Greenfinch

The European greenfinch is one of six species of greenfinch which can be found throughout Europe, Eurasia, and northern Africa. The European greenfinch is a common and familiar songbird in woodlands, farms, cities, towns, parks, and gardens. Whether they are perching, flying, or roosting they are likely to sing their warbling, trilling, and twittering song.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Order: Passeriformes

Family: Fringillidae

Genus: Chloris

Species: Chloris

The European greenfinch is one of six species of greenfinch in the Genus Chloris. European greenfinches are five to six inches (13 to 15 centimeters) long and weigh up to one ounce (28 grams). The females have less-brightly-colored plumage, or feathering, than the males' olive green and bright-yellow feathers. Both males and females have bright-yellow patches on their wings and tails, which are most visible when the birds are in flight.

European greenfinches are very common in woodland areas but also are quite comfortable living in the same locations that people do, such as cities, towns, and farms. Parks and garden bird feeders are familiar feeding sites for these birds also. They use their heavy, cone-shaped bills to crack the hard shells of seeds but also eat the soft berries of many plants. When the young first hatch, parents feed insects to them, insects such as greenflies and ants. These foods are chewed and swallowed first by the adults and then regurgitated, or brought back from the stomach, for the young to eat. A few days after hatching the young switch to eating seeds and berries as their parents do.

Throughout most of the year the European greenfinches are social and live in noisy, singing flocks. They are diurnal, or active during the day, and several hundred may perch and sing from a tall tree, telephone or electrical wire, or roof. Most birds stay in their same homes year-round, but those in the northern parts of the European greenfinches' range may migrate south in autumn.

In the spring and summer, generally March through June, when large quantities of berries and seeds are easy to find, males and females form pairs and leave the flock to mate. They then become highly defensive of the area surrounding their nest. The female builds a cup-shaped nest of moss, twigs, and grass and places it on the lower branch of an evergreen tree or shrub. They do not nest in deciduous, or leaf-bearing, trees because these trees do not have leaves at the time the birds begin nesting. Sometimes the female has a second or third brood, or batch, of young later in the season, and she then is more likely to build her nest in a deciduous tree. She lays four to six eggs in the nest on a soft bed of hair and feathers. The male brings food to the female while she incubates the eggs, keeping them warm with her body heat so that the young develop. If rats and other predators do not eat the eggs, the chicks hatch after two weeks from their off-white or pale blue shells which have red-brown and violet or black and lilac markings. Both parents feed the young, which cry out for food nearly every 20 minutes at first. The young of the European greenfinch usually fledge, or leave the nest, after 16 to 18 days. If food and other conditions are favorable, the European greenfinch young may grow to mate when they are one to two years old and may even live between two and 13 years old. Although European greenfinches are affected by human agricultural practices, they are not a threatened species.

Bibliography

“Greenfinch Bird Facts - Carduelis Chloris.” Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/greenfinch. Accessed 7 Apr. 2024.

“Six Amazing Greenfinch Facts - Discover Wildlife.” BBC Wildlife, 2024, www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/birds/facts-about-greenfinch. Accessed 7 Apr. 2024.