New species of bird discovered in Colombia

A new species of bird has been discovered in Columbia on the remote Serranía de los Yariguies range. Named the ‘Yariguies Brush-Finch’, it was found by Anglo-Colombian scientists Thomas Donegan and Blanca Huertas from ‘Fundación ProAves’. The full description can be seen in the scientific journal ‘Bulletin of the British Ornithologists Club’ (Vol. 126: June 2006).

The bird is named ‘Yariguies’ after the indigenous people who previously inhabited the mountains where the bird was discovered. The bird is a large and colourful finch with black, yellow and red plumage. The area where the bird was found is very isolated and inaccessible; sp the researchers arrived by helicopter on an isolated peak more than 10,000 ft. above sea level.

The expedition was funded by the BP Conservation Awards scheme, an on-going commitment to the environment by BP. In 2006 27 winning teams from 21 different countries were awarded with support totalling $475,000. The awards support the important work of a new generation of conservation professionals.

The BP Conservation Programme is a partnership between BP, BirdLife International, Fauna & Flora International, Conservation International and the Wildlife Conservation Society. For more information about year's winning projects, visit http://conservation.bp.com.