Pine Siskin Identification

Small finch with a sharp, pointed bill and a short, notched tail. Adults are brown and streaky overall with subtle yellow edgings on the wings and tail.

Small, streaky finch with a sharply pointed bill and notched tail.

Small, heavily streaked finch with yellow tones in the wings and tail. Note the sharply pointed bill that is thinner than in other finches.

Immatures look similar to adults.

The rarely encountered "green morph" has more intense yellow and green plumage tones and often reduced streaking below.

Adult males resident in the highlands of s. Chiapas and w. Guatemala have a black cap, gray lightly streaked underparts and brighter yellow edging in the wings and tail.

Female "Chiapas" Pine Siskin is similar to "Northern" Pine Siskin, but note the grayish eyeline and more diffusely streaked underparts.

Juveniles look similar to adults, but have buffy edging on their wing feathers.

Brown and streaky finch with a sharply pointed bill. Cannot be reliably sexed based on the amount of yellow in the wings.

Feeds mostly on seeds—both coniferous and deciduous—and also eats some plant buds, stems, and leaves.

Rare "green morph" birds, which appear to be exclusively male, have darker and more greenish upperparts, paler and less extensively streaked underparts, and more extensive yellow at the base of the wings and tail.

A social species, often found in noisy flocks.

Found in evergreen or mixed forests with open canopies, weedy fields, scrubby thickets, or backyards and gardens.