American Goldfinches

A bright splash of yellow at your feeder in the spring?

The American Goldfinch has arrived!

How To Attract Goldfinches

Food

The American Goldfinch is a seed-eater. You'll find that goldfinches, like other finches, prefer nyjer (thistle) seed.

You'll have better luck with fresh nyjer seed; check the date on the package before buying.

Finches will also eat some sunflower seeds.

Feeders

Finches prefer tube feeders, especially the ones with a smaller diameter. Some tube feeders are built specifically to target the American Goldfinch.

Here are few examples:

• Perky Pet Upside Down Thistle Feeder
  This upside-down feeder caters exclusively to goldfinches
• Classic Nyjer Tube Feeder with Squirrel Proof Armor
  Very durable and attractive to various finches, as I know from personal experience
• Green Spiral Finch Tube Feeder
  I like the look of the spiral feeders, and user comments are generally positive
• Aspects Nyjer Mesh Finch Feeder
  The finches just cling to the mesh to eat
• 3-Tube Copper Finch Feeder
  This 3-tube has plenty of capacity and perches for that bigger flock of goldfinches

Are Goldfinches Where I Live?

This finch likes weedy grasslands, brushy thickets, and feeders near large, mature trees or hedges. It can be found across much of North America. Its winter range stretches into parts of Canada, while its summer range extends slightly into Mexico.

How Do I Know It's a Goldfinch?

Description

For spring and summer, the male goldfinch sheds his drab brown plumage for a bright yellow look, with a black cap and black and white wings. The female keeps a drab olive appearance, but both share wings laced with white wingbars as well as a short, notched tail.

Female American Goldfinch

"Drab" may be misleading, as the basic coloration for male and female includes greenish upperparts and yellowish underparts.

Oh, and the Latin name? It's Carduelis tristis.

Habits

In wintertime goldfinches travel in large flocks, but during breeding season they travel in smaller groups.

Sounds

You can listen to an American Goldfinch recording from Cornell.

According to Cornell, goldfinches warble and twitter, with a contact call described as a "tsee-tsi-tsi-tsit" or "po-ta-to-chip" sound.