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About Roger Lederer
Expertise
Any and all about wild birds - the science of ornithology. Information about birdwatching, ecology, conservation, migration, behavior, banding, rehabilitation, feeding, songs, binoculars, identification, and careers in ornithology. No questions about pet or caged birds, please.

Experience
Have a PhD and thirty eight years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, two bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 80 countries watching birds.

Education/Credentials
PhD

You are here: Experts > Recreation/Outdoors > Birding/Wild Birds > Birding > goldfinch and bluebird

Birding - goldfinch and bluebird

Expert: Roger Lederer - 6/17/2009

Question
how smart can a goldfinch be? we have very large windows and i believe they come to the window in which ever room we are in to tell us they need more food. they stand on the window pane and stare right at us. we dont think they are looking at their reflection because the come to the window in the room we are in. is this a typical behavior.

just wanted to tell you we have blue birds nesting in a hole in a rotten birch tree. i saw the male the other day pecking a large woodpecker on the ground below his nest. i couldn't believe it because it was much larger than him.

Answer
I can't tell you exactly what is going on with the goldfinches, but birds often do look at and react to their reflections. This is not unusual.
Bluebirds and other smaller birds often peck at larger birds that they perceive as predators to chase them out of their territory. Tiny birds even chase hawks.

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