Finches are among North Americans’ favorite birds to attract. This includes house finches, purple finches, rosy-finches, and pine siskins, as well as bright yellow goldfinches.
So, how do you attract these exciting yellow birds to your property? Let’s start by learning a little bit about North America’s different types of goldfinches.
Key Takeaways
- Several species: There are four kinds of goldfinches in North America: American, lesser, Lawrence’s, and European. Each type has unique traits and color changes, with the American goldfinch being the most widespread.
- Attracting finches to feeders: To lure these bright birds, offer thistle seed (Nyjer), which they love for its high oil content. You can also mix in shelled sunflower chips but consider separate feeders from your typical offerings to avoid competition from larger birds.
- Creating a welcoming habitat: Beyond food, setting up a friendly environment is key. Plant native flowers, provide small trees or shrubs for nesting and ensure a fresh water source like a bird bath year-round.
Types of Finches
American Goldfinch
North America’s most widespread goldfinch is the American goldfinch, with a range that stretches from coast to coast depending on the time of year.
They’re more prevalent in the east, remaining year-round as far north as Upper Michigan, Minnesota, and Maine. The southernmost United States and parts of Mexico welcome northern finches during the winter.
These goldfinches’ color changes twice yearly, with males turning from their dull winter color to a bright spring yellow to celebrate the warming temperatures.
Lesser Goldfinch
One of the West’s resident goldfinches is the lesser goldfinch. They’re year-round residents as far north as parts of Oregon, and as far south as Peru, as well as summer residents of Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. Much of their year-round range is in Mexico and other southwestern locales.
Females are a dull olive color not too dissimilar to an American goldfinch in winter, but males vary in appearance across their range.
In the eastern part of their range as well as Central America, they have dark black topsides and bright yellow undersides, while western males have black caps but olive backs and black patterned wings.
Lawrence’s Goldfinch
The final native goldfinch of the Americas is not nearly as widespread as the first two, with a small breeding range in California and Baja California, with some moving east into Mexico, Arizona, and New Mexico during the winter.
They’re also far less gold than the other two goldfinches mentioned thus far. Both males and females are mostly gray with yellow wings, with males also displaying bright yellow chests and black faces and caps.
European Goldfinch
Native to parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, the European goldfinch sometimes finds itself in North America due to no fault of its own.
With the first birds likely released as pets at some point, European goldfinch populations have been growing as they breed in the Midwest in particular, including around major cities like Milwaukee and Chicago. At this point, the cat is likely out of the bag and European goldfinches are here to stay, but how much their range expands, if at all, remains to be seen.
Though they’re invasive, they’re beautiful birds. They have red and black faces, tan undersides, and wings colored in black and yellow.
How To Attract Them: Start With Food
No matter what kind of finch you’re hoping to attract, food is key. Fortunately, we know exactly what kind of food you’ll need to get for them: thistle seed.
Unrelated to the thistle plants of North America that finches also love, thistle (or Nyjer) is the seed of the African yellow daisy, and finches can’t get enough of it.
These tiny black seeds are high in oil content — between 30 and 40 percent, according to the National Audubon Society — making them the perfect high-energy food for these busy little birds.
Other seeds may do the trick as well, especially if you’re looking to attract other birds as well. A mix of thistle seeds and shelled sunflower chips is likely to attract both finches and other birds, though some larger birds may visit the feeder and toss the thistle aside to get to the highly appealing sunflower seeds.
Many people elect to have separate finch feeders from their normal offerings. This makes sense because thistle is a rather niche food for finches and these small birds will likely be outcompeted by larger birds like blue jays or blackbirds at a platform bird feeder with a wider selection of seeds.
Finch feeders come in a wide range of sizes, from tall tubes with perches for birds, metal mesh feeders with tiny holes from which only small seeds can be pulled, and sock feeders, which are basically nylon mesh feeders from which seeds can be pulled.
You can also plant food for goldfinches in the form of flowers like sunflowers, coneflowers, or thistle plants (real, native thistles).
Habitat Is Also Necessary
Food is not all that birds need to survive, however. Habitat is also important, but fortunately, goldfinches are one bird that can handle living in many different habitats, including urban and suburban areas.
To provide adequate space for birds, you should create as much habitat as your space allows, which includes planting native plants for food, cover, and nesting opportunities.
You may also consider offering a water source. Finches stay in many parts of the United States all year, so providing clean, fresh water that doesn’t get too hot in the summer months or freeze in colder months is another step you can take to make happy finches all year round.
In Conclusion
Goldfinches are one of the most popular and familiar North American birds, and they’re among the easiest to attract to your yard. Provide the right food and a few plants for cover and you’ll be on your way.
Happy birding!