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Evening Groesbeak

(Hesperiphona vespertina)

Photo: Ron Austing

Size             : 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 inches long(19 - 21cm)

Description      : Male   - Looks like oversized, stocky finch, with a large pale green or 
                            yellowish conical bill
                            Brown head, shading into pale yellow on lower back and underparts
                            Bright yellow forehead and eyebrow
                            White wing patches
                   Female - Similar to male, but coloring not as bright with an overall olive cast

Preferred Habitat: Coniferous forests; visits deciduous woodlands and suburban areas in winter

Preferred food   : Insects, tree buds, fruit, seeds; will come to feeders for sunflower, peanuts, and safflower

Breeding Range   : British Columbia to Nova Scotia, along the northern Great Lakes.
                   South to northern New England, Minnesota, mountains of Mexico and California. 

Winter Range     : South to southern California, Texas, and South Carolina
                   (But, they have been reported in all 48 contiguous states!)

Interesting Facts: - This bird has not been known to nest any farther east than Minnesota.
                     It is suspected that availability of food at feeders has now allowed them to 
                     breed as far east as the Atlantic coast.
                   - Song is a series of short, musical whistles
                   - Call is similar to the chirp of a house sparrow, but louder, somewhat like,'peet, peet!'
                   - Outer layer of their bill peels off in spring, revealing a blue-green color underneath
                   - Have very powerful beaks and reportedly have gluttonous appetites at feeders
                   - Gregarious birds, usually live in good-sized flocks
                   - Diet is mostly vegetarian, but they do eat insects, and feed a good number of them to their nestlings
                   - Nest is a frail elliptical structure, made of twigs and moss, about 5 - 6 inches wide
                     and 5 inches high; lining is of grasses and rootlets
                   - Clutch size is usually 3 or 4; 1 - 2 broods per year; incubation: 12 - 14 days; 
                     nestling period: 14 - 16 days
                   - Prefer conifers as nesting sites
                   - Social birds, not territorial, even in breeding season, although there is usually just one 
                     nest to a tree
                   - Food in the wild: buds and seeds of box elder, cottonwood, catalpa, white ash, elm, dogwood,
                     sumac, and honeysuckle