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Articles

Vol. 56 No. 4 (2025)

BEHAVIORAL OBSERVATIONS OF LESSER GOLDFINCHES IN PULLMAN, WASHINGTON

DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21199/WB56.4.6
Submitted
February 17, 2026
Published
November 3, 2025

Abstract

In Pullman, Washington, to which the Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) had spread by the late 1990s, regular observations of the species over four years revealed several notable insights. Seeds of the nonnative Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) are a major and apparently preferred constituent of the bird’s diet at Pullman. There, as elsewhere in its range, the Lesser Goldfinch imitates other birds; within an interval of 30 seconds, one singing male imitated the sounds of 10 species, including the European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), previously unreported as one of the goldfinch’s models.

References