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.

What Does a Cassin’s Finch Look Like? Male Cassin’s finches are hardly streaked, lending them a vibrant plumage. “To me, the Cassin’s finch always seems brighter,” says Dusty Downey, conservation ...

House finches historically native to Mexico and the southwestern desert of the US, including California. Introduced to Hawaii in 1870, occupying all major Hawaiian Islands by 1901.

The first reference I found to house finches in the Herald’s online archive was in 1989, when Milt Sather called about a house finch he’d seen in Greenbush, Minn. The column about the sighting ...

A classic bird identification challenge is separating House from Cassin’s Finches. Pictured are Cassin’s Finches. The male House Finch has heavy streaking on the flanks that is lacking or ...

Minnesota's first house finch was recorded in 1980 at a feeder in Minnetonka, according to Robert Janssen's book "Birds in Minnesota." By the 1990s house finches had been seen in each of our 87 ...

Other common species where the male and female have different plumage include house finch, eastern bluebird, boat-tailed grackle, and painted bunting.

If you see a "purplish" finch at your feeder in summer, check your bird book and look up house finch. American goldfinch in winter plumage. Photo by Glenda Simmons.