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Painted Finch
(Emblema pictum)
: "Painted Firetail", "Painted Firetail Finch", "Emblema", "Emblema Finch",
"Mountain Finch"
 Aboriginal name(s): "unchurunquar"
Size: 10.5-11.5 cm
Weight: 10-12 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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 Click here for a physical description
Painted Finches are small to medium-sized finches. Their
plumage is
dimorphic, i.e.
males and
females
are slightly different.
Male
Painted Finches have a red facial mask and a red patch on their
chest, which is less pronounced in
females.
Females
also have only a small red patch around each eye.
The rest of the head of both sexes is brownish-grey.
Also the back, from neck to upperwings, is brownish-grey.
Only the rump is red, while the uppertail is black. The front
is black with prominent white spots on the sides.
Females
have more white spots down the front than
males.
The vent and undertail are also black.
The eyes have grey irises. The bill is narrow and pointy,
with a mostly dark-grey upper mandible with a reddish tip
and a reddish lower mandible with a whitish base. The
legs and feet are pinkish-grey.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Painted
Finch at Wikipedia  .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed based
on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
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The global distribution of the Painted Finch is available
HERE
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NB:
Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from
the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads
and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their
distribution is not a good representation of the overall
distribution of the species.
Painted Finches are endemic to the Australian continent. They live
in the semi-arid to arid interior, from the tropic of Capricorn to
the South-East of Mt. Isa, QLD, via Mt. Isa and the QLD/NT border
westwards, up to Derby, WA. Southward, their range extends throughout
the south-western quarter of the NT, up to Alice Springs, NT, and
sometimes also towards the Lake Eyre Basin in central SA. In the
West their range continues through the major sandy deserts of WA
(where they are only found rarely) into the Gascoyne, i.e. the
entire north-western part of WA, encompassing the catchments of
the three major rivers there.
Painted Finches have a preference for stony habitats, often hills
or gorges and also for
Triodia ("Spinifex") plains.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
M. Mearns reports spotting ringed, but free-flying Painted Finches
at the Desert Wildlife Park, Alice Springs, NT, in June 2006.
B. Hensen reports finding Painted Finches at Simpsons Gap, near
Alice Springs, NT, in July 2018.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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MALE |
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Frontal and dorsal views of two male Painted Finches
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Simpsons Gap, near Alice Springs, NT, July 2018]
Frontal view of a snoozing male Painted Finch (photo
courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Desert Wildlife Park, Alice Springs, NT, June 2006]
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FEMALE |
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Lateral view of a female Painted Finch on rocky soil (photo
courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Desert Wildlife Park, Alice Springs, NT, June 2006]
Lateral view of a female Painted Finch on rocky soil, now seen
preening (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Desert Wildlife Park, Alice Springs, NT, June 2006]
Painted Finches foraging between rocks (photo courtesy of M.
Mearns)
[Desert Wildlife Park, Alice Springs, NT, June 2006]
These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors.
The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.
Breeding
Nest
Eggs
Behaviour
Food
Call/s
