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FINCH
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I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Any of numerous small songbirds with short stout bills adapted for crushing seeds
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("finch" is a kind of...):
oscine; oscine bird (passerine bird having specialized vocal apparatus)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "finch"):
Hawaiian honeycreeper; honeycreeper (small to medium-sized finches of the Hawaiian islands)
towhee (any of numerous long-tailed American finches)
pyrrhuloxia; Pyrrhuloxia sinuata (crested grey-and-red bird of southwest United States and Mexico)
cardinal; cardinal grosbeak; Cardinalis cardinalis; redbird; Richmondena Cardinalis (crested thick-billed North American finch having bright red plumage in the male)
grosbeak; grossbeak (any of various finches of Europe or America having a massive and powerful bill)
bunting (any of numerous seed-eating songbirds of Europe or North America)
New World sparrow (sparrow-like North American finches)
junco; snowbird (small North American finch seen chiefly in winter)
bullfinch; Pyrrhula pyrrhula (common European finch mostly black and white with red throat and breast)
crossbill; Loxia curvirostra (finch with a bill whose tips cross when closed)
serin (any of various brown and yellow finches of parts of Europe)
canary; canary bird (any of several small Old World finches)
Carpodacus purpureus; purple finch (North American finch having a raspberry-red head and breast and rump)
Carpodacus mexicanus; house finch; linnet (small finch originally of the western United States and Mexico)
pine finch; pine siskin; Spinus pinus (small finch of North American coniferous forests)
goldfinch; New World goldfinch; Spinus tristis; yellowbird (American finch whose male has yellow body plumage in summer)
Carduelis hornemanni; redpoll (small siskin-like finch with a red crown)
Carduelis flammea; redpoll (small siskin-like finch with a red crown and a rosy breast and rump)
Carduelis cucullata; red siskin (South American species of scarlet finch with black head and wings and tail)
Carduelis spinus; siskin (small yellow-and-black Eurasian finch with a sharp beak)
Carduelis cannabina; linnet; lintwhite (small Old World finch whose male has a red breast and forehead)
Carduelis carduelis; goldfinch (small European finch having a crimson face and yellow-and-black wings)
brambling; Fringilla montifringilla (Eurasian finch)
chaffinch; Fringilla coelebs (small European finch with a cheerful song)
Holonyms ("finch" is a member of...):
family Fringillidae; Fringillidae (finches: goldfinches; bullfinches; chaffinches; siskins; canaries; cardinals; grosbeaks; crossbills; linnets; buntings)
Context examples:
A study found that the finches’ fearful responses – known as antipredator behaviour - were sustained through multiple generations after the threat was gone, which could have detrimental consequences for their survival.
(A decade after the predators have gone, Galapagos Island finches are still being spooked, University of Cambridge)
Researchers from Princeton University in the United States and Uppsala University in Sweden reported the new species evolved in just two generations, though this process had been believed to take much longer, due to breeding between an endemic Darwin finch, Geospiza fortes, and the immigrant cactus finch, Geospiza conirostris.
(Researchers report rapid formation of new bird species in Galápagos islands, Wikinews)
Gotanda found that finches on islands with predators were wary, and flew away from an approaching researcher - imitating an approaching predator - at a much greater distance than the finches on pristine islands without predators.
(A decade after the predators have gone, Galapagos Island finches are still being spooked, University of Cambridge)
Gotanda also looked at the effect of urbanisation on finch behaviour and found - as is generally seen in towns and cities - the birds were less fearful as they became used to the presence of humans.
(A decade after the predators have gone, Galapagos Island finches are still being spooked, University of Cambridge)
