It’s autumn and the song has come back
IT’S a hen… it’s a cock… it’s a hen… and finally it’s a cock! I am referring to my only young 2021-bred goldfinch and my assessment of its gender before, during and since the moult.
Deciding whether a youngster is a cock or hen is straightforward in some species such as the bullfinch. However, it isn’t always as straightforward with others such as the goldfinch. With the smaller species, the general position is that if the blaze extends above and beyond the eye then it is a cock. Another guide is found in the smallest of feathers that are found at the base of the
