The genus
Geospiza was introduced in 1837 by the English ornithologist
John Gould with the
large ground finch as the
type species. The genus name derives from the two
Ancient Greek words (), meaning "earth", and (), a catch-all term for
finch-like birds. The member of the genus form part of a group collectively known as
Darwin's finches. Although traditionally placed with the buntings and
New World sparrows in the family
Emberizidae, The genus contains the following nine species.
Hybrids A purported
hybrid species (informally nicknamed "
Big Bird") endemic to
Daphne Major and formed almost four decades prior by hybridization between a
vagrant Geospiza conirostris and a
Geospiza fortis was also reported in 2017, though it has yet to be formally described. ==References==