Right about now, you can probably catch the elaborate mating calls of the American Goldfinch. Sure, everyone else got it out of the way back in the Spring, but the goldfinch has a number of reasons for waiting for Summer love.
Something Wild: Goldfinches
Air date: July 18, 2003
Welcome to this week’s edition of Something Wild.
I’m Rosemary Conroy for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
< sound of goldfinch song>
Ah— the vocal stylings of the American Goldfinch. You may have been hearing that lately. That’s because their breeding season is underway.
Yes, most birds are done with building nests, incubating eggs, and fledging young.
But these wild canaries, as they are often called, are rather unique in their breeding behavior. Even though the males changed into their bright yellow plumage with that jaunty black cap back in March, they have basically just been hanging out ever since.
They are waiting patiently for the wildflowers to bloom and set seed.
That’s because unlike most songbirds, goldfinches rely almost exclusively on plant matter for food. Instead of bugs and worms, they feed their chicks a regurgitated seed soup.
Seems to work just fine— goldfinches are one of our most common resident birds.
So, you’ll know that goldfinches are ready to set up shop when thistles begin to bloom. They not only like the seeds, but female goldfinches use the plant’s down to line their nests.
And goldfinches are ace nest-builders. In less than a week, using only her beak, the female can weave a cup out of bark, weeds, and vines so tight that it can actually hold water. Chicks can even drown in the nests during heavy rainstorms if a parent bird isn’t there to shelter them.
But female goldfinches are very dedicated — during incubation, they’ll spend 95% of their time on the nest. The male’s job, besides serenading us with that fantastic song, is to bring her food.
By the time their young chicks fledge, most of our migrant songbirds will be gone.
But luckily it’s easy to keep goldfinches around — just hang up a tube of thistle seed and enjoy!
SFX: < song of goldfinch >
Something Wild is a joint production of the Audubon Society of New Hampshire, NHPR, and the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
For Something Wild, I’m Rosemary Conroy.
