In last week's quiz we had two female members of their respective species to identify. The key field marks to look for from this angle on these finches are the bill shape and streaking on the breast. The bird on the right has a short bill that has a little bit of curvature on the upper part of the bill (the "culmen"). In addition, the streaking on the breast is blurry and grayish, these field marks pointing us to the very widespread House Finch. The bird on the left has a longer bill with a straighter culmen and more distinct streaking on the breast; she's a Cassin's Finch. The female Purple Finch is similar, but has a shorter bill like the House Finch and, typically, a little more and darker streaking on the breast down to the belly.For this week another tricky one, but the fact it had been playing around in some water has helped to reveal a very significant field mark. Good luck and great birding!
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