Subject: Purple Finch mating dance
Date: May 28 14:50:23 1999
From: Neil & Marilynne Robins - Neil_Robins at bc.sympatico.ca


Greeting's;
I went on my morning walk at the McGreagor's marsh just across
Rutherford Road from were we live. I went quite a way's and managed to
spot a Black-headed Grosbeak feeding near some Alder trees, thin ones
about eye-level, about eight feet away from me, I watched until I lost
sight of him behind the green leaves.
I went a little farther along past some big maples and tall Fir's and
out into some new growth Alder, I hear a Black-headed Grosbeak but
wasn't able to see him, when suddenly a bird flew just over my left
shoulder and landed in a tree just five feet from me it was another
Black-headed Grosbeak I watched and listen as he would sing a few
notes and then eat a bit, move a little, sing some more, eat, sing a
few note's, move some more, sing, move until he moved out of sight.
Overhead were a few Violet-green Swallows hawking insect's. I made my
way back down the trail, I noticed a small brown bird on the path ahead
only to move out of sight as the trail curves to the left.
A little further on I saw a male and female Purple Finch moving ahead
of me on the trail. I put my bino's on the pair and watched in amazment
as the male Purple Finch was doing a chicken dance, just like the
Prairie Chickens do, I have seen it on T.V. not in real life.
The Male finches tail was straight up and his crown feathers were also
straight up, his wings moving as in the chicken dance and he was moving
in the dance slowly down the road. Once in awhile the female would move
toward the male, the male would just dance away. I followed them for
about one hundred feet, staying twenty feet away using my bino's to
witness this exciting performance, it was incredible, I was captivated.
Then I noticed the female was gone, only to appear, she then started to
dance as the male did, after a bit the male mounted her for a second and
was back on the ground, the female mounted the male and they rolled on
the ground togeather for a few seconds. The female flew away, the male
walked a few steps and stood still, his tail, now down ,his crown
feathers still up and his cheek's puffed out. I stood and watched him
for about four or five minutes and then he flew up into a tree and
rested for a while longer then was gone. It was a great....
Neil Robins
Nanamio, British Columbia
Vancouver Island