Are you ready for Goldfinches?

Are you Ready?

North Texas will soon be invaded by masses of Goldfinches. They’ll be with us ‘til about April, as they avoid the freezing climate up north. Several cof you, however, have mentioned that they aren’t yellow at first; right now they’re mostly dark olive. Gradually, through the winter, the small birds will molt to a golden yellow. All you may see now is a little hint of yellow on their heads.

Some of you have already spotted beautiful Cedar Waxwings, another cool-season resident. This probably means that flocks of them are on the way!  They’ll feast on berries and fruit  (Beautyberries and Yaupons are their favorites), perching calmly and socially until a shrub is picked clean. They like fruit-flavored suet too. They’ll stay around north Texas until well into spring if the food is good.

“A cardinal by any other name would be as red”

The name “cardinal” actually comes from the red color worn by the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church.  The bird, Cardinal, was named after the religious cardinals. Religious cardinals took their title, long ago, from the Latin “cardinalis” meaning “important” or “that on which things depend”, derived from the Latin root word  “cardo”.

 HOLLOW?          Almost all birds have hollow bones. It helps enable flight by reducing their weight.   An exception is Penguins– who don’t fly (and would have difficulty swimming).

Owen Yost, in addition to blogging, is a Landscape Architect emeritus from here, who‘s worked in north Texas for over 30 years.  He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Society of Landscape Architects, the National BirdFeeding Society, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. He was honored with a Lifetime Achievement award by the Native Plant Society of Texas. His design office is at birdpoop@charter.net