Small songbirds with short, strong beaks that crack seeds, famous for their role in Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
From Old English 'fine' or 'finc,' with Germanic roots possibly connected to sounds the birds make. The word has referred to these seed-eating birds for over 1,000 years.
Darwin's finches in the Galapagos Islands had different beak shapes perfectly matched to the seeds available on each island—a stunning example of natural selection—but here's the mind-blowing part: we've watched this evolution happen in real-time in recent decades!
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