What's this bird?

[Trebuchet]

I'm having a minor disagreement with my wife. I'm voting for plain old American Goldfinches in non-breeding plumage. She thinks some of them (perhaps not in the picture) are a different background color and I must admit the pictures I find in the bird books do not show such distinct wing bars.

Picture taken near Port Townsend, WA, on September 9.

[weatherc]

It could be the photo, but the yellow on these birds doesn't look very bright. Goldfinches are usually an extremely bright yellow, so I would lean toward these not being goldfinches. Well, the ones in New Jersey are, but I can't speak for other parts of the country.

EDIT: Nevermind. These look like the female goldfinches in winter plumage. See this Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Goldfinch).

[Trebuchet]

Now why didn't I look at Wikipedia? That's a dead ringer. I suspect these were both sexes in their winter coats, we had up to 25 or so at a time. Thanks!

[jfribrg]

Those are all definitely American Goldfinches.

<brag>
BTW, I'm sure you all noticed that in the Sept/Oct 2006 issue of WildBird magazine (http://www.wildbirdmagazine.com/wb/magazine.aspx), there was an article labelled "Birding's Rising Stars", and lists the top 15 or so young movers and shakers among U.S. birdwatchers. My nephew made the list. :)
</brag>

[weatherc]

Those are all definitely American Goldfinches.

<brag>
BTW, I'm sure you all noticed that in the Sept/Oct 2006 issue of WildBird magazine (http://www.wildbirdmagazine.com/wb/magazine.aspx), there was an article labelled "Birding's Rising Stars", and lists the top 15 or so young movers and shakers among U.S. birdwatchers. My nephew made the list. :)
</brag>Congratulations!

I wish I knew more about the wildlife in my area. I feel kind of dumb not knowing what half of the birds, trees (and weeds) are that I can see in my yard every day.

[Gillianren]

Back home, it was easy. For birds, there were pigeons, sea gulls, Stellar's jays, and crows. For animals, there were coyotes, deer, skunks, and lizards. For trees, there were Mission oaks and palm trees. Up here in Washington, it's a lot more complicated.

[Swift]

Congratulations!

I wish I knew more about the wildlife in my area. I feel kind of dumb not knowing what half of the birds, trees (and weeds) are that I can see in my yard every day.
It is not hard to at least learn the common ones. Take some nature hikes with a local group or visit a local nature center or natural history museum. There are also plenty of splendid beginners guide books for birds, trees and flowers, including local - I know there are Ohio and Midwest books, I'm sure there are similar for NJ. There are tons of internet sources too.

[Graybeard6]

Who would have ever thunk that Wikipedia would trump "The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Birds"? Maybe I need some more birding books.

[Swift]

Who would have ever thunk that Wikipedia would trump "The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Birds"? Maybe I need some more birding books.
I would highly recommend Sibley's (http://www.amazon.com/Sibley-Guide-Birds-David-Allen/dp/0679451226/sr=8-1/qid=1158066872/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-6907289-9369528?ie=UTF8&s=books) guide book, though it is a little large to carry around in the field. For field guide's, I personally like the National Geographic (http://www.amazon.com/National-Geographic-Guide-Birds-America/dp/0792268776/sr=1-1/qid=1158066973/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-6907289-9369528?ie=UTF8&s=books)guide, because I like drawings more than photos and I like the range map and the description on the same page as the picture.

[Gnomistic]

I lived and sailed in the Puget Sound region for many years. My small sailboat was moored in the open for a couple of winters and became a real haven for those little guys in your picture. (I left food out: Error!) Definately female
American Goldfinches... maybe even the same ones that pooped all over my boat .:)