A couple of days
after the male, a female Purple Finch has arrived. She mingles with the Goldfinches and House Finches, and while she is not the perfect poser, she has given some cool views that helped me learn a bit more about them because I don’t think I ever had a female by the photo setups. I love to see all those yellow tones in her feathers, and I think she has the most beautiful markings.
On a side note - my calendars are on sale this entire week. I added a link to the shop here on my home page, check them out!
Early spring and fall
can be exiting times here because migration may bring in surprises. That happened this week, when one of my favorites showed up, a Purple Finch. They can be hard to identify when you haven’t seen one yet - many birders mistake vibrant House Finches for them. I have learned to not trust the color and follow my instict. Usually you can tell right away that this is a different bird. One mark that is easy to see and check for is the streaks / stripes on the lower belly. The House finch has them, the Purple does not.
I find bird backs
really cool to see because they always seem like such a well-organized piece of nature. It is pretty amazing how neatly the wings fold and everything creates a beautiful, water-resistant surface with the most intricate patterns. Can you guess them all?
Purple? Red? House?
Male House Finches can come in many different shades of red or even yellow and orange, depending on their diet. Some even take on a vibrant color that might remind of raspberries. And if they do that, they often get confused with another bird that is high on the wishlist of many backyard birdwatchers - the Purple Finch. It is not a mythical creature, it is not the name for House finches with a raspberry hue, and it is around a lot less than House Finches. Once you know their differences, you will be able to more easily know what you got. I had the pleasure of having a Purple Finch visiting yesterday, so I made a little chart that might help learning some of their most obvious markers. The two single photos are both also the Purple. He stayed so long that a little snow accumulated on his head.
