![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-PH6HYWmjEos\/XpyI5J8qwKI\/AAAAAAAAHnk\/40cZvrBrlw4M8AmebYeKxzFxOy96p-5kwCLcBGAsYHQ\/s1600\/IMG_3511_american_goldfinch%2B400w.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/span>American Goldfinch overview<\/span><\/h2>\nAmerican Goldfinches are tiny birds. Males in breeding plumage are bright lemon yellow with black wings, tail, and forehead. They have sweet lilting calls as the fly over with bounding flight. They have a complicated sweet song in spring.<\/p>\n
Happily, they are readily attracted to backyard feeders and bird baths. They eat small seeds, including Niger seed in special “thistle” feeders.<\/p>\n
Identification<\/h3>\n
American Goldfinches measure 4-1\/2 to 5 inches in length, from bill tip to tail tip. That’s tiny! They have a wingspan of 7-1\/2 to 8-1\/2 inches.<\/p>\n
These birds are rather stocky. Their head is large and merges into the body in an almost neckless appearance. The long white tail coverts accentuate the short forked tail. The small conical bill is rather thin for a seed eating bird.<\/p>\n
Breeding males are bright lemon yellow. The wing and tail feathers are black with white wing edges forming two wide white wing bars. The forehead is black. Both the upper and under tail coverts are white. The legs and feet are brownish pink. The pink bill is short, wide at the base and sharply pointed.<\/p>\n
In later in fall the white edges on the wing and tail feathers wear away. Males then appear to have solid dull black wings with only two thin wing bars.<\/p>\n
In winter males are pale tan with yellow mostly restricted to the head. The wings are renewed to jet black with many wide white edges to them. The outer edges on the tail feathers are also lined with white.<\/p>\n
Females in breeding plumage are duller yellow below with a greenish cast to the back and upper parts. The black wings have narrower white wing bars than the males.<\/p>\n
Immatures and winter females are gray-tan with black wings and tail. Immatures in fall show broad tan wing bar. By winter the wing bars are worn thinner and are a dull white color. Thus they match the female in plumage.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/whatbirdsareinmybackyard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/American-Goldfinch-24042018-7-300x200.jpg\")
American Goldfinch by Imogen Warren<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDuring most of the year American Goldfinches travel in small family groups or flocks. In late fall and early winter flocks of hundreds can form in weedy fields.<\/p>\n
Goldfinches feed on the ground or cling to stalks to reach seed heads of grasses and weeds. They hold onto plant stalks acrobatically.<\/p>\n
When they fly away, American Goldfinches give a lilting chipping call of about 4 syllables. The call is described as per-chik-o-ree<\/i>. To many people this sounds more like po-ta-to-chip!<\/i>
\n<\/i>
\nThe song is a long complicated lilting trills and chip notes.<\/p>\n
The undulating and strongly bounding flight of goldfinches is a quick identification mark when combined with the tiny size and fairly long wings and short tail.<\/p>\n
For more in-depth coverage of American Goldfinch identification and how to tell them apart from similar species, please read my article: What do American Goldfinches look like?<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/whatbirdsareinmybackyard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/IMG_0697-20American-20Goldfinch-20400w-300x220.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Range and habitat<\/h3>\n
American Goldfinches breed across the northern two-thirds of the United States and southern Canada. Birds move out of Canada and the northern Great Plains in winter. In winter some birds move to the southern United States and northern and mid-eastern Mexico.<\/p>\n
Many birds stay for winter where the weather is mild. Others migrate a short distance southward to find warmer weather.<\/p>\n
American Goldfinches are found in weedy open habitats with shrubby trees for nesting. Birds are very common for a few years in regenerating clear cuts. When the trees block out the sun and bushes and weeds no longer grow on the forest floor, goldfinches move out.<\/p>\n
These goldfinches are also common in city park and backyard habitats.<\/p>\n
For more in-depth information on the range and habitat of American Goldfinches, please read my article: Where do American Goldfinches live?<\/a><\/b><\/p>\nDiet<\/h3>\n
American Goldfinches eat almost exclusively seeds. While many seed-eating birds feed their nestlings insects, not so goldfinches.<\/p>\n
The favorite seeds that American Goldfinches love to eat are composites, including thistles, sunflowers, and asters. You may see them feeding acrobatically on dandelions in your yard.<\/p>\n
They also eat tree seeds from such trees as birch and sweet gum.<\/p>\n
At your bird feeder there are two seeds these birds love. American Goldfinches are really attracted to black oil sunflower seeds and Niger seed. They will eat most small seeds from all types of feeders. A “finch feeder” or “thistle sock” with Niger seed attracts goldfinches and siskins almost exclusively, sometimes House Finches.<\/p>\n
American Goldfinches are very attracted to water in bird baths, fountains, and drippers.<\/p>\n
During most of the year American Goldfinches travel in small family groups or flocks. In late fall and early winter flocks of hundreds can form in weedy fields.<\/p>\n
Goldfinches feed on the ground or cling to stalks to reach seed heads of grasses and weeds. They hold onto plant stalks acrobatically.<\/p>\n
When they fly away, American Goldfinches give a lilting chipping call of about 4 syllables. The call is described as per-chik-o-ree<\/i>. To many people this sounds more like po-ta-to-chip!<\/i>
\n<\/i>
\nThe song is a long complicated lilting trills and chip notes.<\/p>\n
The undulating and strongly bounding flight of goldfinches is a quick identification mark when combined with the tiny size and fairly long wings and short tail.<\/p>\n
For more in-depth coverage of American Goldfinch identification and how to tell them apart from similar species, please read my article: What do American Goldfinches look like?<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n American Goldfinches breed across the northern two-thirds of the United States and southern Canada. Birds move out of Canada and the northern Great Plains in winter. In winter some birds move to the southern United States and northern and mid-eastern Mexico.<\/p>\n Many birds stay for winter where the weather is mild. Others migrate a short distance southward to find warmer weather.<\/p>\n American Goldfinches are found in weedy open habitats with shrubby trees for nesting. Birds are very common for a few years in regenerating clear cuts. When the trees block out the sun and bushes and weeds no longer grow on the forest floor, goldfinches move out.<\/p>\n These goldfinches are also common in city park and backyard habitats.<\/p>\n For more in-depth information on the range and habitat of American Goldfinches, please read my article: Where do American Goldfinches live?<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n American Goldfinches eat almost exclusively seeds. While many seed-eating birds feed their nestlings insects, not so goldfinches.<\/p>\n The favorite seeds that American Goldfinches love to eat are composites, including thistles, sunflowers, and asters. You may see them feeding acrobatically on dandelions in your yard.<\/p>\n They also eat tree seeds from such trees as birch and sweet gum.<\/p>\n At your bird feeder there are two seeds these birds love. American Goldfinches are really attracted to black oil sunflower seeds and Niger seed. They will eat most small seeds from all types of feeders. A “finch feeder” or “thistle sock” with Niger seed attracts goldfinches and siskins almost exclusively, sometimes House Finches.<\/p>\n American Goldfinches are very attracted to water in bird baths, fountains, and drippers.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nRange and habitat<\/h3>\n
Diet<\/h3>\n