House Finch: how to recognise it
A bird of Europe, North America and Oceania. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Donna Pomeroy · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Haemorhous mexicanus
- Family
- Finches, Euphonias, and Allies
- Size
- About 14 cm
- Habitat
- Towns, feeders and farms
- Found in
- Europe, North America and Oceania
The key marks
Streaked brown flanks, with a red head, bib and rump in the male that fades to orange-yellow in some. Purple Finch is more raspberry-red all over, with plain flanks.
Voice
A bright, jumbled warble ending in a nasal 'zweer'.
Good to know
It comes from the western US and Mexico; birds released in New York around 1940 spread across the East.
Do not confuse with
Compare it with the Purple Finch. Look at the marks above one by one rather than the overall colour, and practise telling the two apart with real photos.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in towns, feeders and farms. It is especially common in California, Arizona, Mexico and the United States. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.