I used to be on Tenerife, Canary Islands, final week and I took the chance to remain a few days longer to revisit some previous haunts. As with most volcanic islands, there are few species on Tenerife however they are usually endemics (at species or subspecies ranges) and they’re usually fairly considerable of their most popular habitats. Having arrived at islands, and managed a foothold, many island species then widen their niches and broaden into habitats which they wouldn’t usually occupy. This accounts, partially, for his or her excessive density.
The remaining laurisilva on Tenerife, the traditional sub-tropical laurel forest which as soon as lined a lot of southern Europe, is well-preserved. It’s a veritable jungle, dense, impenetrable in locations, and darkish.
Discovering birds in right here is tough however I used to be completely satisfied to search out the 2 species which I used to be after, which have been given full species standing for the reason that final time I used to be right here. The primary to point out up was the Canary Islands Chaffinch (Fringilla canariensis), a hen that instantly jogged my memory of its counterpart the Madeira Chaffinch (Fringilla maderensis) which I’ve seen on that island. Like its cousin, it’s a beautiful hen. Latest genetic work on the chaffinches of the Macaronesian islands is revealing a posh image of repeated colonisations, these explicit chaffinches having established populations on the Azores and from there colonized first Madeira and, from there, the Canary Islands.
The second hen was recognized as a cryptic species in 2022. It’s the Tenerife Robin (Erithacus superbus). It confirmed up shortly after the chaffinch and it made my day within the fantastic laurel forests on Tenerife.
After this I made a decision to revisit an previous location increased up, over 2,000 metres in the direction of the height of El Teide. Twelve years on and this website was nonetheless as promising because it had been throughout my first go to. The setting was a mountain forest of Canary Islands Pine (Pinus canariensis).
My primary goal species had already been given species standing after I had final been right here however now the inhabitants on Tenerife had been break up from that on the close by Gran Canaria. I’m referring to the Tenerife Blue Chaffinch (Fringilla teydea) and its shut relative the Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch (Fringilla polatzeki). Now in contemporary plumage firstly of the breeding season, this was one other beautiful discover and never only one hen however a number of inside a small space of forest. These blue chaffinches are bigger than the “frequent” chaffinch sorts and mirror an earlier colonization occasion by chaffinches from the mainland.
The go to was full with the gorgeous Atlantic (or Island) Canary (Serinus canaria) and the Canarian Nice Noticed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos main canariensis). Returning to the town of Santa Cruz, its parks had been filled with singing Canary Island Chiffchaffs (Phylloscopus canariensis), Blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla heineken) and Blackbirds (Turdus merula cabrerae). A pleasant finish to a lightning go to.
