Question: I’m reaching out to some birder friends so that I can better understand what’s happening on my back porch. We had a pair of house finches build a nest in the corner of our porch this spring. It was great fun watching them nurture their eggs, feed the chicks and nudge their young out of the nest. Could hardly believe how fast those chicks grew! It’s been about 3 weeks since they fledged and the house finches are now back tending the nest. Are they having another set of young or is this another pair of house finches that has taken over the nest? It’s possible to see the adults sitting in the nest and we catch them as they fly in and out. But, even on a ladder, it’s really hard to see into the nest itself. Can you offer any help or suggest a website that might help us? Thanks so much.
Janet and Ray
Answer: We don’t think you can know if it is the same pair or different. This site says they will use another bird’s nest but will also have 1 – 6 broods in a year.
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Hi, House finches can have 2 or more broods. A really good book is the Peterson’s Eastern Birds Nests. Happy birding! Henrietta
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I am not a member, but I monitor your posts because of the great information you provide. I’m pleased to say this has been a banner year for house finches in my neighborhood this breeding season. Last week I counted nine of them at my feeders at one time. One was a male and seven were definitely females. One other bird appeared to be a juvenile male. I based this on its size in comparison to the females and its darker feathers, but I couldn’t be positive. This is the greatest number of finches I’ve seen at one time since I returned to Charleston in 2001.
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Frank – Thank you for your comment and for reading our blog and website. It’s good to hear what other people are observing about the birds around us!
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