Tiny bird

The Double-barred Finch Taeniopygia bichenovii is an Estrildid finch found in open savannah-like habitats in northern and eastern Australia. They are sometimes referred to as owl finches owing to the dark ring of feathers around their faces. Also called Bicheno finches from the species name bichenovii after James Ebenezer Bicheno, a colonial secretary of Van Diemen’s Land who also gave his name to the seaside town of Bicheno in Tasmania. The call is a soft tet or a louder peew, and the song is a soft fluting. The Double-barred Finch is about 10 cm long and weighs less than 10 grams.

Photo: Robert Whyte, Obi Obi Creek

Front view shows distinctive bars. Photo: Robert Whyte, Obi Obi Creek

This view shows the owl-like appearance. Photo: Robert Whyte, Obi Obi Creek

Photo by Glen Fergus, Brisbane licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5 License.