Winter American Goldfinch
by Robert Bales
Title
Winter American Goldfinch
Artist
Robert Bales
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
The American goldfinch (Spinus tristis), also known as the eastern goldfinch, is a small North American bird in the finch family. It is migratory, ranging from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canadian border to Mexico during the winter.
The only finch in its subfamily to undergo a complete molt, the American goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration; the male is a vibrant yellow in the summer and an olive color during the winter, while the female is a dull yellow-brown shade which brightens only slightly during the summer. The male displays brightly colored plumage during the breeding season to attract a mate.
The American goldfinch is a granivore and adapted for the consumption of seedheads, with a conical beak to remove the seeds and agile feet to grip the stems of seedheads while feeding. It is a social bird, and will gather in large flocks while feeding and migrating. It may behave territorially during nest construction, but this aggression is short-lived. Its breeding season is tied to the peak of food supply, beginning in late July, which is relatively late in the year for a finch. This species is generally monogamous, and produces one brood each year.
This handsome little finch, the state bird of New Jersey, Iowa, and Washington, is welcome and common at feeders, where it takes primarily sunflower and nyjer. It is common throughout the lowlands of Washington, often coming to bird feeders. The male in breeding plumage is bright yellow with a black forehead, wings, and tail. He has one white wing-bar on each wing and white on his tail. Outside of the breeding season, the male is drab brown with hints of yellow and white wing-bars. In both breeding and non-breeding plumage, he has white undertail coverts contrasting with the yellow undertail coverts of the Lesser Goldfinch. The female in breeding plumage is yellowish-gray-brown on top and varies in color from bright yellow to dull yellow underneath. She has two light wing-bars on each wing and a light-colored bill. Her tail is black with white outer tips. Outside of the breeding season, she is gray above and below, and has less distinct wing-bars and a darker bill.
Uploaded
January 25th, 2015
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Viewed 1,748 Times - Last Visitor from Beverly Hills, CA on 03/28/2024 at 2:35 PM
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Comments (27)
Marvin Blaine
Wow! Exceptional Capture Robert! What a little Beauty! Love how this pops off the background! F!
Christopher James
One of your peers nominated this image in the 1000 views Groups nominated images by your fellow artist in the Special Features #13 promotion discussion. Please visit and pass on the love to another artist.
Don Columbus
Congratulations Robert, your work is Featured in "Birds In Focus" I invite you to place it in the group's "2020 Featured Image Archive" Discussion!! L/Tweet
Amy Sorvillo
Such a wonderful capture of this sweet little goldfinch! How kind of it to sit still for a moment for you...I know how difficult it can be to capture small birds as they don't stay still for long :)
Robert Bales replied:
So true for most of them, but I was lucky on this one!! Thanks for the nice comments!!