The Pine Siskin (Carduelis pinus) is a fairly dark

finch, heavily streaked all over, with that little bit of

yellow on the wings and base of the deeply notched

tail. They behave very much like the goldfinches, also

preferring the thistle feeders, although they are a

lot more aggressive in chasing other birds off.

In the winter of 2007–2008, Pine Siskins were irruptive, which means that there were big flocks of them

in many places that normally see only a few, or none. Before that winter, I only saw two over a period of

three years. Then, that winter there were dozens of them at my feeders all the time. They were so bold

that I was able to walk right up to the feeders to get shots without the birds flying off.

29 Jan 2008