{"id":102426,"date":"2022-05-16T05:00:09","date_gmt":"2022-05-16T11:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=102426"},"modified":"2022-05-16T05:00:31","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T11:00:31","slug":"spring-pine-siskin-in-sagebrush","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/05\/16\/spring-pine-siskin-in-sagebrush\/","title":{"rendered":"Spring Pine Siskin In Sagebrush"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"PinePine Siskin on top of sagebrush \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Yesterday I mentioned that a Pine Siskin chased away the Chipping Sparrow<\/span><\/a> that I shared photos of. This is that Pine Siskin perched on another sage.<\/p>\n

Pine Siskins are members of the finch family of birds and they are an extremely nomadic, highly irruptive species. Typically I hear their wheezy twitters<\/span><\/a> before I spot them. This particular siskin wasn’t calling while I photographed it.<\/p>\n

\"PinePine Siskin foraging in sage \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The streakiness of siskins combined with their slender pointed bills and yellow wing markings make them an easy species for me to identify in the field. Their calls are distinctive enough that I can also identify them by ear without seeing them at all.<\/p>\n

\"PinePine Siskin perched in sagebrush \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

This Pine Siskin was foraging for food in the sagebrush. I don’t know for sure if the siskin was looking for seeds to eat or if it was trying to find insects. They eat both.<\/p>\n

\"AdultAdult Pine Siskin in sage \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

As the adult Pine Siskin moved around I was happy to get great views of it in the spring leaves of the sage. Prior to photographing this siskin I haven’t photographed them much in sagebrush.<\/p>\n

\"AdultAdult Pine Siskin in spring sagebrush \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Just after this last image of the siskin was taken it took flight and called as it left the area. I don’t know if siskins fly without calling because whenever I see them in flight I hear them too.<\/p>\n

Earlier on the same morning while I was taking a series of long distance images of other Pine Siskins perching in willows they all became very quiet suddenly. I glanced around to see if a predator was in the area and spotted an immature Northern Goshawk heading for some firs nearby. It moved so quickly that I wasn’t able to focus on it before it disappeared into the forest. Goshawks remain a nemesis bird for me.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a><\/span> to see more of my Pine Siskin photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yesterday I mentioned that a Pine Siskin chased away the Chipping Sparrow that I shared photos of. This is that Pine Siskin perched on another sage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":102411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,1210,358,26,1314],"tags":[4004,2519,11480,4299,4286,4136,5370,4069,4104,3493,2817,4057,6103,6104,10452,165],"class_list":["post-102426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-pine-siskins","category-tooele-county","category-utah","category-west-desert-utah","tag-adult","tag-artemisia-tridentata","tag-big-sagebrush","tag-carduelis-pinus","tag-eating","tag-foraging","tag-forest","tag-mountains","tag-perched","tag-pine-siskin","tag-sage","tag-sagebrush","tag-siskin","tag-siskins","tag-sky-island-mountains","tag-spring"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/pine-siskin-sage-mia-mcpherson-3172.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-qE2","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":72647,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/08\/12\/pine-siskin-in-the-wasatch-mountains\/","url_meta":{"origin":102426,"position":0},"title":"Pine Siskin In The Wasatch Mountains","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 12, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The bird activity picked up just after the sun rose over the mountains peaks and as I scanned the area for birds I spotted this Pine Siskin almost directly in front of me clinging to a small branch.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pine Siskin clinging to a small branch, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clinging-to-branch-mia-mcpherson-9616.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clinging-to-branch-mia-mcpherson-9616.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clinging-to-branch-mia-mcpherson-9616.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clinging-to-branch-mia-mcpherson-9616.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":74735,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/10\/18\/autumn-pine-siskins-2020-is-an-irruption-year\/","url_meta":{"origin":102426,"position":1},"title":"Autumn Pine Siskins – 2020 Is An Irruption Year","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 18, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"My Facebook timeline is buzzing with people posting photos of large numbers of Pine Siskins at their bird feeders across the country.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Damp Pine Siskin at a freshwater spring, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-sumac-mia-mcpherson-6384.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-sumac-mia-mcpherson-6384.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-sumac-mia-mcpherson-6384.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-sumac-mia-mcpherson-6384.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21780,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2015\/04\/11\/a-pine-siskin-in-clark-county-idaho\/","url_meta":{"origin":102426,"position":2},"title":"Pine Siskin in Clark County, Idaho","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 11, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Last year in May on my first trip of the year up to Montana and Idaho I was able to take a few images of Pine Siskins in Clark County, Idaho.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pine Siskin in Clark County, Idaho. Targhee National Forest","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clark-county-idaho-mia-mcpherson-0283.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clark-county-idaho-mia-mcpherson-0283.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clark-county-idaho-mia-mcpherson-0283.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-clark-county-idaho-mia-mcpherson-0283.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":59196,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/07\/26\/pine-siskin-foraging-in-a-willow-in-the-wasatch-mountains\/","url_meta":{"origin":102426,"position":3},"title":"Pine Siskin Foraging In A Willow In The Wasatch Mountains","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 26, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I don't have many photos of siskins in my portfolio and every year I hope to add more so when I was able to photograph a Pine Siskin foraging in a willow 5 days ago I was thrilled.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pine Siskin in a willow, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-in-willow-mia-mcpherson-1375.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-in-willow-mia-mcpherson-1375.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-in-willow-mia-mcpherson-1375.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pine-siskin-in-willow-mia-mcpherson-1375.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4390,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/02\/12\/pine-siskins\/","url_meta":{"origin":102426,"position":4},"title":"Pine Siskins","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 12, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"While exploring the area and it's breath taking beauty I spotted a large flock of Pine Siskins feeding on the seedheads of Mule Ears (Wyethia amplexicaulis).","rel":"","context":"In "Ashley National Forest"","block_context":{"text":"Ashley National Forest","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/ashley-national-forest\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pine Siskin feeding, Ashley National 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