This bird looks like it could be part an April Fools of Day prank, but it’s no joke. When I spotted this bird the first time, I thought to myself, “What in the world could THAT be?!” The answer is: a European goldfinch.
Like all the white people who live in Australia, this colorful bird isn’t a true native. The European goldfinch was introduced into Australia in the 1850s and 1860s with releases in Melbourne first in 1863, in Adelaide in 1879, Sydney before 1886 and around Hobart in the early 1880s or earlier. Goldfinches had established themselves over their present range in south-eastern Australia by the 1900s.
Unlike many of the non-native animals brought to Australia by colonists, the European goldfinch hasn’t caused any harm to any native species. They seem to get quite well with all their indigenous neighbors. There’s a lesson there for us.