Goldfinch winter plumage

September 09, 2015  •  Leave a Comment

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Male American goldfinch in winter/nonbreeding plumage eating sunflower seeds.  There was another male in full bright lemon yellow breeding plumage 30 feet away.

 
In some areas you may think the goldfinches have migrated south for the winter, when in truth they've simply become a bird of a different feather color. American goldfinches do a partial molt of their feathers in the spring, and a complete molt in the fall.  This finch looks like it's two months ahead of schedule in it's molt.

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