AMERICAN GOLDFINCH
aka Wild Canary
I've always known this bird as a wild canary and it wasn't until we had our first bird book that I found its real name of American Goldfinch. It's pretty song and irregular flying, large dips rather than a straight line flight, make it easy to identify.
The gold finch is a small bird meausring 11-13 cm (4-5 in).
The American Goldfinch changes from winter plumage to breeding plumage by a complete molt of its body feathers. It is the only member of its family to have this second molt in the spring; all the other species have just one molt each year in the fall. During the summer the male is a bright yellow with a black cap whereas the female is a drab olive colour. After their fall moult both sexes are almost identical in colouring.
The diet of Amercian Goldfinches is primarily seed with thistle being a favourite at feeders. Before a storm the birds will feed in a frenzied manner at feeders and show a significant gain in weight before and during the storm. This behaviour may increase the American Goldfinch’s chance of survival under adverse conditions.
These pictures were taken in the summer and early fall of 2006. Between child like excitement and not so steady hands these photos are not my best.
Please click on thumbnail to view full photo
2007
The goldfinches were regular visitors to our thistle bags this year. We thought it was great if there were 3 or 4 finches showing up at a time but mid September, when they started their fall migration was exciting for us!! At one point I counted 14 birds between the 2 bags. I hated to disturb them but really wanted to water the backyard so I moved the bags to a hanger against the fence...turned the sprinkler on, sat down on the patio and lo and behold the bags were spotted and were swarmed.
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