How to Attract and Identify Purple Finches
Steve and Dave Maslowski
Attracting a purple finch is easy with the right food, but identifying them can be tricky! Here s the best way to draw these colorful birds into your yard.
Purple finches are an absolute backyard treat but, despite their vivid-sounding name, their subdued pattern can make them difficult to spot. Roger Tory Peterson, the ornithologist and editor of the Peterson Field Guide series, once described these birds as a “sparrow dipped in raspberry juice.”
What Do Purple Finches Look Like?
They’re often confused with the house finch however, purples are slightly heavier birds with shorter tails and longer wingtips. Male purple finches have an almost completely red face and neck with pinkish red also covering most of the body. Purple finches and house finches don’t flock together, but they might both show up at your feeder at the same time. Here’s how to tell the difference between these finches.