# Bird I. D. help



## Tilden Hunter (Jun 14, 2018)

Friday I saw a bird I hadn't before. It had the same general shape as a black capped chickadee, and was about four times larger. The body and wings were a mottled black and white. It had a bright red cap like a chickadee, and bright red on the lower side of the head. I saw it on a small ornamental tree in a Menard's parking lot.


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## Dish7 (Apr 2, 2017)

My first thought was a grossbeak but they don't have a red cap. Downey Woodpecker?


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## eucman (Jan 24, 2009)

Ho


Tilden Hunter said:


> Friday I saw a bird I hadn't before. It had the same general shape as a black capped chickadee, and was about four times larger. The body and wings were a mottled black and white. It had a bright red cap like a chickadee, and bright red on the lower side of the head. I saw it on a small ornamental tree in a Menard's parking lot.


House finch or purple finch but only a bit bigger than chickadees. Pine grosbeak but is a northern bird


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## ebijack (Apr 20, 2009)

Here is a pic of a male house finch from my back yard. If this helps.


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

Tilden Hunter said:


> Friday I saw a bird I hadn't before. It had the same general shape as a black capped chickadee, and was about four times larger. The body and wings were a mottled black and white. It had a bright red cap like a chickadee, and bright red on the lower side of the head. I saw it on a small ornamental tree in a Menard's parking lot.


Joke ?

L & O


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## Tilden Hunter (Jun 14, 2018)

ebijack said:


> Here is a pic of a male house finch from my back yard. If this helps.
> View attachment 407325


That could be it. I didn't get to see the breast, so I couldn't tell if it was red also.


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## plugger (Aug 8, 2001)

We have quite a few house finches, the eat grape jelly at the oriel feeder. 


Sent from my iPhone using Michigan Sportsman mobile app


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## Dish7 (Apr 2, 2017)

The body of a house finch is brownish, not black and white.


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## Thirty pointer (Jan 1, 2015)

Well chickadees do not have red heads but it sounds like you are describing a Red bellied woodpecker .


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## bobberbill (Apr 5, 2011)

Ladder back woodpecker. They use their tails to anchor themselves to the tree along with their feet for a 3 point contact. They pick sunflower seeds from our feeders, then fly to the tree, put the seeds in the bark of the tree as a holder, then pound away. The use the suet cakes, too.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ladder-backed_Woodpecker/id


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## Tilden Hunter (Jun 14, 2018)

Thirty pointer said:


> Well chickadees do not have red heads but it sounds like you are describing a Red bellied woodpecker .
> View attachment 407361


It wasn't one of those. The red cap was on top and the throat, but not the back of the head, and it had a short beak, not a wood pecker beak. Also the body, not just the wings were the mottled black and white. Thanks for the reply.


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## Dish7 (Apr 2, 2017)

The red cap is a stumper if not a woodpecker. Here's a grossbeak. No red cap but has the throat patch and black and white throughout the body.


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