The goldfinch

The goldfinch is a small passerine bird. It has a brown back, black wings with a conspicuous yellow wing bar, a red face and a black and white head. It is found in forests but also in rural farmland and gardens. They form into groups which can often be seen on bird feeders. Essentially it is a granivore, or seed eater, and is particularly fond of the fruits of the globe thistle, (chardon in French hence the bird's French name “chardonneret”). Its beak is designed to winkle out the seeds from behind the spikes. The young are fed on insects, however.