Finches are Here

The finch picture is from last April.  They’re still brownish yellow but are getting prettier each passing day. I love watching them. They travel on but today they are brightening to my dreary existence.

The goldfinches aren’t sick—they’re molting. Every spring, goldfinches replace their dull body feathers with yellow ones for the summer. The new feathers come in one by one, giving the birds that strange patchwork appearance. Unlike most songbirds, goldfinches molt twice a year, early spring and late fall. They grow in a complete set of feathers having  a strange, patchy appearance for a few days. Soon in spring they’ll be vividly beautiful but in the fall turn dull again. God created them in this manor for protection camo. I praise his creation today.