Black-faced Grassquit

Melanospiza bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766)

Black-faced Grassquit, Melanospiza bicolor, is a passerine of the West Indies and the northern mainland of South America. It is a tanager and is placed with the tanagers and their allies. The bird was first described by Linnaeus in 1766. Its breeding range includes the West Indies, Tobago, and the northern coasts of Colombia and Venezuela. It is also linked with Darwin’s finches. The species was once placed in Tiaris, but later work moved it to Melanospiza after genetic study showed that the old genus did not form a single natural group.

Order

Passeriformes

Family

Thraupidae — Tanagers & Allies

Breeding range

North America, South America: West Indies and n SA