Here’s something we learned at the Neighborhood Nestwatch banding at Marcy Cunkelman’s last Saturday that you won’t notice through binoculars.
Did you know that first-year male American goldfinches look different than the older males?
Full adult males, two years and older, have bright yellow shoulders (scapulars) that match their backs as shown above. First-year males have a mix of black and yellow on their shoulders.
Here’s a first-year male held by the National Aviary’s Bob Mulvihill while he explains the color.
And here’s a side-by-side comparison of the scapulars: full adult on the left, first-year male on the right. Notice how the younger male has black under the yellow on his shoulder.
First-year males are old enough to breed but they don’t have any experience yet. Perhaps the ladies use the colors as a signal when picking mates.
If you look closely for the yellow shoulders, you too can separate the men from the boys.
(photos by Kate St. John)
Hi Kate. Great info. I get confused about juveniles, one-year, and two-year, etc. birds. Would a bird that fledged this year also be considered a one-year bird? Or would it be considered a one-year bird next year after its first birthday?
Trinidad, the First Year birds are 1 year old; they hatched in 2014. Birds that hatched this year are called “Hatch Year” birds.
Good stuff, and easy to look for when backyard feeding. As an aside, I found a male goldfinch last Wednesday sitting in the middle of a parking lot in Robinson, across the street from Latitude 360. It didn’t move as I walked towards it and was definitely in the way of incoming drivers. I gently scooped him up and, still, he didn’t move. I noticed his left wing was slightly straightened, and can only surmise that he hit a car window and was stunned. I did not manipulate the wing, but it did retract when I gently held him. Since it was after 7 p.m., and I did not know of any local emergency facilities, all I could do was transport him to a safe and quiet location behind the businesses, where I placed him near a tree in some taller grass and shrubbery. What likely happened to him, I do not know. But at least I reduced his chances of meeting his fate courtesy of an SUV. -C.
Thanks for the clarification, Kate.