Finch On a Fence
American Goldfinch on a fence
As someone who is a collector of random (useless) facts, I went through a phase in my childhood where I was obsessed with state facts. You know, those exciting tidbits of information like: This included gems like the state tree of Arizona (the Blue Palo Verde), Missouri's official motto (“Salus populi suprema lex esto” which translates to “The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law”), and the catchy tunes of Oklahoma’s official song, Oklahoma!. One fact in particular has lingered in my mind through the years: How the American Goldfinch is the official bird of our great state of New Jersey.
Long before I discovered my passion for photography, the desire to catch a glimpse of this vibrant bird was a constant itch. Unfortunately growing up in the urban shadow of New York City limited my opportunities to spot one. I’m sure they were around, but the lack of nature my immediate area was the partly to blame.
Fortunately, life has a way of evolving. Since migrating further south to a permanent nesting location, we’ve slowly reintroduced trees, shrubs, and native plants into our yard. With the help of a few carefully placed feeders, our patch has turned into a gathering place for the neighborhoods avian contingent. For a while, I can’t recall seeing a goldfinch but over the past few years I’ve begun to notice them in our yard, and I have made a few unsuccessful attempts at photographing them.
You can imagine my delight yesterday morning while playing with my daughter in the yard, this little one landed on the fence, less than a few feet away. I just happened to have my camera, with its telephoto zoom lends mounted, at the ready. The joy of finally capturing my elusive American Goldfinch is a reminder of the unexpected surprises life holds, often right in our own backyards.
