Male House Finch

Carpodacus mexicanus,

• House Finch, common name for a small bird of the finch family, about 14 cm (about 5.5 in) long.

• Females and immature males are streaked light and dark brown; adult males have the head and breast various shades of red, rarely orange or yellow.

• It is a familiar bird throughout the western United States and Mexico, from the Great Plains to the Pacific coast.

• In the 1940s, a flock of caged California house finches was liberated on Long Island, New York, and bred successfully.

• Their descendants now occupy most of the eastern United States and are rapidly spreading westward toward the original range of the species.

• They are especially common in urban and suburban areas, hence the name house finch.

• Scientific classification:

• The house finch belongs to the family Fringillidae of the order Passeriformes. It is classified as Carpodacus mexicanus.