From: "B & J"
Date: Fri, Aug 8, 2003 10:28 PM
Message-id:

"NAearthMOM" wrote in message
...
We have purple finches and , I believe they are called "house finches
(?)"
but
never in all my years here on LI have I seen a goldfinch!
Once in awhile, in the fall, we'll get a hummingbird or two.
Love Caryn
little birds. We must have a half a dozen pairs in the


"Come into my garden, my flowers want to meet you!"

No, Caryn, purple finches are not the same as house finches. I like
purple finches, but place house finches the same category as mice. We used
to call them English sparrows and didn't like them because they were so
prolific and took over the nest sites of other more desirable birds such
as
blue birds or purple martins. Cleaning out house finch nests from the martin
house was a spring chore that I didn't particularly enjoy but did because
they started nesting before the martins arrived and occupied every available
space, which made them unavailable for the martins. They along with
starlings were introduced species that adapted too well. Check this site
for
more information:

http://www.baylink.org/wpc/esparrow.html

Here is a link to pictures of the purple finch, whose size and color,
particularly that of the female, resemble the house finch:

http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/birdid/purfin/

John


Oy, this is getting complicated. John: House Finches aren't the same as House
Sparrows (formerly known as English Sparrows). House Sparrows are the birds
that have wreaked havoc on, for instance, bluebirds. (I think you actually
know this and are just getting names confused.) I'm guessing you were clearing
House Sparrow (or European Starling) nests out of your martin houses.

House Finches and Purple Finches are closely related species but have different
although overlapping ranges. It would be unusual (although possible) for Caryn
to have Purple Finches on Long Island in the summer; it's more likely that she
has House Finches, which are year-round residents in most of their range (and
are a protected native species, unlike House Sparrows).

Best,
Tyra
nNJ usa