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Thursday, July 20, 2023

Goldfinches and Burnweed

American Goldfinches are common all year around in Connecticut, though their numbers are boosted in autumn and early winter by young birds and others passing through from southern Canada and northern New England. At our feeders they became quite scarce in mid-winter, probably retreating to lower elevations. Our goldfinches could also be called the "Great Procrastinators," as they defer their breeding season until composite flowers bloom and many other bird species are already moving south. 

On July 13, as I was photographing a dragonfly in the back yard, this adult male goldfinch surprised me by resting briefly on a bare branch not far away:

He picked at an errant feather:

He should have left that feather in place!


He turned to exhibit the bold markings on his wings and rump:

My  initial critter of interest was this female Widow Skimmer:

Last summer I noticed a tall weed which emerged in the area of hardwood forest that had been clearcut the previous winter. It had sprouted up very quickly and covered nearly the entire area amid the trunks of the felled trees. These photos of the clear-cut area in the rear acreage illustrate their progression from late spring into summer: 

April 25, 2023:

May 12, 2023:

June 27, 2023:

Although this plant has distinctive buds, they never open as flowers. Goldfinches have a particular affinity for the seeds and the fluffy down (pappus) which carries clouds of seeds in the wind. They use the pappus for the nest structure and their young subsist almost entirely on seeds. I took this picture on September 3, 2022:

This is a young specimen of the plant. It grows on a single stalk up to a height of 4-6 feet:

Thanks to the iPhone plant identification app, I learned that it was Ercitites hieraciifolius, American Burnweed, a member of the daisy family, a composite. (I triggered the Ring alarm while taking this photo): : 

The peak nesting season for American Goldfinch is in early August, just when the  Ercitites begins to release its seeds. This year there has been an unusually large gathering of goldfinches in the trees surrounding the clearing. Presumably, many are young from the previous season. I expect there will be a banner crop of nestlings.

A White-tailed doe found a shady spot to rest at the edge of our side yard:


When she turned her head, this revealed the ragged tips of her left ear, which identified her as "Notch." We wondered if her fawn may have been out of sight in the adjacent woods:

At the suet feeder, a male Downy Woodpecker was confronted by a hungry Gray Catbird:

A much larger female Hairy Woodpecker also appeared:

The stormy weather and several obligations kept me from getting out to photograph a street scene meme. Here is a favorite from my archives, during a visit to the Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico, on June 21, 2010: 

This week's header: Sunset from the back yard on July 7, 2023:

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Linking to:




Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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25 comments:

  1. I've been spotting goldfinches up here in Ontario. They love the Goat's Beard seeds right now. Great photos, all!

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  2. Great photos of the Goldfinches. I see them here and enjoy their bright colors.

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  3. Your street sceen photo looks like a step back in time (to the Old West!). That's a place I would like to visit.

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  4. What a beautiful shot of the Widow Skimmer! I'd not heard of the Catbird. It's an interesting name, as if the bird should be leery of itself, or conversely ... cats beware. :))

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  5. ...Mother Nature tries to quickly revegetate her world. She is amazing.

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  6. Delightful nature shots ~ love the deer with the 'notched ear' and the gold finch ~ 'picking at an errant feather' ~ such detail ~ thanks,

    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  7. Incredible photos and information.

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  8. I like how you read their minds. I think you are absolutely correct. Aloha!

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  9. Wonderful photos of the goldfinch.

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  10. Hi Ken, your goldfinches look very different from ours in Europe, only the drawing on the wings is similar. But they are beautiful birds both here and in the USA. Thanks for the great photos and the link to Nature Thursday.
    Kind regards - Elke

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  11. Great photos. I love the photo of Acoma Pueblo. I drove close to it a couple weeks ago but did not visit it. I've been twice. Such a great place to visit and so historic.

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  12. The dragon fly wings are so amazing - so intricate and detailed! Great sunset too. You are quite spoilt!! Thanks for sharing with #Allseasons

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  13. Wonderful photographs, Ken!

    Still jealous we seldom get to see the Goldfinch in his breeding finery.
    Hope all is well. At least your atmosphere is looking better than a month ago!

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  14. Hello Ken,
    Love your Goldfinch images. Since I do have feeders here I have not seen them in my yard. Cool capture of the Catbird with the woodpecker. The deer images are sweet, I always enjoy seeing the deer. Beautiful sky capture. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great week. PS, thanks for leaving me a comment.

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  15. I love goldfinches and for some reason we don't see as many here as we did a few years ago. LOVE the street scene! Of course I love NM! Enjoy your Sunday!

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  16. Success, you photographed the Widow Skimmer beautifully. Enjoyed the strange sunset photograph too. I lived in NM but never saw Acoma Pueblo. Enchanting place. The place never left my heart.

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  17. The photos of the male goldfinch are especially beautiful. I'm also fascinated by the American Burnweed and its role in the goldfinch's breeding season. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and photos with us.

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  18. What nice photos again love the Goldfinch too makes I always learn something new here each week :-)

    Have a goldfinchtastic week 👍

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  19. Love that Goldfinch. I sometimes see the (introduced) European Goldfinch here. It has less gold! Hope all is well. SM

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  20. Our Hairy Woodpeckers have been frequent visitors of late..Lovely picture of the Widow Skimmer. We don't ave as many Goldfinches this year as usual..Could be because I stopped splurging on sunflower hearts...too expensive and I had to fill my feeders every day...They love it..Hope all is well with you..

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  21. We host Goldfinch year round. There are so many plants that we leave to go to seed that there are seeds that I see the goldfinch and junco all winter. We do have thistle feeders, and other feeders, but it shows how much they love the natural plant seeds….. Michelle

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  22. Such a huge collection of nature photos. Rose-breasted Grosbeaks are cutest of them all

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  23. Goldfinches are adorable, your street scene capture is masterpiece. Thanks for sharing with Garden Affair.

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