The vast majority of native bird nesting takes place in spring, right after the trees green up and the flowers start to bloom. The spring nesting season feels like a frantic rush to quickly build a ...

Bird-feeding, if done properly, can help these birds survive. Black-capped chickadees, for example, have a much higher winter ...

Goldfinches are like ketchup: First non'll come and then a lot'll. Apologies to Ogden Nash, who initially wrote, "The Catsup Bottle — First a little and then a lottle." And to Richard Armour, who ...

Several mornings a week, I rise early and head out to my favorite patch of late blooming flowers. It’s a large patch of tall, bright yellow flowers. At this time of year there isn’t a lot of flowers ...

The American goldfinch loves to eat thistle seeds. Thistle seeds found at garden centers for birds are sterile and are not the invasive thistles that will take over gardens and lawns. (Submitted photo ...

For many species of birds, the business of courtship, egg-laying, brooding and feeding young is over. But not for American goldfinches. And so as summer wanes, the time of the goldfinches begins.

Mobs of American goldfinches are emptying feeders at a record pace. Most backyard bird watchers acknowledge that they haven't seen anything like it. Several weeks ago, the first big wave was made up ...

During a recent live bird presentation to Nature Day Campers at Chippewa Nature Center, Barb and Joe Rogers of Wildlife Rescue Association asked children to name their favorite bird. One favorite was ...

The American goldfinch is a common and conspicuous species in the Red River Valley, and now is the time to see them. Males are in full breeding plumage and present a vivid contrast between deep black ...

This fall, several amateur birdwatchers asked me what happened to the goldfinches. They hadn't seen any at their feeders for a while. Now more recently, I have heard reports they are back. So where ...

Goldfinches didn't get the nesting memo. The other birds did. They know to build their nests and start laying eggs in spring. The American goldfinch (Spinus tristis) waits until summer is in full ...

I am a creature of habit and I always write my column on a Thursday. On this particular morning, I find myself luxuriating in an unexpected, but most welcome, deviation from my normal routine. A huge ...