Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, Saltator grandis
Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, Saltator grandis vigorsii. Photographs taken within a residential community in Alamos, Sonora, February 2018 and November 2018. Photographs and identification courtesy of David F. Smith, Alamos, Sonora.
Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, Saltator grandis vigorsii. Photograph taken in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, April 2024. Photograph courtesy of Dr. Tom Bartol, Carlsbad, California. Identification courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.
Background and Identification
The Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, Saltator grandis vigorsii, is large in stature and one of six subspecies of Cinnamon-bellied Saltator. It is a member of the Thraupidae Family of Tanagers and Allies, which has three hundred eighty-one individual species that have been placed into one-hundred-seven genera and is one of sixteen global members of the Saltator Genus. They were recently split from the “Grayish Saltator Complex.” Five of the six subspecies reside in Mexico. They are found in pairs or small family groups and feed on flower petals, fruits, leaves, and seeds, and limited amounts of small invertebrates. Their large, untidy open-cup nests containing bright blue eggs with black flecks and scrawls have been the subject of several studies. The lifespan of this species is not known. They are known in Mexico as Pepitero Grisáceo Norteño.
The Cinnamon-bellied Saltator has an average length of 22 cm (8.7 inches) to 24 cm (9.4 inches), and sexes do not differ in size. They are grey above and grayish or buff below with a strong whitish eyebrow and black malar stripes that border a white throat. Their bill is blackish, with some brown to gray-brown, and their legs and feet are black to lead gray. The beak is thick and conical, typical of saltators, and is well-adapted for cracking seeds and fruits, its primary diet. This species is sexually monomorphic, meaning that males and females look similar and are similar-sized. The female’s colors may be slightly duller.
Habitat and Geographical Range
They are found in a wide variety of habitats ranging from drier, semi-deciduous, or deciduous vegetation to humid evergreen habitats within hedgerows, city parks, and gardens, at elevations up to 1,500 m (4,900 feet). Areas with abundant flowering trees are the most common places to find this saltator, and they adapted to inhabiting areas with dense human populations.
The Cinnamon-bellied Saltator is a non-migratory and year-round resident of all coastal regions of both the Atlantic Slope and the Pacific Slope of Mexico but is absent from Tamaulipas on the Atlantic Slope, and northern Sonora on the Pacific Slope. The vigorsii subspecies is found in Northwest Mexico in southern Sonora, Sinaloa, western Durango, Nayarit, and northern coastal Jalisco. Other countries that the Cinnamon-bellied Saltator inhabits include Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and Nicaragua.
Common Misidentifications
The Cinnamon-bellied Saltator can be confused with other saltators and large finch-like birds within its range. The Buff-throated Saltator, Saltator maximus is one such species, but it lacks the bright cinnamon belly and has a more olive-colored back and a buffy throat.
Conservation Status
From a conservation perspective the Cinnamon-bellied Saltator is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. Their populations have been expanding in some areas, which has been attributed to human habitation. Its adaptability to different habitats has benefitted populations in many areas where human populations are also expanding.