The Backyard Birdman

A Pair of House Finches photo by Lisa Williams

As I was driving home from town yesterday, coming down the gravel road that is the last mile to my house, I saw a Western Kingbird sitting on a neighbors fence.  The Western Kingbirds have just arrived in my area and this one was in beautiful color.  You’re probably wondering why I’m talking about the kingbird when this post is about House Finches?  Well, let me explain.

I got out of my car to get a better look at the kingbird as it flew up into the top of a nearby tree.  One of my neighbors had been behind me on the road and had turned up his driveway about a quarter mile back.  When he saw me intently viewing something with my binoculars, he decided to come back out on the road and approach me to find out just what I was doing.

I explained my birdwatching activities and he and his wife were quick to jump in.  They proceeded to tell me about a bird nesting in the potted ivy on their back porch!  Since they din’t know what kind of bird it was, I asked if I could come take a look (my biggest fear was that it could be a house sparrow ).

I was much relieved when I saw this nest in the planter.

House Finch Nest photo by Larry Jordan

Sure enough there were a pair of House Finches sitting up in a nearby tree watching as I took this photo.  These pretty birds are abundant in our area and most of the U.S.  They make a very neat nest , in this case, lined with horse hair. (more…)