Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris)
I took these photos of this family of Greenfinches as they visited my feeder. Note how striking the male is in the centre of the top photo, compared to the brownish juvenile on the right, and the slightly duller female behind on the left and just out of focus.
They gather in flocks together to feed, eating seeds from trees or plants, berries and nuts. Also found on birdtables and feeders in town and village gardens.They nest in bushes made of grass and twigs lined with finer stems, hair and feathers. The female lays 4-6 eggs in 1 or 2 broods from April to July. They can live for up to 3 years.
Seen all year round, and found in open deciduous woodland, parks, large gardens, orchards, busy habitats, hedgerows, farmland, coastal cliffs with good coverage of vegetation. Once in decline in the 1970s and 1980s, but increased quite substantially in the 1990s, it is a common and widespread species, and has an RSPB green status.
Nature Journeys 