Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)

A highly coloured finch with a bright red face and yellow wing patch. Sociable, often breeding in loose colonies, they have a delightful liquid twittering song and call. Their long fine beaks allow them to extract otherwise inaccessible seeds from thistles and teasels. 

I took this image whilst walking through Pontburn Woods at Dipton, Stanley. There were large groups of varied finches feeding in the bushes and I managed to take this despite the tangle of branches.