Eurasian Siskin: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Garden Birds of Europe · day 4 of 7

Five facts

1. This little finch is an acrobat: it often hangs upside down like a tit to reach seeds, and it drops in at garden feeders.
2. Its thin beak is surprisingly strong. It pries into spruce cones and alder fruits, slipping past their scales to pull out the seeds.
3. Friendly in winter, siskins turn shy and hard to spot when nesting. A German legend says they hide a magic stone of invisibility in the nest.
4. Siskin flocks have a pecking order. Lower-ranking birds bring up food to share with the bosses, which keeps the group tightly knit.
5. Every few years, siskins pour south in huge numbers for winter. One idea is that this happens after bumper years for spruce seeds.

The quiz

1. How does the siskin often feed, like a tit?

• Diving into water
• Hanging upside down (correct)
• Digging in soil
• Catching insects at night

It is an acrobatic feeder that often hangs upside down.

2. Where does the siskin push its beak to reach seeds?

• Into tree bark
• Into flower petals
• Under stones
• Between the scales of cones (correct)

Its slim but strong beak gets past the scales of spruce cones and alder fruits.

3. What does a German legend say siskins keep in their nests?

• A magic stone of invisibility (correct)
• A golden feather
• A silver key
• A singing seed

They are so hard to see when nesting that legend gave them an invisibility stone.

4. In a siskin flock, who brings up food for whom?

• Dominant birds feed the lower-ranking ones
• Only parents feed chicks
• Lower-ranking birds feed the dominant ones (correct)
• Males feed every female

Subordinate birds regurgitate food for the dominant ones.

5. What might trigger a big southward rush of siskins?

• A year with lots of spruce seeds (correct)
• A full moon
• A very hot summer in Spain
• A shortage of water

One theory links it to years when Norway spruce makes plenty of seeds.

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