![]() Purple Finches readily come to feeders for black oil sunflower seeds. The birds in this sample measured between 123.5mm and 154mm in total length from the fork of the tail to the tip of the beak. One study found that males are 3mm longer on average with a sample size of 220 individuals. The Purple Finch is the bird that Roger Tory Peterson famously described as a “sparrow dipped in raspberry juice.” For many of us, they’re irregular winter visitors to our feeders, although these chunky, big-beaked finches do breed in northern North America and the West Coast. Male and female purple finches are practically identical in size. Purple Finches have a more reddish color on their upper parts and are not streaked on their abdomens. Two purple finches and a tree sparrow on the hanging seed tray. House Finches may be confused with Purple Finches. We had a visit from House Finches in November. The bill of the Purple Finch is conical shaped whereas the upper mandible of the House Finch is curved downward. House finch “males vary in color from orange-red to a deeper purple-red, but wings lack much coloring and the flanks are streaked.” House finches also tend to be noisier than purple finches, often chirping loudly when visiting feeders. ![]() This backside view shows color on the wings too, which is not present on house finches, I read.Ĭornell: Recognizing House Finches and Purple Finches At most feeders, a house finch is likely to be more common than purple finch. And the color is extensive, washing from the head onto the back and the throat and breast, and blending seamlessly onto the flanks. As you can see, it isn’t purple it’s rose-red. I was careful to ID them and be sure they weren’t House Finches. Photographer Teri Franzen spotted it in an oak tree in early March 2013.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |