Unknown Bird

[Marc St Louis]

I wonder if there are any bird watchers or people with a good knowledge of birds here.  I saw a bird yesterday that I have never seen before and am unable to identify.  It was a small bird not much more than 4" in length, by itself and it was not very weary of me; it came to within a couple feet of me.  I took several pictures and a short vid of it.  We have a book on NA birds but I can't find it in there.  Here are some of the pictures I took.  Anyone ever see such a bird?

[Pat B]

Marc it is hard to tell from these pics. Might be an immature goldfinch or possibly a female. A better pic showing the beak will help with the ID.

[HickoryBill]

It's an ARIEN!!!   Seriously though I'm not sure.

[criveraville]

I know it's not, but baby Mocking birds look like that.

[Sparrow]

LGB  (Related to LBG'S, (Little brown birds)  What state are you in ?  '  Frank

[JW_Halverson]

My first thought was a pine siskin because of the striping on the back and the V tail, but the breast was too plain.  I showed the pics to a friend that is an ornithologist and she's pretty certain this is a female goldfinch in winter colors.  Goldfinches are one of the very few songbirds in all of the western hemisphere to molt all their feathers TWICE a year.  And when your feathers combine to weigh more than your entire skeleton, that's a major investment in calories!

Either that or it's a venomous duck.

[Pat B]

Jokn, I thought you were going to say falcon food! 

[JW_Halverson]

That ornithologist I mentioned?  My favorite quote of hers, "Two types of birds.  Hawks and hawk food."

[sailordad]

not trying to hi jack your hread here Marc
but heres a pic of what i saw out my window friday
somekind of bird of prey

[JW_Halverson]

Cooper's hawk or a sharp-shinned hawk.  They cruise the local birdfeeders. 

[El Destructo]

Could be a Merlin's Falcon too...I have them at my Feeders all spring and Summer...they love my Fat and Sassy Finches...and an occasional baby Grackle!!!

[Pat B]

Merlin was my first thought. We have sharp shinnned hawks that nest near our house every year. Love watching them doing their mating flights and watching the young later in the summer practicing their fighting, mating aerobatics. Birds of prey are very special animals.    We've lost a few song birds around the bird feeders but we've also lost 2 sharp shinneds hitting our windows. My wife has a collection of small chickens sitting on the kitchen window. They got one young hawk and the other missed a bird at the feeded and hit the window. 

[medicinewheel]

Marc I'm sure it's a juvenile  Common Redpoll, Acanthis flammea, or Carduelis flammea. Or maybe a Hoary Redpoll C. hornemanni. I used to have those in a hugh cage as a child.
And the bird of prey I would think it's a Merlin, too.

[Marc St Louis]

It's just the wrong time of year for  juvenile bird.  He also had no trouble flying

Nice hawk, Tim.

Many year ago a fellow brought me a Sparrow Hawk to take care of.  He had found it either injured or it was a young bird, goes to show how long ago that was as I don't quite remember now.  I kept it for awhile and fed it raw meat but it finally got strong enough that it was ready to go on its own.  I remember towards the end he would perch on the hydro wires and I would throw up some pieces of meat and he would catch them in flight.

[medicinewheel]

Thought of that; maybe from a very late 2nd breed. Crossbeeks breed in winter feeding on fir seeds, maybe for the climate getting warmer the redpolls start doing so, too. European migraters noticably change behavior, too.