Pine Siskins – streaky relatives of goldfinches – are so distinctive as a species that we tend to overlook their considerable individual variation. Siskins are unusual among the small finches in that males and females look nearly identical. Subtle individual differences in the amount or intensity of streaking, or in overall color, have no bearing on identification and we simply blend them all together in our minds as “typical siskin”. They do show one infrequent variation that is quite noticeable, however, the so-called “green morph”.
A lot has been written about the “green morph”, and a good recent summary with photos and links is by Mandelbaum and Young. They end with a statement of uncertainty: “Whether green morph Pine Siskins represent a true “morph,” aberrant plumage, or simply the result of variations between individual birds is a question open to further study.”
Looking carefully at the flock of siskins that frequented our feeders in Deerfield, Massachusetts this winter, it is clear to me that the “green morph” is neither aberrant nor a distinct color morph separate from all other Pine Siskins. It is simply the bright extreme of variation in male Pine Siskins. There is an unbroken cline of variation from normal looking birds, to many that show some subtle hints of green morph features, to a few that stand out with obvious green morph features, and a very few extremely bright birds. The number of individuals showing these features drops off as the features get more extreme. That is, birds with less obvious “green morph” features are more frequent than birds with more extreme features, and the most extreme variants are the rarest of all.
Once you start looking carefully, you will find that the more subtle “green morph leaning” variants are not rare at all (like variation C, below, which could be 5% or more of all siskins). In fact, if all “green morph leaning” birds are adult males (like all “green morph”), and assuming that adult males make up roughly 25% of all siskins in winter, then about 20% of all adult males could be “green morph leaning”, and 4% of adult males are full “green morph”.
There is still a lot to learn about variation in Pine Siskins, and lots of interesting questions about these brighter males, but it is clear that the “green morph” is simply the bright extreme of a wide range of variation in male Pine Siskins, and not a distinct color morph.
While checking specimens at the LSU Museum years ago, I discovered that recently fledged juvenile Pine Siskins seemed to show somewhat consistently larger yellow patches on the wings, tail, and often a yellower suffusion in the overall body plumage as well. Granted, the sample size I had to deal with was small, but I wonder if some of the birds with yellower plumage features may actually be showing 1st year age-related characters?
Also, it may be worth noting that the southernmost population presently assigned to Pine Siskin, subspecies perplexus, found in the mountains of Chiapas and Guatemala, seems to have a green morph that has been a puzzling plumage (as hinted by the name!), particularly given the rare Black-capped Siskin with which it overlaps in range. Whether this is simply the local expression of yellow-pigmented birds, or whether it is an indication of introgression between the two populations remains to be settled.
Hi Dan,
Thanks for commenting. There is a tremendous amount of subtle variation in siskins, and most of it seems independent. That is, a bird can be lightly streaked or heavily streaked, yellowish, gray, or rufous toned on the body, with more or less yellow in the wings and tail, and any combination of those features and more. Some of it might be age-related, but I couldn’t make much progress on that even with birds at close range on the feeders.
And that’s an interesting point about the southern subspecies. The first place I noticed “green morph” type siskins was in the Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona, and there were several birds. I’ve always wondered if these bright variants are more frequent in the more southerly populations.
A great read for this old neophyte. Especially, you gave me pause to stop a few moments with pine Siskins. Delightful!
Namaste 🙏
Brian
I was originally skeptical of such individuals until I had an odd plumaged bird show up at my residence on 4 Jan. 2021. I have been birding for 49 years and had never seen one like this prior to 4 Jan. Below is my checklist:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S78658930
One thing I noticed but tried to ignore was the fact that this bird seemed to be slightly but noticeably larger than adjacent “normal plumaged” Pine Siskins. I had as many as 270 at my feeders in Dec. and every one was the same size except this odd plumaged bird. In investigating this bird, I read that the supposed “green morph” individual was supposedly slightly larger than “normal plumaged”- I got input from a few experts who agreed that this was likely a green morph individual. While I agree that there is a tremendous variation in the amount of yellow in Pine Siskins, I had never seen one with this much greenish yellow on the rump and lower back. In the one photo on my checklist the odd plumaged bird definitely seems larger. My conclusion was only based on what I had read and input from experts. So is this just one of the extremes of an abnormally fat individual?
Hi Paul,
Thanks for your comment, and congratulations on noticing one of these bright siskins at your feeders. I would also call that a “green morph” type, and it looks like a pretty close match to my illustration D above.
On the question of size, I wouldn’t be too surprised if these bright birds were a bit larger than normal. If there’s a hormonal basis to the color, that could also lead to a difference in size. Also, all of the bright birds are males, and males do average a little larger than females. I can’t comment on the size of the bird in your photos. It’s in a different posture, with all of its feathers fluffed up, so it’s impossible to judge size compared to the birds around it.
Hi David. Out of a small group of 4 siskins at our feeder this AM, one was noticeably larger than the others – but was entirely typical in its coloration (I.e., definitely not a “green morph” bird). I thought it might be from some different, maybe northerly population, but couldn’t find a reference to geographic variation in size?
In central British Columbia, we start looking for a “green morph” around the first of February. This year we had lots of Pine Siskins but very few with any degree of yellow feathering. We did notice one exceptional “partial albino” that showed faintly all the Siskin markings but colors were all faded. ( (Picture available). As February progressed we noticed a considerable increase in potential “green morph” but came up with the same conclusion that “the variation in Pine Siskins is so considerable that a “green morph” is no more uncommon that a “gray backed” morph(picture available) or even perhaps a “pale” morph.
Pasted pictures here
Pictures for above found at : https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S81914614
Somehow, I can’t tell the difference between a pine siskin and a fox sparrow. They all look similar to me. But none appear near urban areas. 🙁
When you say green morph about the Pine Siskin, the illustration you posted looks like a yellow morph.
Please correct me if I am wrong, and please don’t take this badly.
Thank you so much for this in-depth look at Pine Siskins! Here in SW Colorado, I’ve had a pair of sparrow-like birds visiting the sunflower seed feeder for the past several days. I finally got a picture of both of them today, (only through the window glass, but still very helpful.) The differences between the pair are consistent with what you’ve described and the beautiful images. Excited to have discovered them.
I have numerous birds at my feeders that I have identified as pine siskins that have a red coloring on the head and breast of some birds and even some on their backs. No one mentions this in comments on siskins. Have I misidentified these birds? They are marked exactly like the siskins.
Hi Barb, Your description fits redpolls or other Finches. They are streaked like siskins but with red forehead and males have red on the breast. Your mention of red on the back of some birds points to House Finch or Purple Finch rather than redpoll, and your location might be a strong indicator, as redpolls don’t come very far south.