If you've spotted a yellow house finch, you might wonder if it's rare — and what caused the yellow coloration. Here's what the experts say.
Yellow House Finch: Normal or Not?
House finches are common birds that brighten up backyard feeders across the United States. Bird-watchers throughout the country admire their rosy plumage and cheery song. With that said, some of these birds have yellowish coloration reminiscent of goldfinches or pine siskins. When enthusiasts spot a yellow house finch, they may wonder whether such a bird is rare. In addition, they might react with alarm, wondering if the bird is sick or needs help.
Experts’ conclusions about yellow house finches might come as a surprise. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, yellow house finches are especially common in the Southwest and in Hawaii. And if the bird is otherwise acting as usual, it’s unlikely to be diseased or require care.
Why Do Some House Finches Look Yellow or Orange?
The experts at Cornell explain that house finch coloration results from the consumption of carotenoid pigments. The birds get these carotenoids from their food. Throughout most of this finch’s range, pigments that result in red plumage are abundant.
In some places, though, the foods that cause red plumage are more difficult for birds find in the wild. In those regions — or in captivity — house finches can end up displaying yellow or orange plumage instead of red, because they haven’t eaten the foods that would cause their feathers to be red.
What color house finches show depends on their diet at the time they’re molting. Stress, too, can cause feathers to take on a yellow or orange hue.
Interestingly, these yellow house finches can sport red feathers again if they adjust their diet during a later molt. A similar phenomenon occurs in male northern cardinals, which (rarely) show completely yellow plumage.
Psst—here’s how to differentiate between a purple finch vs a house finch.
Unusual House Finch Sighting
“Help! I discovered this bird (above) among the house finches at my feeder. I’ve never seen one with this coloration before. Is it a house finch, too?” asks Birds & Blooms reader Tim Seward of Tarentum, Pennsylvania.
Birding experts Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman say, “Yes, it’s a house finch, but it has a beautiful and unusual variation on the normal color. Male house finches are normally red on the forehead, throat and chest, but the development of that color depends on the bird’s condition while it’s molting into its new feathers in the fall. If the bird is stressed or has some deficiency in its diet during that time, those feathers may come in orange or yellow instead of red. It doesn’t mean that the bird is unhealthy, though, and it may grow red feathers the next time it molts.
About the Experts
Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman are the official bird experts for Birds & Blooms. They are the creators of the Kaufman Field Guide series and they lead birding trips all over the world.
Sources
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “Yellow House Finches“
