House finches and purple finches are both small birds which are native to North America. Both species have stunning red and brown plumage which means that they are easily confused for each other.

Purple finches are a native Minnesota species, similar in appearance to the house finch, a nonnative species also common in this area. The house finch is native to the western United States.

House finches are common sights at feeders during winter in this area, particularly in urban locations, but when they’re seen, they’re often mistaken for purple finches.

As the house finch spread its range across the U.S., it brought along with it a disease that affects the eyes of the purple finch, causing its eyes to swell shut. This in turn has made it hard for ...

The house finches seemed to be more reticent about visiting the feeders when the purple finches were there. It’s not easy to tell the house and purple finch apart, but there are several clues.

I’ve been trying for several years to get good pictures that show the differences between purple finches and house finches, the two species of reddish finches that live in or migrate through ...

The purple finch's bird song is so lovely, it features prominently in 19th-century literature. Their color is not purple, but rather described as rosy-crimson, purply-pink, magenta, wine red or ...

When I looked inside, lo and behold, I found a nest with five little eggs. By June 11, five baby birds had hatched. According to the Golden Gate Audubon Society, they were house finches.” ...

House finches nest in our area in the summer months but are very rare in the winter as they do migrate south. The overall range of a house finch is very extensive compared to the purple finch.

The purple finch is rarely seen in this area during the summer months as very few purple finch nest in southern Wisconsin.