27
Mar

American Goldfinches

Take a good look at the goldfinches at our feeders over the next few weeks and you will witness a remarkable change in the males.  They will change from their drab winter color of grayish-brown with sometimes a hint of yellow, to a mottled mess of golden yellow and that same drab grayish-brown, and finally end up with a bright and dazzling golden yellow with white and black trim – no hint of that drab-grayish brown anywhere.  This spring and summer male goldfinch is truly spectacular.  The female will change from an even more drab grayish-brown winter color to a more grayish-olive with possibly some yellow tints here and there.  Not too much of a change and she is nowhere as gorgeous as the male.

Cleon took both photos here at our house.  The top left is the fall and winter male and the bottom right is the spring and summer male.

We have at least a dozen goldfinches at the feeders right now – off and on all day long.  Watch our camera and you will have a ‘bird’s eye view’ of this dazzling change.