I hope you enjoyed reading ‘Urban Birder’ David Lindo’s latest piece for Birds magazine on his encounters with bullfinches. If you haven’t read it yet, do turn to page 77 of the Spring 2012 issue.
We asked you to let us know about your own experiences with these chunky finches in the magazine, so I thought I’d share one of my experiences with bullfinches to help get things rolling.
It’s always nerve racking meeting your partner’s parents for the first time, but even more so when you make that first trip to go and stay at their house. Amidst desperately trying to avoid all those social faux pas and remembering my manners on that first weekend in Yorkshire, my eyes were drawn to the bird feeders hanging outside.
Remembering that it is probably quite rude to stare out of the window when I should be making that all important first impression, all hope went out the window (literally) when a rose-breasted vision of beauty dressed in a silver jacket dropped down onto one of the seed feeders: a bullfinch!
From that first encounter forth, it has always been a pleasure to go and visit my girlfriend’s parents, Sue and Graham, because up to two pairs of bullfinches are a near constant presence in both front and back gardens. I should also state that it is also a pleasure to visit Sue and Graham because they are sparkling company and excellent hosts. The finches are merely a bonus! Waking up to the finches’ soft ‘peeuh’ calls outside the window is a very pleasant experience indeed. They are often the first birds I see each day.
As David says in his feature, bullfinches are sadly so much rarer now, making sightings like these even more precious.
Does your home for nature, include a place for bullfinches?
What do your bullfinches do?I’m not lucky enough to have bullfinches coming to my feeders in my garden, but it would be great to hear from anyone who does. Please let us know by posting a comment below (you’ll need to register on the RSPB Community first), or emailing Nature's Home magazine at natureshome@rspb.org.uk and I'll add your stories to the blog.
Peter M sent this email into the Birds magazine mailbox:
Just to let you know that we have two pairs of bullfinches, and sometimes more, visiting our niger seeds holder every day opposite our kitchen window. For several years we are fortunate that this has been the case.
They seem to get through a full holder in about 4 days. They all look like barrels about to burst - but such splendid plumage that lights up our garden.
Quite often they visit the sunflower seeds holder too, but their favourite is the niger seeds. In fact few of the other birds like the niger seeds at all, except an occasional coal tit- and rarely in the summer, goldfinches.
There is a huge pile of seed cases etc below the holder - which chaffinches occasionally rummage in.
Whilst there are 4 positions on the feeder, the birds don't seem to like close quarters - so it is usually the opposite two perches they occupy. Any attempt by a waiting finch to alight on a third perch is usually rebuffed. The waiting bird has to resort to the sunflower seeds.
In the breeding season, some juveniles do appear too - but last year, the maximum was only two.
We often hear their fluting calls in the garden.