Double-collared Seedeater ( Sporophila caerulescens )

12,5 cm. The male’s upper parts are dark gray. The face and a ribbon around the neck (the collar) are black. The posterior part of the throat, the belly and a narrow band around the eye are white, sometimes buffy. The color of the beak varies individually. The female and the Young males are brown with the inferior parts lighter.
Distribution:
From Bahia to Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay, Argentina to Peru.
Habitat:
Grasslands, crops. They sleep in tall grass and sugar cane crops were they may bend the stems with their weight.
Diet:
Feeds on grains. Follows the expansion of seed producing grasses, thus invading new areas as the Distrito Federal. Frequently eats arthropods such as insects trapped in spider webs.
Reproduction:
During the breeding season they live in couples within a territory defended by the male against rivals from the same species. The opponents stretch themselves upward showing the characteristic pattern in the neck and throat. The couple builds a nest with about 5cm of diameter on shrubs. The female lays three light green eggs with buffy or brown spots.
It is the commonest species of Sporophila in southeastern Brazil. The adults sing perched at the tip of a stem. There is great regional variation in the vocalization, forming dialects. The song is not inherited. Individuals in captivity may learn the vocalization of other species when there is not one of their own for them to mock. Thus they may sing exactly the same as Sporophila lineola for instance.