Cassin's finch
| Cassin's Finch | ||||||||||||||
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| Photo: Finch | ||||||||||||||
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| Carpodacus cassinii |
The Cassin's Finch, Carpodacus cassinii, is a medium-sized finch.
Adults have a short forked brown tail and brown wings. They have a longer bill than the Purple Finch. Adult males are raspberry red on the head, breast, back and rump; their back is streaked. Adult females have light brown upperparts and white underparts with dark brown streaks throughout.
Their breeding habitat is coniferous forest in mountains of western North America. They nest in a large conifer.
Birds from Canada migrate south; other birds are permanent residents. They move to lower elevations in winter.
These birds forage in trees, sometimes in ground vegetation. They mainly eat seeds and berries, some insects. When not nesting, they often feed in small flocks.