Boulder Finch
Idiopsar brachyurus Cassin, 1867
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

Short-tailed Finch
Giselle Mangini · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The boulder finch or short-tailed finch (Idiopsar brachyurus) is a species of bird previously placed in the family Emberizidae, but it appears to be related to the sierra finches Phrygilus of the tanager family Thraupidae and is now placed there.
It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland.
Wikipedia contributors, Boulder finch; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T03:16:06.978226+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Idiopsar brachyurus Cassin, 1867
- Name authority
- Cassin, 1867
- Common name
- Boulder Finch
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thraupidae
- Genus
- Idiopsar
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyThraupidae
- genusIdiopsar Cassin, 1867
- speciesIdiopsar brachyurus Cassin, 1867
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Idiopsar. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White-throated Sierra FinchIdiopsar erythronotus (Philippi & Landbeck, 1861) | ThraupidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=560580 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3PDF2. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.