Pine siskins

• Pine siskins were named for their breeding grounds in conifers, like pine trees, while the name siskin has an uncertain origin that may derive from an old European word meaning “chirper.”

• The birds breed in mixed coniferous and deciduous forest in Alaska and Canada and are year-round residents in parts of the Northern and Western U.S. and Mexico.

• Their diet consists primarily of conifer and deciduous seeds, in addition to grass and flower seeds, berries and insects.

• They utter relatively highpitched, squeaky “zree-e-e-e-eeet” vocalizations when foraging and similar “zwee-e-eet, shr-reet” in flight .

• They’re in the same family as resident house finches and wintertime American goldfinches.