Backyard Tips
To encourage goldfinches into your yard, plant native thistles and other composite plants, as well as native milkweed. Almost any kind of bird feeder may attract American Goldfinches, including hopper, platform, and hanging feeders, and these birds don’t mind feeders that sway in the wind. You’ll also find American Goldfinches are happy to feed on the ground below feeders, eating spilled seeds. They’re most attracted to sunflower seed and nyjer. Find out more about what this bird likes to eat and what feeder is best by using the ProjectFeeder Watch's Common Feeder Birds bird list.
To protect American Goldfinches from contagious diseases at feeders, keep the ground well-raked. For more information about keeping feeders clean, see Project FeederWatch’s “Safe Feeding Environment”.
For more information about what to do if you see a sick bird at your feeder, see Project Feeder Watch’s “Diseased Birds”.
Find This Bird
Goldfinches are usually easy to find throughout much of North America, except in deep forests. Their po-ta-to-chip flight call is draws attention to them in open country. They’re most abundant in areas with thistle plants, and near feeders.
Get Involved
Keep track of the American Goldfinches at your feeder each winter with Project FeederWatch or the Great Backyard Bird Count
Help us find out how American Goldfinch populations are doing in mid-winter by participating in the
Look for American Goldfinch nests and contribute valuable data about them through NestWatch
If you spot an American Goldfinch with what appears to be an injured or diseased eye, it may be suffering from House Finch Eye Disease, a virulent form of conjunctivitis. Help us keep track of the disease’s spread by reporting it.
Have you seen American Goldfinches in summer? Learn how to find and monitor their nests for NestWatch