Purple finches at Hall Ranch - Boulder County

[Chris Petrizzo]

Early Wednesday afternoon there was a flock of a dozen or so Purple Finches feeding at the top of a Ponderosa Pine on the Bitterbrush Trail at Hall Ranch. They were very willing to stay put while they were atop the tree (thought it was remarkably hard to see them).

 

There are some pictures of a male on the eBird checklist: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52980199

 

A flock of 50 or so small birds passed overhead while I was watching the Purple Finches. I really couldn’t tell what the other birds were, but it’s possible they were additional Purple Finches.

 

On eBird I see that someone also spotted Purple Finches in the town of Lyons 2 weeks ago, so apparently they are hanging around the area.

 

-chris

 

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cpet...@yahoo.com | Skype:  chrispetrizzo

 

“Cooperate with the unseen. Soften around your edges. Surrender to the spaciousness. Feel your heart. Notice what's real. Amuse yourself.” – Penny Peirce, “The Intuitive Way”

 

[Chris Petrizzo]

Sorry folks, but it appears I may have misdiagnosed the birds. Thanks to the very diplomatic and insightful replies of several folks offline, I see that I did not adequately contrast the Purple Finch with Cassin's. 

I uploaded a few more pix to eBird for reference, and I changed the sighting to Cassin's. 

Thanks to those of you who very gently suggested the male in the photograph may be Cassin's.

Chris Petrizzo

Broomfield, CO