| Medium ground finch | |
|---|---|
| |
| Male | |
| |
| Female | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Thraupidae |
| Genus: | Geospiza |
| Species: | G. fortis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Geospiza fortis Gould, 1837
| |
| |
The medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis) is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is endemic to the Galapagos Islands. Its primary natural habitat is tropical shrubland. One of Darwin's finches, the species was the first which scientists have observed evolving in real-time.
Many studies and research have been conducted on medium ground finches; there are the most famous studies conducted by Charles Darwin and more recent studies conducted in relation to the changes revolving around the medium ground finches due to natural selection. Due to an increase in urbanization on the Galapagos islands, droughts/climate change, character displacement, changes in the finch's habitat and range, inbreeding and nesting, parasites, and viruses, medium ground finches have gone through changes. Changes that have been observed are beak size, behavior in feeding, behavior in inbreeding, behaviors in nesting, antibody development and more. The changes in the Galapagos islands are factors that affect the medium ground finches.