The bird siskin, the photo and description of which will be presented in this article, is quite friendly. You can meet her in a mixed or coniferous forest. Often these birds are kept at home. They are unpretentious, they feel normal in conditions of cellular content. Siskins are wintering birds, during this period they flock to find food and dry places for overnight stay. Children often talk about siskins, but few people know how they look and what their twittering is.
Where does the siskin live?
Siskins feel great in any forest, but they still prefer mountainous terrain. This is due to the fact that they like to twist their nests on conifers. Almost never equips his home in deciduous forests. In such a place, this bird can be found during flights or roaming. In winter, birds visit birch groves or alder forests. Although now they are increasingly being noticed in ordinary city parks. Most likely, this is due to the fact that schoolchildren feed feathered friends.
These birds are widespread almost throughout Europe and Asia. Siskin can be found in the Republic of Karelia and the Caucasus. During winter, carduelis live in warmer areas. Most often it is the southern coast of Crimea. But Caucasian siskins do not consider it necessary to leave their homes at any time of the year. They just need to go down from the cold peaks into the valley.
Characteristic
At the first meeting, the siskin may seem very calm and uncommunicative, but after a while the opinion will change greatly. Learning better about its viewer, the bird itself begins to show interest and becomes more and more friendly. Admiring the fun of goldfinches, it is impossible not to smile.
As for singing, there are many different trills in his repertoire. In addition to his own songs, he can imitate various birds. In most cases, these are tits. The siskin does not appease even during free flight. Even fluttering in the sky, he seemed to inform all the birds of his presence.
Perhaps it was from these songs that nursery rhymes "Chizhik-Pyzhik" appeared. It is interesting that the cubs of this bird are almost impossible to see, because its nest is well hidden in spruce branches. Therefore, if you have not seen goldfinches in your forest, this does not mean that they are not there.
What does a siskin bird look like?
Which bird is so called, how can it be distinguished from other similar birds? Basically, the entire plumage of a siskin consists of green and yellow hues, but most of all these colors are concentrated on the tail and wings. Often due to its color, it is confused with a canary yellow finch. Their main difference is that the finch does not have a pointed beak and such a bright yellow hue on its wings and tail. Females and males are very different, so even at first glance you can determine which individual is in front of you. It is especially easy to do this in the spring, when the squirrel has an active time for courtship, and then the construction of the nest. At this time, their feathers are especially bright. Description of siskin bird below:
- The yellow-green males have longitudinal dark lines on the plumage and a saturated yellow tail, which is visible at a great distance. The head is decorated with a small black cap, and on the back of the head and neck this dark color ends. Looking at the bird’s eyes, you can easily notice a kind of bright yellow eyebrow. Two yellow stripes run across the dark wings. The steering feathers also have three colors: black, green and yellow, but their ends are decorated with a white border.
- Females have less bright plumage than males. First of all, she does not have a black cap on her head, which a siskin male can be so proud of. In addition, the color of its feathers is not so saturated and it is much more difficult to notice the bird. The back and abdomen are more reminiscent of gray and white shades with some notes of green and yellow. The young individual of any gender has the same appearance, however, over time, obvious differences begin to be visible.
Behavior
If you watch a little siskin in its natural habitat, it may seem as if they simply fly from one branch to another. But they do it for a specific purpose. Occupying new branches, siskins are looking for food for themselves, and during continuous twittering they just talk to each other. It is interesting to watch their actions, to “eavesdrop” on conversations.
Sitting on one tree, the pack will not budge until it hears the leader’s signal. Only then will they fly to a neighboring tree. In autumn, the siskins get together in large flocks and wait for the onset of cold weather, then they find a place with warmer air. In winter, you don’t even need to go out into the forest to meet these feathered friends, since they live right in city parks and squares.
Food
Most of all, carduelis love to enjoy various seeds from trees; in the spring, even young buds are used. In winter, the forest does not indulge in delicacies, therefore siskins are content with pine and spruce cones, although they do not really like this dish.
Those who plan to keep this bird at home need to know that they are not picky and can eat almost any seed. They will gladly dine with millet, poppy seeds and even hemp, although not all species of birds are allowed to give them. In addition, it is necessary to include in their diet various greens, ant larvae, which are part of the nightingale mixture.
Care and maintenance
Often siskins live in apartments. They deserve the love of man by their friendliness and beautiful singing. Cases are common when these birds fall into various traps or become victims of predators. All because of the excessive gullibility of birds. Consider the features of the maintenance of siskins in captivity:
- Chizh very quickly gets used to life among people. After a short period of time, he can safely sit on his shoulder or head to the owner, he can drink water from his mouth. Most of the time he spends outside the cage, flutters freely around the room. You can teach a bird various tricks, as it is smart.
- Carduelis are very friendly and can easily share their living space with many other bird species. Their content in the cage is not more complicated than if you get a regular parrot.
- Siskin song will never get bored. He chirps ten months of the year and is silent for only a while. He quickly gets used to life in captivity and feels quite comfortable in the cage. If you get yourself a chizhik, then in a few weeks he will get used to the neighborhood and will meet you from work with funny trills.
- Having caught a siskin, it is necessary to put it in a cage, immediately put grains of millet or hemp. He will start pecking food on the same day. He will need another day in order to get used to the fact of a person's constant presence nearby. And on the third day your whole family will enjoy his beautiful singing. If you have such an opportunity, then it is better to purchase a bigger cage for a chizhik, since he likes to fool around. When he finally gets used to the new house, you can safely release it so that it stretches its wings while flying around the room. But do not forget to pre-close windows and doors. Catching a siskin is quite simple, since it is a very trusting and sociable bird.
- You need to feed the goldfinches with various grains, which were described above. It is also possible to mix coniferous seeds and add slices of various fruits and vegetables to the diet: apples, carrots.
Breeding
You can not only keep squirrels, but also breed them in captivity. But first, make sure that the cage is equipped with everything you need.
- First of all, you need to close the two walls with plywood so that a closed corner is formed.
- It is also advisable to attach a dense fabric to the ceiling.
- Inside the cage, you need to place several spruce branches, and on them install a special base on which later the siskins will make a nest.
- Material to create this nest is placed on the floor. Various small twigs, spruce needles, down and feathers of poultry will do.
In the natural environment, parents give chicks a lot of larvae, caterpillars and other insects. If you don’t have the opportunity to provide them with such food, then cook chicken eggs and grate finely, as the chicks are in dire need of protein.
