birdgurl Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 (edited) I'm about 95% sure on this house finch. I've always seen them redder. Maybe the time of year. Grants Pass Or Edited December 5, 2019 by birdgurl delete one photo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Spencer Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 Yep, male House Finch. The amount of color varies based on the amount of a protein in their food at the time they grow new feathers. The more of the protein, the more color will be in their feathers. The feathers will stay that way until the next time they molt and grow new ones. So sometimes they're a darker red, a lighter red, orange, or even yellow! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean C Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 agreed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Friedman Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 36 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said: Yep, male House Finch. The amount of color varies based on the amount of a protein in their food at the time they grow new feathers. The more of the protein, the more color will be in their feathers. The feathers will stay that way until the next time they molt and grow new ones. So sometimes they're a darker red, a lighter red, orange, or even yellow! It's actually not a protein but a carotenoid, or three different carotenoids with different colors. If you want to get technical. https://www.10000birds.com/whats-up-with-this-house-finch.htm 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Spencer Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 Darn straight. It was a long day and every time I try to spell that word, I wind up with cardiac or cartenoid or carnoid or carrotoid. I think they're structured more like fats than proteins. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bird Brain Posted December 6, 2019 Share Posted December 6, 2019 They can vary from bright red to pinkish, and orange-red to orange, and orange-yellow to yellow. Below is one on my feeder here in Sacramento back in 2012. Yellow-variant House Finch 002-001 by Wayne J Smith, on Flickr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Spencer Posted December 6, 2019 Share Posted December 6, 2019 If you cannot afford medication for your CBPDS (Carotenoid-Based Pigment Deficiency Syndrome), Astra Zenica can help. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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