winter birds

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Pied-billed grebe

Cabin fever?

SPECIAL NOTE: Saturday, January 22, at 9 a.m.

I'll be teaching a class on the Winter Birds of Ijams—all the species that can only be found at the nature center at this time of the year.

The list includes such species as the hermit thrush, winter wren, pied-billed grebe, American coot, yellow-bellied sapsucker, white-throated sparrow, pine siskin, purple finch and those hyper, hard to ID, kinglets.

After our indoor review, we'll go outside for a walk to see what we can find. Bring binoculars if you have them, or if not, we have loaner pairs. FEE: Free for Ijams members, $10 for non-members. To sign up call Sheila at (865) 577-4717, ext. 10.

White-throated sparrow

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two finches

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And neither one is named Atticus.

For the sake of comparison, on the left is the native to the east, purple finch, and for the sake of argument, let's call it raspberry. On the right, the native to the west but now transported across the country to be widespread, the boorish house finch, once sold in pet stores under the sobriquet of "Hollywood" finch. Wouldn't that make you want to buy one?

Note: on the house finch the cherry red is frontal appearing more on the face and the streaks on the flanks are dark; on the purple finch the color is more raspberry and spreads over the entire head and flows softly down the upper back; the streaks on the flanks, if present, are reddish.

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raspberry blush

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Settling in, focusing on a chickadee on a nearby branch, Canon Rebel in hand, getting ready to fire off a few shots when I noticed through the viewfinder a red flash move into the background.

"My God. Could it be?" A purple finch, Carpodacus purpureus, well more raspberry than true purple, but definitely not the cherry red of a house finch and there are no streaks on its flanks. No boorishness. No attitude.

The purple finch population has declined in recent decades, displaced by the later day usurpers, imported house finches, insolent really, that were brought to the eastern U.S. from the western U.S. and sold as caged birds, that is up until the time it was made illegal in the 1940s.

I haven't seen a purple finch in awhile and never, no never, have I seen one with my camera poised and ready to go. If only it will hold still long enough.

Oh, yes, yes, show us that raspberry rump, that pink blush draped over your shoulders. Yes. Beautiful.



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