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American Goldfinch


American Goldfinch
Photo Information
Copyright: Mario Belanger (EOSF1) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1427 W: 128 N: 5252] (23221)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2008-05-15
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon EOS 40D, Canon EF 100-400 F4-5.6 L IS USM, ISO 400, B+W 77 010 UV-Haze 1 x
Exposure: f/6.3, 1/80 seconds
Details: Tripod: Yes
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Pentaxfriend's favorites, CeltickRanger's favorite Bird photos [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2008-05-17 7:29
Viewed: 704
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 52
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note [French]
After the Italian version here's the Canadian one, a male American Golfinch (Carduelis tristis, 13cm) that I shot a few days agao in the garden.

From: www.birds.cornell.edu

A familiar and abundant small colorful bird, the American Goldfinch is frequently found in weedy fields and visiting feeders. It shows a particular fondness for thistles, eating the seeds and using the down to line its nest.
Description
Small bird.
Bill small, pointed, conical, and pink.
Body bright yellow to dull brown.
Wings dark with large white wingbars.
Tail short and notched.
Breeding male bright yellow with black cap and wings.
Size: 11-13 cm (4-5 in)
Wingspan: 19-22 cm (7-9 in)
Weight: 11-20 g (0.39-0.71 ounces)
Sex Differences
Summer male is bright yellow with a black cap whereas female is drab olive. Sexes similar and drab in winter.
Sound
Song a long series of twittering and warbling notes. Common contact call a "tsee-tsi-tsi-tsit," often given in flight. May be described as "per-chic-o-ree" or "po-ta-to-chip."
Conservation Status
Abundant and widespread. Populations appear stable.
Other Names
Chardonneret jaune (French)
Dominiquito viajero, Dominiquito triste (Spanish)
Cool Facts
The American Goldfinch changes from winter plumage to breeding plumage by a complete molt of its body feathers. It is the only member of its family to have this second molt in the spring; all the other species have just one molt each year in the fall.
The American Goldfinch is one of the latest nesting birds. It usually does not start until late June or early July, when most other songbirds are finishing with breeding. The late timing may be related to the availability of suitable nesting materials and seeds for feeding young.
The American Goldfinch is gregarious throughout the year. In winter it is found almost exclusively in flocks. In the breeding season it feeds in small groups. Whether it maintains breeding territories is debatable.
The American Goldfinch is mostly monogamous, but a number of females switch mates after producing a first brood. The first male takes care of the fledglings while the female goes off to start another brood with a different male.
Royaldevon, albert, eqshannon, eng55, jaycee, nglen, pekkavalo1, Jamesp, goldyrs, angela926, marhowie, darwin, Hormon_Manyer, Pentaxfriend, CeltickRanger, Miss_Piggy, sranjan, pierrefonds has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Bonjour Mario,
La version canadienne est a mon sens plus jolie!!!
Superbe le jaune sur fond noir,
Bravo
Albert

Hello Mario,

What an excellent, sharp and detailed shot of the American Goldfinch!
His colours show up beautifully against the dark b/g.
Very good composition!

kind regards,
Bev :-)

Super crisp and super saturated Mario. Only the bird is in perfect focus...and with the dark background it REALLY stick s out there...Tres bien!
Bob

  • Great 
  • eng55 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 474 W: 3 N: 474] (1475)
  • [2008-05-17 8:10]

Hi Mario,
Beautiful capture.POV,pose of bird,colors,sharpness,catchlight in eyes and composition are excellent.Thanks for posting.

Exelente foto muito bem focada,o fundo preto ajudou a destacar a ave parabéns pelo belo trabalho.
Nilson

  • Great 
  • jaycee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1911 W: 8 N: 4976] (16095)
  • [2008-05-17 9:28]

Hi Mario,

You never fail - this Goldfinch is lovely. That is some bright yellow and looks wonderful with the black. I say the same thing every day - excellent colors, details and pose. The black head against the black background is superb. And a wonderful composition.

Jane

Hello Mario,
You got wonderful coloured birds in your garden. This is such a beauty. Excellent photographed in perfect contrasting colours and with superb sharpness. POV, pose, composition and dark BG are marvelous.
Regards,
Peter

  • Great 
  • nglen Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 2130 W: 9 N: 5960] (22528)
  • [2008-05-17 11:50]

Hi Mario. i must say i think the Canadian one is a very beautiful looking bird with its yellow feathers and black cap which you have captured so well with fine detail. .I like the dark BG. well done TFS.
Nick..

