Illustration from Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia/Corbis
American (Pale) Goldfinch
Carduelis tristis pallidus
Subspecies of American Goldfinch
June 8, 1805, near the Marias River, Montana.
Breeding male bright yellow with a white rump, black forehead, white edges on black wings and tail, and yellow at bend of wing. Female and winter male duller and grayer with black wings, tail, and white wing bars. Length: 4.5-5 in (11-13 cm).
Bright per-chick-o-ree, also rendered as potato-chips, delivered in flight and coinciding with each undulation.
Brushy thickets, weedy grasslands, and nearby trees.
Breeds from southern British Columbia east to Newfoundland and south to California, Utah, southern Colorado, central Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Carolinas. Winters in much of United States.
Goldfinches remain in flocks until well past the time when other species have formed pairs and are nesting.
