Wildlife Around Las Vegas, Cassin's Finch (Carpodacus cassinii)

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Cassin's Finch (Carpodacus cassinii)
Birds Around Las Vegas, Wildlife Around Las Vegas

Cassin's Finch male with a distinct red cap	General Description: Cassin's Finches (Carpodacus cassinii) are little finches of the high mountains. Males have a red crown patch and pale red on the throat and upper breast. The sides of the breast and undertail coverts have fine, distinct brown streaks. Female Cassin's Finches are gray with finely streaked under parts. The face is finely streaked, including the indistinct eyeline. In both genders, the bill is relatively long and pointed compared to other finch species. Male Cassin's Finches look similar to male Purple Finches, but Cassin's do not have the "dipped in raspberry juice" appearance. The red color on Cassin's is pale and restricted to the head and chest, and the red on the top of the head forms a bright and distinct cap. Female Cassin's Finches are finely streaked, not heavily streaked like female Purple Finches. Female Cassin's Finches do not have a bold eyeline. Taxonomy: Passeriformes, Fringillidae, Carduelinae.
Female Cassin's Finch have little, if any, eyeline	Favored Habitat: High mountain forests. Where to Find: Around Las Vegas, look for Cassin's Finches up on Mt. Charleston and other high mountains.
Cassin's Finches have streaked undertail coverts	Comments: There are three species of finches in the Las Vegas area: House Finch, Purple Finch, and Cassin's Finch, and female finches are easier to identify than males. House Finches occur in the desert, Purple Finches generally occur at middle elevations, and Cassin's Finches generally occur up in the mountains. The habitat of Purple Finches overlaps the other two, but House Finches and Cassin's Finches do not overlap. Thus, if you see a female finch at higher elevations that looks like a House Finch (finely streaked, indistinct eyeline), then you know you have a Cassin's Finch.
	Not a hint on an eyebrow line on this one, but see the next photo.
	Cassin's Finches usually show no eyebrow line, but this has a hint of a line above and behind the eye. Not visible in this photo, but the undertail coverts are streaked. The bill is long and pointed.
	If you were a tasty bug or a little seed, this might also be the last face you ever see!

Cassin's Finch male	Cassin's Finch male
Cassin's Finch male	Cassin's Finch male
Cassin's Finch male	Cassin's Finch juvenile male molting into adult plumage
Female Cassin's Finches are gray and streaked, but do not have the distinct white eyeline seen on female Purple Finches.	Female Cassin's Finch with conical, but pointy, bill. Note the lack of a bold, white eyeline.
Cassin's Finch female	Cassin's Finch female
Cassin's Finch female: note atypical eyeline	Cassin's Finch female: typical without eyeline

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate.

; Last updated 240708

Wildlife Around Las Vegas

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