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The House Finch

By Cathy Warwick

House Finch
Male House Finch. Photo from Wikimedia Commons.

If you are walking around Calgary and hear a bird singing its heart out in a long trilling song, it is most likely a House Finch. These small birds are identified by their brown bodies, heavy beaks and the red colour on the male. It’s hard to believe that these now ubiquitous birds were fairly rare in Calgary, until as recently as the 1990’s! In theory most of us can remember a time when there were no House Finches around. In practice I barely remember the 90’s. Look at a group of birds at any feeder now and you will probably see some. The females have a striped body, and I find if you look for the stripes you can tell them apart from the House Sparrow fairly readily.

House Finch
Male House Finch (left) showing off his reddish rump, with a sleepy female House Finch. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

The House Finches origins start in the Southwestern US and Mexico. In the 1940’s someone tried to rebrand them as a ‘Hollywood Finch’ and sold them to pet stores in New York. In what way are they symbols of Hollywood I’m not sure, it was a different time back then. The Migratory Bird act came into effect, and all of a sudden pet store owners had illegal birds in their store. What do you do with a bird you don’t want? You open the window and let it fly away! If that bird is a tough and hardy finch, it will spread across North America.

The House Finch is prone to an eye disease called Mycoplasmal Conjunctivitis. If you see one with red puffy eyes don’t bother running out with tiny little cucumber slices, that bird is too far gone. According to Project FeederWatch you should take down your feeder for a couple days and then wash it. This will stop the spread of the disease to other House Finches.

These birds are fairly strict vegetarians, they fill up on seeds, buds, roots and foliage. Their colour is believed to be related to how well they are fed, if you see an orange male it could be that he isn’t getting all the nutrients he needs. Studies show the females choose the redder males. The male House Finch is responsible for feeding the young so it’s important to choose one that is a good provider. According to allaboutbirds, during courtship the male mimics regurgitating food to the female, showing off how good a feeder he is! These are monogamous birds, and very social, so really what you are seeing around the feeder are just a bunch of couples hanging out together. 

House Finch
This House Finch is pretty orange. Photo by Pat Bumstead.
House Finch
And here is a very yellow male. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

What I love about them is their song that seems so out of place on a cold day. Listen for a “zzz” buzzing sound that is part of the up and down warble and it sure to be a House Finch. You can look for the singer and you will see a little brownish bird way up in the heights of a tree singing, perhaps lamenting its ancestors’ move from Mexico. Or perhaps it’s trying to win back its Hollywood moniker with a winning solo.

More about the House Finch on All About Birds, including audio.

Pine Grosbeak – Our Winter Bird

By Cathy Warwick

Have you ever seen a Northern Cardinal in real life? These birds are beautiful and striking, and most of all, an intense red. If you haven’t seen them in person, I know you have seen them on Christmas cards and other winter-based accessories. Surrounded by snow and red berries probably. Those of us who live in Western Canada are tired of seeing them on our cards and mugs, and since they refuse to migrate out west I say we get a new bird to be emblematic of winter. I propose the Pine Grosbeak.

Pine Grosbeak
Male Pine Grosbeak. Photo by Diane Stinson.

The Pine Grosbeak is a large (robin sized) pinkish-red bird that flocks around berry-laden trees whilst looking festive. Although it is only the male Pine Grosbeak that have the red hue, and the females tend to be a mustard yellow, they still are very striking. As All About Birds describes them “a large and plump, heavy-chested finch with a round head”, sounds like they just need a Ho Ho Ho and their big bellies will shake like a bowl full of jelly.

I have been seeing them often on my street this winter, eating fruit from the trees. They travel in a small flock, and are identified by their color, their heavy finch beaks and their white wing bars. As the Audubon website says, they are “absurdly tame” so you can go stand under the tree and watch them. They dwarf the regular house finch, and probably can bully them off of bird feeders. I have never seen them on my feeder, probably because they are so big they would trigger the squirrel cage around it.

Pine Grosbeak
Male Pine Grosbeak with a much smaller Common Redpoll. Photo by Dan Arndt.

They are often seen in Weaselhead, just past the big bridge, where people put seeds. One year, a long time ago now, I saw some there that were a very rich brick red. Interestingly, their size and color varies across the continent. The males in California tend to be more orange for example. The Pine Grosbeak in British Columbia tends to be smaller. If they want a shot at supplanting the Cardinal they better start emphasizing the red.

Like most finches they have a pleasant song, warbly and melodic. I can’t say I have heard them sing in person. Perhaps this is because they sing during breeding season and by then they have vacated the city. According to the Government of Canada this bird is an ‘irruptive’ species whose populations are poorly understood. That means they move to southern locales when the food in the North is scarce. It is very special that they can overwinter in our city and I love seeing them here.

The Pine Grosbeak has a reputation for being slow-moving. In Newfoundland they have the nickname of ‘mopes’ because of their mopey, sluggish movements. I’m not sure how fast things usually move in Newfoundland but I would never call a bird mopey. However this does mean they make great photo subjects, and that should fit right in with my idea of overtaking the Cardinal in winter and Christmas memorabilia.

Pine Grosbeak
A female-type Pine Grosbeak. It may be an adult female, or a juvenile of either sex. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Pine Grosbeak
Another female-type. Photo by Dan Arndt.

In Calgary Pine Grosbeaks can be found most readily in coniferous forests of the Weaselhead, the west end of Fish Creek Park, west Bowness, and Griffith Wood Park. In big irruptive years they might be seen almost anywhere in the city.

Pine Grosbeak
A nice male Pine Grosbeak. Photo by Dan Arndt.

Here is a map showing sightings of this species in the Calgary area this year, from November 2023 to January 2024, as posted on eBird. As you can see, they are most often seen in the west end of the city and to the west of it.

Pine Grosbeak map

Read more about the Pine Grosbeak on eBird here.