House Finch

Carpodacus mexicanus
STANFORD LOCATIONS:

Abundant resident in various habitats throughout campus. Frequently nests on artificial substrates, such as planters and the eaves of buildings.
Similar Species: Purple Finch
  
Nest
Location
Nest
Type
Eggs
Mating System
Dev.
Parental Care
Primary &
2ndary Diet
Foraging
Strategy
F
I: 12-14 DAYS
ALTRICIAL
SHRUB
BUILDING
5 feet - 35 feet
CAVITY
 F
4-5 (2-6)
MONOG
(POLYGYN)
F: 11-19 DAYS
MF
FRUIT
BUDS
TREE SAP
FOLIAGE GLEAN
BREEDING: Arid scrub, open woodland, urban areas, cultivated land. 1-3 broods, possibly dependent on age of adults.
DISPLAYS: Courtship: singing male follows female, fluttering wings; hops about female with raised tail, drooped wings, raised head and crest feathers, continues singing. Female may sing short song.
NEST: Variable placement including appropriation of other species' nests; of twigs, grass, debris, leaves, rootlets, hair. Often reused for later broods.
EGGS: Bluish-white or pale bluish-green, sparsely marked with brown, black, often wreathed. 0.8" (19 mm).
DIET: Consumes virtually no insects; feeds nestlings almost entirely on seeds.
CONSERVATION: Winters within N.A. Uncommon cowbird host in w, common host in e. Historic range confined to w; established in early 1940s on Long Island and now spread throughout e. Range in w also expanding.
NOTES: Competition with House Sparrow in n e appears to be important factor in the sparrow s decline there. Incubating female occ fed by male. Average clutch size in w is 4, in e 5. Young highly variable in rate of posthatchlng development. Songs more complex in CA than in e. Flocks in nonbreeding season.
ESSAYS: Feeding Birds; Vocal Functions; Average Clutch Size.
REFERENCES: Aldrich and Weske, 1978; Bitterbaum and Baptista, 1979; Kricher, 1983; Leck, 1987; Wootton, 1987.

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Except for Stanford Locations, the material in this species treatment is taken, with permission, from The Birder's Handbook (Paul Ehrlich, David Dobkin, & Darryl Wheye, Simon & Schuster, NY. 1988).