Redpolls, siskins, United States winter birds

This video says about itself:

REDPOLLS – Guide to the ID of British Garden Birds No.4

I usually look out for redpolls in the garden each year during January, February and March. Most years I will see at least 3 or 4 lesser redpolls but 2012 was exceptional when I had up to 10 visiting from January through to March including a number of Common or Mealy Redpolls which are classified as scarce in Shropshire.

From the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in the USA:

The Redpolls are Coming! The Redpolls are Coming! (And Siskins, Too)

About every other year, cold winter winds blow flurries of two boreal birds—Pine Siskins and Common Redpolls— down from Canada to scatter about the Lower 48 states.

This winter, it’s time for another irruption.

eBird data show that Common Redpolls are reaching the Chicago area in the Midwest and moving down past New Jersey along the Atlantic Coast. Birders are reporting Pine Siskins all the way down in Florida and Texas.

Read our story on the All About Birds blog about what drives this irruption, how to identify redpolls and siskins, and how you might attract them to your backyard bird feeder.

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