Wonderland Birds | 2025 Calendar
FEBRUARY | American Goldfinch
It is early September as I write this and gold is everywhere here in Wonderland. The field is ablaze with goldenrod—a yellow so intense I want to gather its warmth and knit it up into a blanket for the cold winter months that are to come. The sky is ablaze with goldfinches—a yellow so brilliant and flashy I gather their sparkles into memory for the dark winter months that are to come. But for now, I will try and remain present in this golden wonderland of early fall warmth and dreamy gentle breezes that seem to cradle the goldfinches in flight.
Late August and early September is truly goldfinch season, even though they are here year round. The moment I step outside my barn door I am met with goldfinch songs and calls—the sky filled with incoming yellow rollercoasters of rollicking flight paths, bouncing into the feeders with a joy and enthusiasm that’s hard not to embrace. The days are also filled with fledging calls and flitting wings—the young goldfinches chasing their fathers around the yard begging to be fed. The dads often oblige but more often than not, they practice tough love and let their young gather up their courage to feed themselves at the feeder. Curiously, it is always the dads that are bringing the kids around the yard—to the feeder and to the bird bath. I often like to imagine the moms all enjoying a day off, having a second cup of coffee, reading a book, taking a nap, not having to think about what to cook.
In the winter months, the goldfinches gather into large flocks that visit us daily—I have counted flocks with over 100 goldfinches over the years. Their winter plumage is a beautiful olive yellow-green, which begins to change back into their breeding brights in early spring. Seeing the males begin to turn color is always a sign of the spring to come, even though the cold days seems to make me think it never will. February’s photograph contains all the hope and excitement I feel when I spy that first goldfinch in Wonderland with the magical splashes of gold that shout the arrival of spring.