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Description: A bright red- and brown-striped bird found in cities and suburbs, the House Finch comes readily to backyard feeders. Originally a bird of the southwestern United States and Mexico, the House Finch was sold illegally and marketed as the “Hollywood Finch.” In the forties, several vendors and owners released these birds into the wild in order to avoid prosecution. They quickly started breeding and spread across the entire eastern United States and throughout southern Canada.

Other Names: Linnet

Color:Adult males vary in color from yellow to bright red. The red or yellow color is derived from pigments that they get from their diet of seeds, flowers, and fruits and added to the feathers during molting. The more pigment in the food, the redder the male. The females tend to choose the brighter colored males to mate with. They have long brown tails and are a brown or dull-brown color across the back, with some shading on the wing feathers. Breast and belly feathers may be streaked. Females and immature birds are brownish and lack the bright colors of the adult male.

Sound: The House Finch’s song is a hoarse warble that goes up and down rapidly. Its call note is a sharp “cheep.”

Preferred Environment: The “bird of the cities” the house finch is at home around people. In the east, the House Finch inhabits almost exclusively urban and suburban areas, preferring areas with buildings, lawns and small conifers. In the west, the House Finch is comfortable in close association with people in the towns and cities, but equally at home in desert, riparian areas and open, coniferous forests.

Nesting Habits: The House Finch’s nest, constructed by the female, is an open cup of fine grass stems, leaves, rootlets, thin twigs, string, wool and feathers, lined with similar but finer material. Nests are made in cavities, including cracks in buildings as well as on various kinds of vegetation that might even include vines attached to buildings and hanging house plants, or may be located in trees or bird boxes. Sometimes House Finches will use nests other birds have abandone.

Food Preference: House Finches are vegetarians, their natural diet consists of seeds, fruit and buds feed on sunflower seeds or Niger (thistle) and congregate at hanging Niger sock feeders.