Pine Siskin
(Carduelis pinus)

Cool fact: Pine Siskins are the most frequently encountered member of the irruptive winter finches—a group of finches that breeds in the northern portions of North America and periodically stages major winter invasions into central latitudes of North America. These incursions may occur for lack of food in their typical wintering areas.

Pine Siskins are approximately 5 inches (13 centimeters) in length. A small streaky finch with a pale, thin, pointed bill, Pine Siskins have dark wings and a tail that has a variable amount of yellow.

The Pine Siskin is a highly social bird and can often be found at feeders in large flocks or mixed with winter flocks of American Goldfinches. The distinctive single- or double-note flight call of the Pine Siskin is often heard throughout North America in the fall.

Description: The head, throat, and nape of Pine Siskins are buffy and finely streaked with dark brown. They also have an indistinct dark brown eye stripe. From the mantle to the rump, Pine Siskins are buffy and broadly streaked with dark brown. The underparts are whitish and finely streaked with dark brown. The wings are primarily blackish in color, with the median coverts having buffy edges; the base of the outer primaries is broadly marked with yellow (on males) and buff (on females). The black tail is notched, and the outer tail feathers have yellow bases.

A single race of Pine Siskin, Carduelis pinus pinus,breeds from southern Alaska through Canada to Newfoundland, and south to northern New England. Year-round, their range extends from Alaska through the Rocky Mountains to northern Arizona.

Pine Siskins are irregularly common to abundant in their breeding areas—in other words, one year they might be found in abundance at a particular location, whereas the next year they are totally absent. They are also an irregular migrant, occasionally staging massive irruptions into the middle portions of North America, which can extend as far south as central Florida. These irruptions may be related to fluctuations in their food supply, which consists of seeds and buds from conifers, birches, and alders.