Tenerife blue chaffinch Tenerife blue chaffinch The Tenerife blue chaffinch ("Fringilla teydea") is a species of passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is endemic to Tenerife in Spain's Canary Islands. This bird is the natural symbol of this island, together with the Canary Islands dragon tree. Until 2015 the species "Fringilla teydea" was classified in two subspecies: "Fringilla teydea polatzeki" from Gran Canaria and "Fringilla teydea teydea" from Tenerife. However, a study published in March 2016 showed that a classification as different species, "Fringilla polatzeki" and "Fringilla teydea", is justified. Blue chaffinches resemble common chaffinches, but they are noticeably larger, and
Lanzarote of Genoese navigator Lancelotto Malocello, who used the alias "Lanzarote da Framqua". A fort was later built in the area of Montaña de Guanapay near today's Teguise. Castilian slaving expeditions in 1385 and 1393 seized hundreds of Guanches and sold them in Spain, initiating the slave trade in the islands. French explorer Jean de Béthencourt arrived in 1402, heading a private expedition under Castilian auspices. Bethencourt first visited the south of Lanzarote at Playas de Papagayo, and the French overran the island within a matter of months. The island lacked mountains and gorges to serve as hideouts for the remaining