Hi Mario,

Great capture of this American Goldfinch. Good pose and composition, pin sharp details and good eye contact.

TFS

Pekka

  • Great 
  • Jamesp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1305 W: 0 N: 5107] (15234)
  • [2008-05-17 15:30]

Hi Mario

Great shot - good framing plus great colour and excellent detail. Well observed and captured.


James

Very sharp and detailed shot, mario.
TFS!
Goldy

Hi Mario

A beautiful bird and you have him standing out brilliantly against that dark background. Exxcellent composition and pose. Excellent sharpness and POV.

Chris

Hello Mario,
Great capture of thid lovely little goldfinch,
superb sharpness, exc ellent depth of field, good
light and fantastic details, great pose and nice
composition and pov, well done.
Angela

  • Great 
  • crs Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 405 W: 0 N: 630] (2537)
  • [2008-05-17 21:03]

Hi mario,

It is alois a joy to see your photos. This is no exception. I do remember that even your winter colors are full of color and give a warm feeling to the viewer. This is a true explosion of color even if only yellow is the dominant color. The high contrast with the dark background attracts the look of viewer. Delicate brown color tones of the branch moderate the shock produced by the main subject and bring a wonderfull equilibrium to the whole phot.

Congratulations,
Cristian

Hi Mario, lovely bird with splendid colors, great details and excellent sharpness, very well done, have a good week end, ciao Silvio

Very nice Mario, excellent technique to get this so well at 1/80th.
Your jet black BG really works well with the yellows of the bird.
The exposure, color, POV, DOF, details, comp, and pose are most superior :)
A pleasure to view,
Howard

Hi Mario
Wonderful shot with lovely color contrast
and superb sharpness
tfs jon

Bonjour Mario,

It's been a long time we met last through the Trek-sites, so I'm more than glad to see and comment this great image. Absolutely beautiful exposure, bg couldn't be any better, while the bright yellow is really bright yellow, although I guess the light conditions were far from the best. I don't find words for this color contrast... Masterwork of You as always.
Best regards from Hungary, László

  • Great 
  • wuta Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 884 W: 2 N: 617] (2072)
  • [2008-05-18 10:40]

Hello Mario , Exelent shot , a beautiful bird great colours compositie details and black bg , very good ,Greetings Teunie .

Very cool bird Mario. You got a clean clear shot. The only bird I've seen close to this brightness is the Yellow Warbler. Gotta love yellow!

Trevor

Magnifique !!!!
je retire ce que j'ai dit sur les chardonnerets Canadiens, ils sont superbes, wowww quelles couleurs !!!
bravo Mario
amitiés,
Pat

Hi Mario,

I think you must be a lucky guy with al these beautiful birds in your garden
again this is a Superb shot with excellent sharp details, lovely colors and a perfect POV and BG

TFS Thijs

bonjour mario
joli comme d'habitude,je ne pense pas que nous ayons ce genre d'oiseau ici et c'est un plaisir de voir les especes presentes sur d'autres continents,j'ai d'ailleurs un oiseau a presenter et même si la photo n'est pas top je ne l'avais jamais vu avant en reel et même sur TN.
a bientot.
laurent

salut Mario

une autre de tes belles photos d'oiseau que j'ai manqué,
quelle superbe image avec ce contraste entre le noir
du background et le jaune de l'oiseau, excellent POV, DOF
et cadrage, la pose de l'oieau y ai pour beaucoup dans
la beauté des images, ta photo en témoigne,
superbes netteté et détails,

TFS beaucoup pour cette belle photo

Asbed

Hallo Mario
This is a fantastic photo with details clearly visible and well displayed. Great focus, great sharpness and great framing. Image presented in a superb manner. This is a very nice shot of a beautiful bird that I have only seen once or twice before. You were very lucky to capture it. The colours and patterns on the plumage are really a bright and special selection of colours.
Thanks for sharing.
Kind regards
Anna

Dear Mario,
Amazing capture with great sharpness & colors of the plumage. I have gone through many of your webpages; I have no hesitation in saying that you are the best :)
Reggards-Subhash
PS: With this you have reached half century (50 points).........many more to come.

Bonjour mario,

Une belle image rapprochée de ce chardonneret jaune qui observe les environs. Le sujet est bien cadré. Les détails et les couleurs de ses plumes sont clairs et nets. La lumière rehausse la beauté des couleurs. Bonne journée.

Pierre

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