>A friend saw 3 interesting birds last evening, in a meadow area near
>Sultan. She wonders if they were indeed American Goldfinches, which was
>the closest picture in the bird book (Audubon's photo bird guide). There
>were two males and one female: the female was a drab greenish/yellow,
>while the males were both neon-yellow, but the caps were just over the
>bridge of the beak and did not go up to the crown of the head as the
>photo showed. There was also a bit of white on the lower belly and on
>the undertail coverts. The size was similar to a Red-breasted Nuthatch.
>
>Could the two males have been changing to mature breeding plumage? What
>are the chances that the two males were the female's offspring? Thanks
>in advance! --Anna Coles, Seattle, WA acoles at u.washington.edu

I'll go for American Goldfinches. It's easy to be confused about the exact
extent of a marking, depending on viewing direction.

No, the males should have been in full plumage at this time of year. And
there wouldn't be young yet. They are somewhat late breeders, and anyway
the immatures look like rather like winter adults. I assume the males had
black wings and tails, although that wasn't mentioned.

For the chemists in the crowd: does neon gas burn yellow?

Dennis Paulson, Director phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416