to provide:
- information on the Black-throated Finch
- an opportunity for volunteers and supporters to contribute to the understanding and protection of the Black-throated Finch and its habitat
- details of current and planned activities of the Black-throated Finch Recovery Team (BTFRT)
- links to related and other useful sites
EXPLORE OUR SITE
Become a site member and browse the library. It contains a growing collection of papers, articles, photographs and maps. You are invited to contribute your own photographs and publications to the library.
Perhaps you are fortunate enough to have seen a Black-throated Finch in the wild? Report your sightings of the Black-throated Finch using the website. You will be helping to update the scientific knowledge of the bird and its distribution.
Maybe you would like to participate in activites to learn more about the finch? By becoming a website member you can volunteer for upcoming events.
Perhaps you would like to organise your own Black-throated Finch events. Information to support you is available on this site.
A HANDSOME BIRD
The Black-throated finch is a small (to 12cm), sleek and stocky bird. They have a thick, black bill and a black eye line which makes them appear to be wearing "wrap around sunglasses". They have a pale blue-grey head, cinnamon-brown body, black tail and black "bib" which extends down to the breast, earning them the nick-name "Parson Finch".
TWO KINDS OF BLACK-THROATED FINCHES
There are two sub-species of the Black-throated Finch. The northern form (Poephila cincta atropygialis) has a black rump and the southern form (Poephila cincta cincta) has a white rump. This differentiating feature is not always easily observed as Black-throated Finches are small, tend to fly high and move rapidly.
The northern subspecies can be found on Cape York Peninsula and west to the Gulf of Carpentaria. The southern sub-species was once found between the Atherton Tablelands (north Queensland) and north-east New South Wales and west to Alpha (central Queensland). However, since the late 1970s, the bird has rarely been recorded south of Clermont (Queensland - 23°S). This equates to a 50-80% contraction of its former range. The southern sub-species is now listed as ENDANGERED under Federal, New South Wales and Queensland legislation.
A detailed Recovery Plan for the southern sub-species was approved by the Federal Minister for the Environment in 2008. The Black-throated Finch Recovery Team was formed in 2002 to address the conservation needs of the bird across its range. Now based in Townsville, BTFRT supports the implementation of the Recovery Plan.
