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Bird Sounds: American Goldfinch

An American Goldfinch and her nestling.

Photo Credit
Photo by Thinkstock

American Goldfinch Calls

Tom Warren
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The bright yellow goldfinch is one welcome sign of spring. These small birds love to visit the birdfeeder, especially to eat sunflower and nyjer seed. They have a bouncy way of flying during which they often make their po-ta-to-chip calls. Learn more and listen to their distinct birdsong.

American Goldfinches are known for their bright yellow color, however, they molt in later winter as well as late summer, so the bright yellow color emerges in early spring—and an easy way to mark the season! The males have a bright yellow body with black forehead, black wings with white markings. Adult females are duller yellow beneath, olive above. 

They are truly vegetarian birds and only eat seed, especially from the Asteraceae family: sunflowers, thistle, asters, etc. The males sing exuberantly during spring, however, the birds nest much later than most of their peers—once their beloved thistles and milkweeds have gone to seed. They use the material from the seedbeds to build their nests!

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If you’d like to attract the American goldfinch, include milkweed and thistle in your landscape! It’s fun to watch them balance on the seedbeds to pluck out the seeds. They’ll also eat the seeds that fall below feeders, but try to keep the ground well raked because these birds can get contagious diseases.

Have you heard an American Goldfinch? Add your comments below. Be sure to let us know where you live or where you’ve heard this bird sound before!

Click here to listen to the sounds of other birds, compliments of

Bird Sounds
About The Author

Tom Warren

Tom Warren is a lifelong bird enthusiast. Tom is also committed to protecting birds and their habitat as a Trustee for both Massachusetts and New Hampshire Audubon, and the Harris Nature Center. Read More from Tom Warren
 

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Comments

Merle (not verified)

11 years 9 months ago

Anyone know of any ebooks that combine the photos and the birds sounds.

KathleenBP (not verified)

12 years 2 months ago

We had two pairs of these coming to our feeders this spring. We now have about 10 pairs (10 males and 10 females). It is amazing to watch them! They eat a lot. We fill up our feeders in the morning and then again in the evening. We have 6 feeders that hold about 2 cups of seed each and then one thistle feeder, that holds 3 cups, that we fill up about every other day. I live in northern Maine, 7 miles from the Canadian border, right in the center of the state.

We have dozens of these little beauties come after a nice rain shower and about a dozen or so stay around. We have feeders and suet and they seem to like them. I love seeing the little flashes of yellow light as they fly by. We live in northeastern Oklahoma

Evelyn Hays (not verified)

13 years 7 months ago

We have lots of these birds. They like thistle so I put up special feeders. They eat upside down so I put the perches that way. In winter their feathers are olive drab but change to bright yellow in spring. I live in Southeastern Kentucky.

woodnymph (not verified)

14 years 1 month ago

There were several pair of these birds here in rural Dobson, North Carolina this season, they liked to attach themselves to the thistle soxs, and we learned that they are very aggressive. They would fly from the sox to the birdfeeders when a Northern Cardinal, or Mountain Blue bird would land on them. They would even chase others of their same species away from the feeders.

Mare-Anne Jarvela (not verified)

14 years 2 months ago

I have both males and females coming to my garden this month. They love the seed heads of Black-eyed Susans, cone flowers and chicory. I usually hear them before I see them! I live in New Hampshire.