House and Purple Finch: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, April 2026 — One of the most common confusions among those who appreciate birds: is it a House Finch or is it a Purple Finch? Here in southern Maine, we have both, seasonally, and sometimes both year-round. Working from my photo blind, I was able to get close-ups of both in the past few days, so I thought I would post them together so you (and I) can learn to appreciate the difference. The color difference is actually more subtle than you might expect. A bright male House Finch is just as intense as a bright male Purple Finch, and unless you see them together, the difference between the orangey red of the House and the more bluey red (raspberry) of the Purple can be easy to miss. Probably my most reliable tell is the boldness of the pattern. I said recently that the House is a pen and ink drawing, and the Purple is a watercolor. There is much more “bleeding” of the red into the darker shades and lighter shades of the chest and back. Also, the pattern on the chest of the House is red on gray, and the pattern on the chest of the Purple is red on white. Finally, the Purple totally lacks the strong grey on white streaking on the body under the wings. And while it is not so obvious in these photos, the Purple is a chunkier bird, and the House more slender. And if you really want to get nit-picky, notice the slight curve in the upper half of the House Finch’s beak and compare it to the straight edge of the Purple Finch’s beak. (You have to be pretty close to see that.) I have a trained eye, and I still have to look twice at every male finch I see this time of year. Sony a7CR. Tamron 150-500 on a tripod at about 800mm equivalent field of view. Program with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.