Subject: Blackbirds
Date: Apr 28 07:27:30 1997
From: Peggi & Ben Rodgers - woodduck at cruzio.com


At 06:34 PM 4/27/97 -0700, Roy wrote:

>finally show-up to my feeder. I also saw, for the first time, a
>"Yellowish" male House Finch. Are they common? I have regular/red
>House finches all the time.

If I remember right, they've done studies that show the lighter "yellowish"
color in House Finches is due to diet (anybody know the citation?). The
more adept the bird is at finding good food, the brighter his color making
him a good choice for mating.

Personally, I think it has to do with both age and feed. I think the
younger males are the more yellowish color and, as they age and become more
experienced in locating food sources, their colors darken.

Happy birding,

Peggi
Ben & Peggi Rodgers
Aptos, CA (near Santa Cruz 122 W, 37 N)
USA
woodduck at cruzio.com


"A bird does not sing because it has an answer,
It sings because it has a song"