Pine Siskin

Spinus pinus

Tiny, streaky, and constantly arguing at the feeder. Wheezy little courier with a short fuse.

Population: ~46 million mature individuals globally (BirdLife/Partners in Flight estimate), ~45 million in USA/Canada; population trend rated stable by BirdLife despite ~69% BBS-measured North American index decline 1966-2019
Habitat: Boreal and temperate coniferous/mixed forests (breeding and non-breeding), plantations, rural gardens, temperate shrubland, parks and suburban woodlands, especially where feeders are present; medium forest dependency
Fun fact: Pine Siskins normally run metabolic rates about 40% higher than a similarly sized songbird, and can push that rate up to five times normal during extreme cold, fueled by seeds stored in an expandable crop equal to about 10% of their body weight.
Range: North America: breeds across Canada, the boreal forest, western mountains, and parts of the northern/western US; also occurs in Guatemala and Mexico; a full migrant that winters irregularly/irruptively across the rest of the US in response to conifer seed crops
Diet: Seeds of conifers (pine, spruce, hemlock, larch, cedar) and weeds/deciduous trees; thistle/nyjer and hulled sunflower seeds at feeders; occasional suet, buds, insects, and tree sap from sapsucker wells
Size: 0.125 m
Wingspan: 0.2 m
Lifespan: 9 years

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