The American
Goldfinch - Carduelis tristis - also known as the Eastern
Goldfinch and Wild Canary, is migratory, ranging from Canada to Mexico. This bird prefers open country
where weeds thrive as well as open deciduous and riparian woodlands.
Description
The American
Goldfinch is a small finch. The male is a vibrant yellow in the summer and an olive
color during the winter months, while the female is a dull yellow-brown shade
which brightens only slightly during the summer. The beak is small, conical,
and pink for most of the year, but turns bright orange with the spring molt in
both sexes. The American Goldfinch undergoes a molt in the spring and autumn.
The immature American Goldfinch has a dull brown back, and the underside is
pale yellow. The shoulders and tail are dull black with buff-colored, rather
than white, markings on wings and rump.
Call
The song is a
series of musical warbles and twitters, often with a long note. A tsee-tsi-tsi-tsit
call is often given in flight; it may also be described as per-chic-o-ree.
There are two defense calls made by adults during nesting; a sweeet call made to
rally other goldfinches to the nest and distract predators, and a bearbee used
to signal to the nestlings to quiet them and get them to crouch down in the
nest to become less conspicuous.
Food
It is mainly
granivorous, but will occasionally eat insects, which are also fed to its young
to provide extra protein.
Breeding
The American
Goldfinch begins its breeding season later in the year than any other finch.
This may be related to the abundance of seeds in the late summer months, as seeds
represent the majority of their diet. The male displays brightly colored
plumage during the breeding season to attract a mate. Once a male has found a
mate, he selects a territory, marking the boundaries by warbling as he flies
from perch to perch. After circling the perimeter, he performs two flight
displays, first repeating a low, flat flight, then flying in an exaggerated
version of normal flight, tucking his wings close to his body, plummeting
earthwards and catching himself as he spreads his wings to glide upward in a
series of loops. Two or three pairs may group their territories together in a
loose colony, perhaps to aid in defense against predators.
The nest is built
in late summer by the female in the branches of a shrub or tree. She lays four
to six bluish-white eggs and are incubated by the female. The chicks hatch in
12–14 days and fledge in after 11–15 days.
Conservation Status – Least Concern
Common throughout
much of United States and
southern Canada.
The American Goldfinch is not threatened by human activity, and is widespread
throughout its range. The clearing of forests by humans, though harmful to many
species, has benefited this bird.
Birdwatching
Look for it in
fields, meadows, on roadsides, orchards, and gardens. The American Goldfinch is
found in residential areas throughout its range.
Washington Birding
Hotspots
Skagit Flats
Grays
Harbor Estuary
Olympic National
Park
Dungeness NWR
Mount
St. Helens
Long Beach
Nisqually
National Wildlife Refuge
Lake Hills
Greenbelt Park
The Columbia River Gorge
Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge
Steigerwald
National Wildlife Refuge
Willapa NWR
Tokeland
Ocean Shores
Hurricane Ridge
Cape
Flattery
Potholes
Reservoir
Black Lake Meadows
Capitol Lake
Grass Lake
McLane Creek
Mud Bay-Perry
Creek
Olympia Waterfront
Priest Point
Park
Watershed Park
North Cascades
National Park Complex