Birds in Nature - images of wild birds by Richard Ditch

Subject: Lesser Goldfinch (Carduelis psaltria)
Place: Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, AZ, USA
Date: May 2002
Equipment: Nikon N90S, Nikkor AF-S 300/2.8 & TC20E (= 600/5.6),tripod
Film: Fujichrome Sensia 100
Exposure: Aperture priority matrix metered, natural light
Scan: Minolta Dimage, 100% of frame

Commentary: The Lesser Goldfinch is not as colorful as the better known American Goldfinch of much of the US, but it is a lot more common in the southwestern states.

It is a regular species at Boyce Thompson Arboretum. I often see a few near the water feature in the Demonstration Garden, where the birds come in to drink in the hot weather, and where this image was taken. Somehow this setting looks more like the southeastern United States than Arizona to me.