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Small Ground-Finch
Geospiza fuliginosa

The Small Ground-Finch (Geospiza fuliginosa) is one of the famous "Darwin Finches" of the Galapagos Islands. The first 20 images on this page were all taken in July, 2007, on various islands of the Galapagos with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and EF 100-400mm F/4.5-5.6 L IS lens. The black birds are adult males. The more brown-plumaged birds are females or immature males.


Darwin's finches (also known as the Galápagos Finches or as Geospizinae) are a group of 15 species of Passerine birds, now placed in the tanager family rather than the true finch family. They were first collected by Charles Darwin on the Galápagos Islands during the second voyage of the Beagle. Thirteen are found on the Galápagos Islands and one on Cocos Island. The birds are all about the same size (10–20 cm). The most important differences between species are in the size and shape of their beaks, and the beaks are highly adapted to different food sources.

The next ten shots show various plumages of Small Ground-Finches during an August, 2010, visit to the Galapagos Islands. These next ten shots were all taken with a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and a Sigma 50-500mm lens. An adult male is on the right.
A female Small Ground-Finch.
This is probably a young male.
The Small Ground-Finch in the next three shots is foraging on the side and back of a Marine Iguana at James Bay, Santiago Island, Galapagos. These finches will pick small parasites from the iguanas.