This bird nests very late, eggs being laid in latter June and July. In spring they are sometimes considerably mottled in appearance, as the brown winter plumage drops out and is replaced by the yellow of summer. This prenuptial moult is usually complete by the middle of May, or earlier, and with the brighter plumage return all the familiar call-notes and graceful motions which we associate with these attractive birds.
Goldfinches are fond of sunflower and cosmos seed, and we may lure them to the garden, perhaps for the entire year, by planting such flowers as these regularly.
PINE SISKIN
Spinus pinus pinus (Wilson)
Other Name.—Pine Finch.
Description.—Smaller than English Sparrow; bill sharply pointed; a tuft of small feathers over nostril. Upperparts grayish brown streaked with black, the feathers margined with buffy; wing-feathers edged with yellowish and yellow at base; tail dark gray-brown, neatly forked, all but middle feathers yellow at base; underparts white, washed with buffy and heavily streaked with black. Length: 5 inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—A somewhat irregular migrant in April and May and in September and October; sometimes very common. Irregularly abundant in winter. It has been known to nest in the mountainous counties.
Pine Siskin
When winter flocks of these sociable finches visit Pennsylvania, the birds feed largely upon the seeds of hemlock and alder. Merrily they bound about through the air, giving their rough, querulous squeal. In looking for this bird, remember that the heavily streaked underparts and the yellow on the wings and tail are unmistakable. Siskins will sometimes be found feeding among the alders, not far from the ground. They often wander about with flocks of Goldfinches.
ENGLISH SPARROW
Passer domesticus (Linnæus)
Other Names.—Sparrow; House Sparrow.
Description.—Male: Chin and throat black; crown gray; cheeks whitish; back of head, neck, and back reddish brown, the back streaked with black; a prominent white wing-bar; underparts grayish white; wings and tail dull brown. Female: Grayish brown, with an indistinct wing-bar, a darker line through the eye, and a rather distinct superciliary line. Length: About 6 inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—An abundant permanent resident, principally in the towns and on the farms.
Nest.—A bulky mass of dry grasses, usually domed over and lined warmly with feathers, placed in crevices in buildings, in bird-houses, in cavities in trees, and rather rarely on a branch of a tree. Eggs: 4 to 6, white, spotted with gray.
The amateur bird student may do well to fix definitely in his mind the size and appearance of this abundant bird, since it is advisable to know these when making the acquaintance of other bird friends, and especially when studying the rather difficult sparrow group.