Redpolls are visiting Regina again - Going North?

Female Common Redpoll on our feeder this week. © SB

We've seen very few Redpolls in our Regina, Saskatchewan, backyard this winter — but now one is back.

These birds seem  to follow different routes north and south each year.

During the winter, we had a small flock of five or six birds drop by for seeds below the feeder. They were here for one evening only. A few posed on the bare lilac branches, and by morning, all were gone.

This week, a single female Comon Redpoll is back, shyly pecking for seeds and avoiding the other birds. (Going back north? I wonder.)

It seems odd to me to see solitary Redpolls, like I often do in Regina. When I see these tiny finches at the Abbey in Muenster, where I go for February writing retreats, they are usually in large flocks, singing as they swoop from tree to tree.

On of the female Common Redpolls
that dropped by our Regina backyard in late January. © SB

Others in that January mini-flock of Common Redpolls.  © SB

The winter Redpoll flock at the Abbey also include vibrant males, as well as the occasional and rarer Hoary Redpoll, which is the same size but a far paler bird than the brown-belly-speckled Common Redpoll. Below are some shots of birds I took at St. Peter's in February... and my guesses about which might be Common Redpolls, vs Hoary Redpolls.

Female Hoary Redpoll, all silvery white with a tiny bill
(Or, then again, there is a tiny blush of red on its chest - an immature male?) © SB

Male Redpoll - I think likely Common, from the bill size,
though he doesn't have much streaking, so maybe Hoary?  ©SB

Female Common Redpoll   © SB

Male Common Redpoll  © SB

What are these? Female and Male Common Redpolls, with one (?) Hoary Redpoll. (The ones with red chest markings are male.)   

Location: Top three images: Backyard, Regina, Saskatchewan; bottom four: Near Muenster, Saskatchewan, Canada. 

Photo dates: Top: April 7, 2016; next two: January 31, 2016; four Muenster birds: February 19 - 23, 2016.  

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Range of Redpolls: Pale, copper, scarlet, red northern birds

A recent treat: A large flock of Redpolls, congregating around an auger beside a granary filled with Canola seeds. The Redpolls ranged from well streaked browns with vibrant red chests (Common Redpolls?) to extremely pale birds with only a hint of pink on their chests (Hoary Redpolls?), with several copper-capped birds (immature?) and one that was very mottled and dark (juvenile?).

Yes, lots of questions, re: identification, because these small northern birds are tricky. Apparently, the very light birds may summer on Arctic tundra, while the darker, brighter birds come south in winter from the Boreal forests. Makes sense, so far as camouflage, I guess, if that's all there was to it... Whatever the background, the range of colouring was lovely to see.

So on with the Redpoll show. First, a potential Hoary Redpoll, marked with a hint of pink on its chest.

Very pale male Hoary Redpoll - from its absence of streaking on chest and underside.
Almost imperceptible pink chest markings.   © SB

Next, because they were such a treat, a juvenile/immature redpoll — brown-streaked, with beige/gray feathers and a copper cap on its head, along with an orange-scarlet bird. 

Very brown, very shy bird. A juvenile? © SB

A male Redpoll with a scarlet/orange cap and breast markings. © SB

And finally, a few of these lovely northern birds that look more like classic Common Redpolls:

A male Redpoll so bright, it looks like it was dipped in raspberry juice; with female.
(At right, another immature copper-headed redpoll?) © SB

The auger and grain bins, on a white winter day.© SB 

What are these? Redpolls — Common Redpolls, with Hoary Redpolls, juvenile Redpolls and immature Redpolls. (The ones with red chest markings are male.)   

Location: Near Muenster, Saskatchewan, Canada. 

Photo dates: February 18 to 21, 2013. 

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Common Redpolls: Winter Prairie Visitors

Common Redpoll
in seed-scattered snow © SB

This winter, small flocks of Common Redpolls have graced our bird feeder in Regina, Saskatchewan.

These small northern songbirds nest in the Artic, and spend the winter further south in balmy climates like ours, where the temperature ranges down to minus 30C, and below.

Both males and females in this finch family have dark red caps; in addition, the males also sport bright rosy breasts.

In our yard, at least, the Redpolls have been ground feeders — scurrying across the snow to peck at seed tossed down by our regular avian visitors, the House Sparrows.

Common Redpoll fluffed up against the cold. © SB

What are these? Common Redpolls
Location: Backyard, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

Photo date: January 11, 2013. 

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