Bird Species
Goldfinch
Date Photographed
Photo taken end of December 2009; Isle of Skye, Scotland.
Where Photographed
I took the photo through my studio window, looking down onto this feeder which hangs from a bracket on the front porch. A short flit from it is a mixed hedge -- rose bushes, elderberry -- which LBJs love.
We've lots of sparrows and other finch species, but this was the first time I'd seen a goldfinch here. I've seen it a few times since I took the photo, so hopefully it'll decide to stay.
Tips and Tricks
- We put food under the hedge and shrubs where the snow doesn't really get, but LBJs do go.
- Put food out consistently if you want the birds to stay.
- If the fatballs aren't being eaten, they've probably frozen!
Melissa Mayntz, Birding / Wild Birds Guide, says:
Such a colorful bird! Known commonly throughout Europe as just the goldfinch, these birds are more formally called European or Eurasian goldfinches, and they stay year-round throughout all of Europe, northern Africa and into the Middle East.
