Lesser Goldfinch
Spinus psaltria
Summary 4
The lesser goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) is a very small (3.5 to 4.7 in) songbird of the Americas. Together with its relatives the American goldfinch and Lawrence's goldfinch, it forms the American goldfinches clade in the genus Spinus sensu stricto. Males are easily recognized by their bright yellow underparts and big white patches in the tail (outer rectrices) and on the wings (the base of the primaries). They generally have a black cap and their backs can also be black or can be a dull green, although the green-backed variety are much more common in the west. Females and immatures have olive backs, dull yellow underparts, and black wings marked by two whitish wingbars. They are quite common in the COSA and can be seen year-round.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Greg Lasley, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Greg Lasley
- (c) David A. Hofmann, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/23326361@N04/28869083568/
- (c) Becky Matsubara, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.flickr.com/photos/beckymatsubara/36056122156/
- Adapted by dirstine from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinus_psaltria
