Hi Kathy,

Goldfinch definitely move around - whether its a classic "migration"
I don't know. When I wrote the bird sightings column for the Rainier
Audubon newsletter I became aware of this. Like you, I hadn't really
thought of them as migratory. Every year though I would get a
regular bunch of "first of the year" sightings from backyard birders.
I think that's the key - that these were goldfinches returning to
residential and other breeding areas from wherever they had wintered.

Looking at the WA birdfinding guide I see they show them as
resident in WA, with an increase in numbers at the end of March
and another increase in numbers around mid-May.

good birding!

--
Jim Flynn
merlinmania at comcast.net
Seattle, WA