Talk:European Goldfinch

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For the origin of carduelis, see e.g. [1]. Pliny the Elder used the word before there were Catholic cardinals [2]. —JerryFriedman 18:07, 21 July 2005 (UTC)

Perhaps there could be something regarding the symbolism of the goldfinch? I think in Christian art it represents Christ's suffering.. if anyone is more familiar with this I think that could be a valuable addition.

[edit] europeangoldfinch.net

This website has nothing to do with the actual carduelis carduelis and the link should be removed from this page. The site is registered under the name of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation for the needs of their series "Prison Break". Check out [3] for registration name and [4] for fuller explanation.
I reinserted it under a section titled "European goldfinches in popular culture." If you take umbrage with this change I recommend you look at any number of non-pop-culture objects on wikipedia that have pop culture subheadings with references to the source.Robotempire 14:58, 26 June 2007 (UTC)
I think it's completely irrelevant to the species, it belongs in an article about Prison Break, people looking to learn about the European goldfinch aren't going to care, the bird itself doesn't even appear in the series. Anyway, I've reduced your relatively lengthy section to two sentences (I'd remove it completely if it were up to me, but knowing Wikipedia and its obsession with pop culture references I'm not even going to try), the site's even got its own article, so let's keep the TV cruft confined to there. EditorInTheRye 19:53, 26 June 2007 (UTC)
I agree with EditorInTheRye. If the TV bit has any place here, it doesn't have to be a mini-synopsis, just a sentence linking to the article. Jimfbleak 06:08, 27 June 2007 (UTC)
I'm really not inclined to agree. I guess I'm hitting on a "purist" culture here but the "pop" in "pop culture" is short for "popular." I suppose if this was the entry on "cat" or "hamster" I could see excising the popular culture bit as those are two very broad descriptions of a class of mammal. A european goldfinch, however, is one particular subspecies. A european goldfinch as a "thing" like a particular make of collectible doll or antique pottery deserves a brief description of its impact or role in popular culture. I will agree that perhaps I went a little far in the description of the site. Either way, Jim's change is a good compromise.Robotempire 08:36, 30 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Symbolism and General Facts

I feel that the links to christian symbolism are tenuous at best, and at worst divert attention away from actual facts about the species rather than focussing on subjective interpretations in art. I'd also like point out that I am unable to find a single source that says Goldfinches nest in thistles. Thistles themselves make up a proportion of a surprisingly varied diet that includes dandilion seeds and leaves, grass seeds, and will eat live food (small insects/grubs). Adding more weight to the lack of validity of the symbolism itself. There may be value in the information about the plague if it is true, although I found the source from a quick search on google and was not encouraged. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 80.229.175.128 (talk) 00:01, 24 April 2007 (UTC).

I tend to agree with the above, but for now I've combined the two culture bits, previously separated by the pet section, removed the nonsense about eating thorns or nesting in thistles, and diluted the POV. Jimfbleak 06:16, 27 June 2007 (UTC)