Yellow Shoulders

Male American goldfinch, two years or older, at banding (photo by Kate St. John)
Male American goldfinch, two years or older, at banding (photo by Kate St. John)

Here’s something we learned at the Neighborhood Nestwatch banding at Marcy Cunkelman’s last Saturday that you won’t notice through binoculars.

Did you know that first-year male American goldfinches look different than the older males?

Full adult males, two years and older, have bright yellow shoulders (scapulars) that match their backs as shown above.  First-year males have a mix of black and yellow on their shoulders.

Here’s a first-year male held by the National Aviary’s Bob Mulvihill while he explains the color.

First-yearmale American goldfinch, at banding (photo by Kate St. John)
First-yearmale American goldfinch, at banding (photo by Kate St. John)

And here’s a side-by-side comparison of the scapulars: full adult on the left, first-year male on the right.  Notice how the younger male has black under the yellow on his shoulder.

Scapulars on 2-year+ male American goldfinch compared to 1st-year male on the right (photo by Kate St. John)
Pure yellow scapulars on 2-year+ male American goldfinch (left) compared to black+yellow on 1st-year male (right) — photo by Kate St. John

First-year males are old enough to breed but they don’t have any experience yet.  Perhaps the ladies use the colors as a signal when picking mates.

If you look closely for the yellow shoulders, you too can separate the men from the boys.

 

(photos by Kate St. John)

4 thoughts on “Yellow Shoulders

  1. Hi Kate. Great info. I get confused about juveniles, one-year, and two-year, etc. birds. Would a bird that fledged this year also be considered a one-year bird? Or would it be considered a one-year bird next year after its first birthday?

    1. Trinidad, the First Year birds are 1 year old; they hatched in 2014. Birds that hatched this year are called “Hatch Year” birds.

  2. Good stuff, and easy to look for when backyard feeding. As an aside, I found a male goldfinch last Wednesday sitting in the middle of a parking lot in Robinson, across the street from Latitude 360. It didn’t move as I walked towards it and was definitely in the way of incoming drivers. I gently scooped him up and, still, he didn’t move. I noticed his left wing was slightly straightened, and can only surmise that he hit a car window and was stunned. I did not manipulate the wing, but it did retract when I gently held him. Since it was after 7 p.m., and I did not know of any local emergency facilities, all I could do was transport him to a safe and quiet location behind the businesses, where I placed him near a tree in some taller grass and shrubbery. What likely happened to him, I do not know. But at least I reduced his chances of meeting his fate courtesy of an SUV. -C.

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