Day 221: This male American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) capped off Global Big Day in the early evening of May 14, although I had already recorded the female of the species at the feeder. I had been worried that he wouldn't show up to be a spot of colour in my collage, but he obligingly perched in the contorted filbert for his portrait. Formerly known as Carduelis tristis, American Goldfinch holds the honour of being the state bird for Washington as well as for Iowa and New Jersey. Goldfinch pairs nest later in the summer than most other birds, and line their nests with fluff from dandelions, thistles and asters, the seeds of which also supply much of their natural food. At the feeder, they are said to prefer sunflower seed and nyger, but in my observations, they won't give nyger a second glance if sunflower seed is available. As a sidebar here, I introduced an invasive weed (Ambrosia artemisifolia) to my yard from a bag of nyger, so I no longer use it. In any event, I was glad to see Mr. Goldfinch at the close of Big Day, and for the record, I have now observed two visitors who did not show up for the event: Northern Flicker and Yellowthroat. I guess they didn't get the memo.
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