What do female serins look like? Where does it live and what does the bird eat? We have all the important information and pictures about this special finch.
The serin (Serinus serinus) is our smallest native finch. That's why he is far from inconspicuous. With its lemon-yellow plumage and high-pitched, jangling song, the serin is indeed a small gem among songbirds. It has been known for these properties since antiquity and has always been kept in aristocratic circles as a cage bird. It was not replaced until the 15th century, when the Canary Serin (Serinus canaria) was brought from the Canary Islands to the mainland. From this, the various canaries were later bred. Nevertheless, the girlitz is still kept as a cage bird today, even though bird trapping is of course strictly forbidden in Germany. You can find more exciting facts and pictures in our profile below.
Girlitz: A detailed profile
| Size | About 11 - 12 cm |
| Weight | About 11 - 13 g |
| Incubation | April - June |
| Lifetime | About 5 years |
| Habitat | Parks and Gardens |
| Food | Fine seeds, leaf and flower buds |
| Threats | Missing habitat, trapping birds for sale |
How to recognize the Serin
The serin can be easily recognized both by its penetrating song and by its colorful plumage. The bird is notable for its small size and tiny, triangular finch beak. The back and elytra are heavily striped grey-yellow. The gray cheeks are framed by bright yellow lines and the head is crowned by a yellow forehead. The yellow color continues over the chest and abdomen and ends in white flanks. In flight, the serin can also be recognized by its lemon-yellow underside - also called rump.
The girlitz is actually confused in the fieldonly with the yellowhammer. However, this is significantly larger and is characterized by an almost completely yellow head and a reddish-brown breast in the breeding plumage.
What does girlitz singing sound like?
The serin has a very special and easily recognizable bird's voice. His vocals are high, wild, and jangling, and consist of an unstructured, fast, and cohesive verse. The voice is reminiscent of the squeaking of unoiled gears.
This is how the song of the girlitz sounds:
How do you recognize the scamps?
The young serins are slightly better camouflaged than their parents and are therefore more difficult to spot. They still lack the bright yellow color that characterizes this species. The plumage of the young birds has a beige to off-white base color and is streaked with bold grey-brown stripes.
How do you recognize the eggs of the serin?
The female serin lays three to five eggs per season in a cup-shaped nest made of grass, leaves, moss and other fine plant parts. The inside of the nest is carefully padded with lots of feathers and animal hair. The eggs themselves are between 15 and 18 millimeters in size, pale blue or green in color and dotted with brownish-red spots.
How do female Serin differ from males?
As is so often the case in nature, male serins are a bit more conspicuous than their female partners. While the male is adorned with sulphurous yellow elements, the female exhibits somewhat duller, greenish-yellow patterns. Also, her chest is streaked with dark lines while her partner presents a pure bright yellow chest.
What habitat does the Serin prefer?
Fears love half-open landscapes with scattered trees and high bushes, which they can use as hiding places and nesting sites as well as singing stations. They look for their food mainly on the ground. Wild meadows with seed-bearing wild herbs are particularly popular. But the serin has also adapted to urban landscapes and is therefore not uncommon in parks, gardens or on the outskirts.
Where does he build his nest?
The serin only builds its nest after a careful selection of the breeding site. This should be hidden as well as possible in a dense, high bush or tree, but at the same time offer a good view and a singing station from which the male can follow his territoryimpressive vocal performances. The female builds the nest.
When does the serin breed?
The breeding season of the serin is from April to June. During this time, males and females remain strictly loyal to each other and can raise up to two broods. After laying the eggs, female girlitz incubates her eggs for about two weeks, while the male guards and defends her and the common nest. After hatching, the young are fed by both parents with a mixture of pre-soaked, fine seeds and protein-rich small insects such as aphids and caterpillars. After 16 to 17 days, the young are so far developed that they leave the nest on their own and explore the surroundings. They are then supported by their parents in their search for food for a few days before they devote themselves to a possible second brood. Then the little ones are on their own.
Where does the little finch spend the winter?
The majority of our German serins escape their uncomfortable breeding grounds during the cold winter months and head to the western Mediterranean. However, since they don't have to travel very long distances, the last birds only move to their winter quarters in November and are back with us from March.
Support the Girlitz: How it works
Anyone who wants to set up a small living space for the girlitz in their own home must first understand what the small bird needs for a home. In the following sections, you'll learn how you can help the Serin with foraging, nest building, and even grooming.
What does the girlitz eat?
Girlitz feed mainly on fine seeds. These can come from a variety of wild herbs, which you can get to know in our special article on "Herbs for Birds". However, they also use flower and leaf buds in spring and smaller insects to raise their young. If you would like to offer the finches additional food, you should stick to the natural diet as much as possible. A grain feed with sunflower seeds and finer wild herb seeds is well suited. Note, however, that most native serins spend the winter farther south and are therefore rarely seen at snowy bird feeders.
With our Plantura all-season food, however, you can keep the garden birdsalso support in summer and during the breeding season. The protein-rich feed with extra lime is ideal for expectant bird parents.
Which nesting aids are suitable for the yellow finch?
As a free-breeding bird, the serin cannot be impressed with a classic nesting box. Such structures are more suitable for cave breeders such as blue tits or starlings. Instead, the little finch appreciates more natural breeding opportunities. In your garden, make sure not to thin out hedges and treetops so much, to give the girlitz good hiding places for its nest.
How can you support the girlitz?
Especially in the breeding season and for the rearing of young birds, the serin depends not only on seeds but also on protein-rich insects. Like many other songbirds, the yellow finch is therefore suffering from the ongoing loss of insects. Our Plantura beneficial insect magnet can help, with the help of which you can create an insect paradise in your own garden. With this you can not only make the serin happy, but also bring a lot of useful pollinators and pest controllers into your garden.
One of the girlitz's favorite pastimes on hot days is bathing. In small puddles, the little birds can often be seen grooming themselves. A birdbath can also be easily made from a flat bowl or a large trivet, which conveniently also doubles as a drinking trough.
But be careful: regularly let a birdbath or a drinking trough dry out completely or change the water and clean it the shell. Because such meeting places for birds can quickly become contaminated and lead to the transmission of infectious diseases. The risk of infection increases, especially at high temperatures, which is why it is best to clean a bird bath every day on hot days.
All garden birds appreciate a little help in their daily struggle for food and other resources. If you want to find out more about our feathered friends, take a look at our other species portraits and get to know the barn swallow a little better, for example.