Introduction

Until you've actually seen a Purple Finch, there is a danger that you might delude yourself that a dark House Finch might be one. On November 7, 2018, a Purple Finch and a dark House Finch visited the seed feeder on the same perch within minutes of each other and I captured them in similar poses. These two photos clearly show the plumage differences between the Purple Finch in the first photo and the House Finch in the second:

Most Recent Encounter

In the fall of 2018, I was astonished to see one or more Purple Finches in our front yard for seventeen consecutive days starting on October 22nd and ending on November 7th. In that time, I never saw more than one male at a time, but on one day there were three birds on the feeder at the same time, one male and two females.

Given the similarity of all the photographs, I selected one each of a male and female in the maple tree and the shot of the three birds on the feeder at the same time:

First Encounter

My first encounter with Purple Finches happened on October 27, 2014, when a pair of them came by our front yard feeder when I happened to be ready with the camera:

Here's a closer look at each bird: