Goldfinch

Md. Nurul Islam

[Jabdipur, Khulna October11, 2019 Friday]

A Goldfinch 

Oh, you awesome little finch!

Often flock with Pine siskins,

Accompanying the Redpolls

In the sky play friendly roles.

Brilliant yellow in the spring

Look fine males of breeding,

Graced with special plumage

By molting at the mating stage.

Black forehead and wings

Striped with white markings,

Heart-shaped rounded tail;

Which a female can't entail.

Females' red faces are smaller

Darker not to extend as a duller,

Beaks vary from males slight

Are long, pointed, and straight.

Ivory-color bill and forked tail

Female got short legs with nail;

Male's shoulder striped black

But in the female that reveals lack.

Their habitats are, in the main—

Weedy fields and the floodplain,

Where plants as thistles, asters

Abound with pink-rayed flowers.

Found in tilled-lands, orchards,

Roadsides, even in backyards,

At feeders, seen the year-round

In the winter, their flights abound.

Three species deem authentic—

Of Europe and two across the Atlantic,

Widespread American goldfinches

In South-west that of Lawrence's.

Female builds nest with own attribute

Male accompanies but not contribute,

Nest looks neat and woven compact;

Kept hidden in leafy twig by due tact.

Four to six eggs consist of a clutch

Which the female alone is to hatch;

Eleven to thirteen days need to brood

When the male provides mate's food.

Initial seven to nine days, the feed

Of chicks, female supplies in need;

A spell of thirteen to eighteen days

After hatching, the nestlings fledge.

Seven to nine days rearward breeding

Both parents give the young's feeding

Legend says: Jesus blood-shed found

Splashed over the bird's head around.

Viewing Goldfinch as dying or dead

Focuses on disappointments ahead,

Again, if it can be seen in the dream

Money comes like flow of the stream.

On seeing the bird denotes happiness

Which calls to live spiritual blissfulness,

People born under this totem are delicate

Intuitive,emotional and aware of etiquette.

Its song was believed to have passion

Meant for an inner self-expression,

Depicted omen of joyful appreciation

That motivated many with inspiration. 60

[All right reserved @Md. Nurul Islam]

Hints:

Goldfinch — It is a small passerine bird in the finch family usually easy to find throughout much of North America, except in deep forests. They are most abundantly found in areas with thistle plants, and near feeders.

Siskins— siskin [noun]

plural noun: siskins a small songbird related to the goldfinch, with yellow and black in the plumage.

Redpolls— redpoll [noun]

plural noun: redpolls — a mainly brown finch with a red forehead, related to the linnet and widespread in Eurasia and North America.

Plumage — plumage [noun] — a bird's feathers collectively. "the male in full breeding plumage"

Mating— mating [noun] — the action of animals coming together to breed; copulation. "courtship and mating also occur on land"

Entail — entail [verb]— involve (something) as a necessary or inevitable part or consequence. "a situation which entails considerable risks"

Floodplain — floodplain [noun] — an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.

Attribute — attribute [noun] — a quality or feature regarded as a characteristic or an inherent part of someone or something. "flexibility and mobility are the key attributes of Britain's army"

Twig — twig [noun] — a slender woody shoot growing from a branch or stem of a tree or shrub.

Tact — tact [noun] — skill and sensitivity in dealing with others or with difficult issues. "the inspector broke the news to me with tact and consideration"

Clutch — clutch [noun: clutch; plural noun: clutches] — a group of eggs fertilized at the same time, laid in a single session and (in birds) incubated together. "they lay fewer than ten eggs in a clutch"

Brood — brood [verb] — (of a bird) sit on (eggs) to hatch them. — "the male Pheasant-tailed jacana takes over once the eggs are laid and broods them"

Hatching — gerund or present participle of 'hatch' [verb]: hatching —the act of hatching — brood hatched— (of an egg) open and produce a young animal. "eggs need to be put in a warm place to hatch"— (of a young bird, fish, or reptile) emerge from its egg. — "ten little chicks hatched out"

Nestlings — nestling [noun] plural noun: nestlings — a bird that is too young to leave its nest. — "buntings, their throats bulging with food for hungry nestlings"

Fledge — fledge [verb] — (of a young bird) develop wing feathers that are large enough for flight. — "the young fledge around four weeks after hatching"

Rearward — rearward [adjective] — directed towards the back. — "a slight rearward movement"

Breeding — breeding [noun] — the mating and production of offspring by animals.— "the flooding of the rivers is a trigger for breeding to start"

Splashed over — past tense of 'splash over' — splash over — To slosh and flow over the edge (of something). e.g. — Be careful that the soup doesn't splash over the side of the pot while you are stirring it.

He jumped into the bath and a bunch of water splashed over.

Blissfulness — blissfulness [noun] - a state of extreme happiness  - a state of elated bliss - an exhilarating psychological state of pride and optimism; an absence of depression

Totem — totem [noun] — a natural object or animal that is believed by a particular society to have spiritual significance and that is adopted by it as an emblem. — a person or thing regarded as being symbolic or representative of a particular quality or concept. — "the fast-food chains have become totems of Western economic development"

Intuitive — intuitive [adjective] — using or based on what one feels to be true even without conscious reasoning; instinctive. e.g.— "his intuitive understanding of the readers' real needs"

Etiquette — etiquette [noun] — the customary code of polite behavior in society or among members of a particular profession or group. e.g. — "the rules of etiquette are changing"

Passion — passion [noun] — strong and barely controllable emotion. e.g. — "a man of impetuous passion" — the suffering and death of Jesus. e.g. — "meditations on the Passion of Christ"

Omen — omen [noun] — an event regarded as a portent of good or evil. e.g. — "the ghost's appearance was an ill omen" — prophetic significance. e.g. — "the raven seemed a bird of evil omen"

Appreciation — appreciation [noun] — recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone or something. e.g.— "I smiled in appreciation" — a full understanding of a situation. e.g. — "the bank's lack of appreciation of their problems"

Central idea:

Goldfinches are usually easy to find throughout much of North America, except in deep forests. They are most abundantly found in areas with thistle plants and near feeders. Goldfinches often flock with Pine Siskins and Common Redpolls. The pine siskin (Spinus pinus) is a North American bird in the finch family. It is a migratory bird with an extremely sporadic winter range. The redpolls (in Britain also historically known as redpoles) are a group of small passerine birds in the finch family (Fringillidae) which have characteristic red-markings on their heads. They are placed in the genus Acanthis.

In the spring, as American goldfinches grow new body feathers the males especially transform into bright yellow breeding plumage, but the wing and tail feathers remain from the previous fall. Adult males in spring and early summer are bright yellow with black forehead, black wings with white markings, and white patches both above and beneath the tail. Adult females are duller yellow beneath, olive above.

On closer inspection male goldfinches can often be distinguished by a larger, darker red mask that extends just behind the eye. The shoulder feathers are black whereas they are brown on the hen. In females, the red face does not extend past the eye. The ivory-colored bill is long and pointed, and the tail is forked.

The goldfinch’s main natural habitats are weedy fields and floodplains, where plants such as thistles and asters are common. They are also found in cultivated areas, roadsides, orchards, and backyards. American Goldfinches can be found at feeders any time of year, but most abundantly during winter.


There are just three species of goldfinches in the world - familiar bird of Europe, plus two across the Atlantic: the widespread American goldfinch and Lawrence’s goldfinch, found in the south-west USA.

The nest is built entirely by the female and is generally completed within a week. The male accompanies the female but does not contribute. The nest is neat and compact and is generally located several meters above the ground, hidden by leaves in the twigs at the end of a swaying branch. It is attached to the twigs of the tree with spider silk. A deep cup prevents the loss of eggs in windy weather. Beginning within a couple of days after the completion of the nest, the eggs are laid in the early morning at daily intervals. The clutch is typically 4-6 eggs which are whitish with reddish-brown speckles. The eggs are incubated for 11–13 days by the female, who is fed by the male during the incubation period. The chicks are fed by both parents. Initially, they receive a mixture of seeds and insects but as they grow the proportion of Insect material decreases. For the first 7–9 days the young are brooded by the female. The nestlings fledge 13–18 days after hatching. The young birds are fed by both parents for a further 7–9 days.

Goldfinch feeds on thorny plants, which is symbolically interpreted as an important connection with Christianity. According to an old legend, the Goldfinch saw Jesus carrying his cross and wearing his wreath of thorns on his head.

The Goldfinch was disturbed and so sorry to see that, so he tried to take off the thorns. While doing so, drops of Jesus’ blood splashed over the bird’s head. According to a legend, goldfinches got red spots on their heads because one of them tried to help Jesus and pluck the thorns off his wreath.

If someone sees a dead or dying Goldfinch, it means that he is focused on disappointments. He will need to pay close attention to whatever problem is currently causing problems in his life. Seeing a Goldfinch in his dream is a sign of financial gain, lots of money. 

The Goldfinch denotes spiritual happiness and this is a marvelous bird. There are so many ways a man can be happy in life and seeing this bird calls him to become happier in himself. Every moment of the day should be filled with happiness is the spiritual message from the Goldfinch.

If anyone is protected or born under the Goldfinch totem, it follows that he is good when it comes to communication and at the same time, quiet calm. He enjoys the small things in life. The Goldfinch being beautiful bird meaning, if it is his totem, he will definitely have this beauty in and on him.

Many cultures considered the Goldfinch song to have a special meaning and whenever it sang, they believed that it was an inner self-expression. In artistic symbolism, the Goldfinch has been used to depict inspiration and motivation.