Lesser Seedcracker
Pyrenestes minor Shelley, 1894
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.
Open encyclopedia reference
The lesser seedcracker or Nyasa seedcracker (Pyrenestes minor) is a fairly common species of estrildid finch found in eastern Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 925,000 km2 (357,000 mi2) and is found in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has classified the species as being of least concern.
Wikipedia contributors, Lesser seedcracker; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:14:20.866822+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Pyrenestes minor Shelley, 1894
- Name authority
- Shelley, 1894
- Common name
- Lesser Seedcracker
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Estrildidae
- Genus
- Pyrenestes
- 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
- familyEstrildidae Bonaparte, 1850
- genusPyrenestes Swainson, 1837
- speciesPyrenestes minor Shelley, 1894
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Pyrenestes. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Black-bellied SeedcrackerPyrenestes ostrinus (Vieillot, 1805) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Crimson SeedcrackerPyrenestes sanguineus Swainson, 1837 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
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=562644 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
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:4QRFL. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.