these birds indicate that they actually comprise two subspecies of the goldcrest that are separable on voice; R. r. teneriffae occurring on Tenerife and the newly described subspecies, R. r. ellenthalerae, the western Canary Islands goldcrest, occurring on the smaller islands of La Palma and El Hierro. Tenerife goldcrest R. r. teneriffae (Seebohm, 1883). Found on Tenerife and La Gomera, Canary Islands; it is a distinctive, small subspecies with a black forehead and pink-buff underparts. Western Canary Islands goldcrest R. r. ellenthalerae (Päckert et al., 2006). Resident on La Palma and El Hierro, Canary Islands. Differences in songs, genetics and morphology suggests that the Azores were colonised in a single invasion in the late Pleistocene, about 100,000 years ago. It is likely that the initial colonisation was of the easternmost islands, with a subsequent spread to the central and western island groups from the western caldera of São Miguel, where both eastern and western song types are found. Sao Miguel Goldcrest R. r. azoricus (Seebohm, 1883). Found only on São Miguel, Azores; it is like R. r. inermis, except the underparts are more olive-buff. Western Azores goldcrest R. r. inermis (Murphy & Chapin, 1929). Resident on Flores, Faial, Terceira, São Jorge and Pico, Azores; its upper-parts are a darker olive-green than those of the nominate form, and the underparts are also darker. Santa Maria goldcrest R. r. sanctaemariae (Vaurie, 1954). Found only on Santa Maria Island (Azores); it is paler than other Azores subspecies and whitish below. Fossils There are a few Pleistocene (2.6 million to 12,000 years BP) records from Europe of extant Regulus species, mostly goldcrests or unidentifiable to species. The only fossil of an extinct Regulus is a left ulna from 2.6–1.95 mya in Bulgaria, which was identified as belonging to an extinct species, Regulus bulgaricus. The goldcrest lineage diverged from this apparent ancestor of the common firecrest in the Middle Pleistocene. Distribution and habitat The goldcrest breeds in mature lowland and mountain coniferous woodlands, mainly up to , and occasionally to . It uses spruce, larch, Scots pine, silver fir and mountain pine, and in man-made landscapes also introduced conifers such as douglas fir. Breeding densities of up to 591 pairs per square km (1,530 pairs per square mile) have been recorded in Norway spruce in Ireland, and goldcrests constituted over 60% of all birds found in Welsh Douglas fir and Norway spruce plantations. Broad-leaved woods