It is a rainy, misty morning here in Atlanta. Pam and I got up a little late and noticed a huge number of birds in the yard. We weren’t sure what they were but our thought is that they are Pine Siskin. What do you think?
Swarming The Sweetgum
The birds were all over the seed pods of the big Sweetgum trees we have, hanging upside down on them and pecking away. I tried to get some pictures but they were too far away and the camera didn’t focus too well, at least on full auto. Then, all of a sudden they all flew to the platform feeder and began eating. I managed to get a couple of pictures before they flew off. Now the question is, what were they?
Bird Identification Time
Pam thought they might be Pine Siskin right off the bat. I wasn’t so sure. I uploaded the clearest picture I had to flickr. here it is:
After looking at the picture and our Kaufman Field Guide to Birds of North America
Are We Correct
What do you think? Are these Pine Siskin, or maybe a bunch of Goldfinches? They seem to have too much streaking on them to be Goldfinches. But, we’ve only been birdirs for 4 weeks so we very easily could be wrong. My guess is that once again, Pam’s intial guess is right and I was wrong (as usual) 
My initial guess is Goldfinches. But I don’t see too many Pine Siskins to make the distinction.
Yep, you are correct, they are Pine Siskins.
Cool! That’s what we thought they were. Add another bird to the life list! Thanks for confirming our “guess”.
I agree with Mark. In fact, we have been Tweeting the Pine Siskin invasion on Twitter. They seem to be everywhere this year.
I’m 100% sure that they are pine siskins. We have about 250 visiting our central Pennsylvania feeders this winter. I’m surprised that they are so far south, so early.
Mark,
Thanks for reading and commenting!
250? That’s a lot of Sisken! My Father lives in Pennsylvania as well and he said the same thing, surprised they were so far South. We’re not complaining, they’re fun to watch. We saw another “swarm” of them on Sunday, just all over the place.
Enjoy the siskins while they’re around. While GA always has some every winter, this winter will probably go down as the largest siskin invasion in history, if the numbers reported on GABO are any indication.
Grant,
That’s what understand. I wonder what the reason is? We will definitely enjoy them while they are here. They are fun to watch as they “invade” the yard, going to all of the feeders at once. It’s also fun to see them hanging off of the Sweet Gum seed pods picking away at them.
Thanks for reading and commenting! Hopefully you find the blog interesting.
Mark & Pam,
-Just came accross you site yesterday as I was doing some research to confirm my sighting of a Pine Siskin. We live in Dacula. Our entire lot is only 1/4 acre so that would make our backyard about 1/12 acre but we “butt up” to a 9 acre riverside buffer. We feed the wildlife there as well so it affords more viewing. We have 17 feeders and have identified 69 species IN OUR BACKYARD over the last 6 years. It is a rare occasion that we see a new bird! Thanks for developing this site. I do have some tips and suggestions for you to attract a wide variety of birds to your yard and will post them to the most appropriate thread. I am not an expert my any means, but thru experience, have learned some things that are fun and really make a difference.
Keep up the good work. Happy Birding!
Dionne
Hi Dionne,
Or should I say, “welcome neighbor”! Thanks for visiting and commenting.
In the few months we’ve been keeping track of the birds in our backyard I think we are somewhere around 30 species or so. I would expect to add a bunch more as Spring and Summer come. The more the better!
Definitely let us, and the other readers, know of any tips you have for attracting more birds to the yard. We are so new to this that there is a ton of knowledge out there for us to absorb.
Keep reading. Now get out there and fill those 17 feeders!
Hi there!
I live in Pickens County, Jasper, Ga. I have had at least 65 Pine Siskin in the yard and at the feeders for about a month now. I have not been able to get really good photos but I do have some of them all flocked together feeding of the ground where I have put seed out for them.
I have been feeding them and all the others blackoil sunflower seeds all winter.
Yesterday I counted over 100 birds in my yard! Yes thats right, over 100. Not only do I have the Siskins but they have been joined by at least 20 Goldfinch and possibly Purple finch? The Purple Finch are beautiful if that is what they are. I haven,t been able to get close enough to them to really tell. They are shy. They are a beautiful burgundy color and when they have their feathers fluffed in the cold they are crested with darker spotted color on their bellies. About 4 of them.
I also counted around 20 Mourning Dove, there were 10 Robin at the bird bath. A dozen at least of Bluebird in the trees singing away. Apair of Bluejay, 2 pair of Cardinal, Chipping Sparrow I think, at least 6. Titmice, Carolina Chickadee, Whitebreasted nuthatch, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Carolina Wren and a pair of Red-Breasted Woodpecker. A Downy Woodpecker and a pair of what I think to be Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker. It is hard for me to count the Titmice, Nuthatches and Carolina Chickadees because they do not seem to flock together as much as the other species do. I just know there are alot of them.
I can get within 5 feet of the Siskin, they seem to be very tame. They are aggressive little birds. They fight each other for the feeders and will ward of other species close to their size. They leave the larger guys alone. Funny.
I saw a White-Breasted Nuthatch gathering twigs and feathers of the ground yesterday and the Mourning Dove have started calling. I saw one pair doing a little courtship dance yesterday. I guess that means Spring is on its way! I like your site I am glad I found it.
Hi Sherry,
It sounds like you have a lot of birds in your backyard, quite a variety. Isn’t it fun trying to keep track of what they are? Pam and I enjoy it quite a bit. With all those birds make sure to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count on February 13-16. My most recent post has information about it.
I’m glad you found the site. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Hi there! I did take part in this years great backyard birdcount. I recorded 21 species and had 191 birds that day! I am recently honored to have a pair of redshouldered hawks that seem to be taking up residence in the forest outback near the deer feeder. I am very excited about this I hope to get a chance to get photos and study them as well. How did your count go and what did you see?
Congrats on having the Red Shouldered Hawks in your yard! They are neat birds. Have fun watching them.
As for our GBBC we ended up seeing around 30 total species (mostly the same birds as we see every day) and maybe 100 total birds over the 3 days either one of us observed. It was fun and we will do it next year for sure.
They are definitely pine siskins. Their coloring is just the same.
pine siskins I think, I have a ton too, it seems like the pattern the wings make when folded is so clear to me, it looks kind of braided, with the black feathers tipped in light brown. I also have a variety that looks absolutely identical with a gold bar across the wings, anyone know what this is?