Greenish Siskin

During Monday's snowstorm, a small group of 6 Pine Siskins visited the feeder along with a few goldfinches. One of the birds was very yellow-green overall and stuck out from the others. The yellow undertail coverts first caught my eye. Closer scrutiny revealed a weak yellow wash through the underparts and auriculars, a yellow-green rump, and a green coloration to the upperparts. While not nearly as striking as some green siskins recently photographed by others, this individual was still obvious while looking between snowflakes. It was actually very similar in color intensity and pattern to Scott Kruitbosch's backyard siskin from the same day in Stratford.

I tried digiscoping from inside the house with little success. Here are the only few photos that came out:


Top-right bird. Click for larger images. Here you can just barely make out the yellow UTCs, variable yellow wash on the underparts and auriculars, and the greenish upperparts.




The upperparts were uniformly green-brown with the exception of the centermost scapulars.

- Nick

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