Columnist Bruce Glick attempts each week to summarize happenings in the birding world. Emphasis is on the local Wayne/Holmes area. This week Bruce reports on the arrival of Common Redpolls. Find out more in the "Gone Birding" column.
Gone Birding January 17, 2011 Bargain Hunter
They're back - Common Redpolls return to Ohio
It was three winters ago that our area enjoyed an invasion of Common Redpolls, plus a well-documented first local record for Hoary Redpoll. The last two winters the redpolls mainly stayed well north of us and it appeared to be the same this winter until January. As late as December 31, several Ohio birders were still trying to locate a redpoll for their Big Year lists for 2010. I don't think they found any.
A few reports of single Common Redpolls began to surface during the first week of January but it wasn't until Saturday, January 8 that small flocks were reported in northern Ohio. Locally, a flock of 12 showed up around noon that day at the same feeder near Trail where 30 or more spent several months in early 2008.
Redpolls can be found feeding at thistle feeders, alongside American Goldfinches, Pine Siskins and House Finches. After feeding, they often fly up into nearby trees where they may remain perched quietly for some time. This year we have not many reports of Pine Siskins.
Peterjohn in Birds of Ohio, states that "some redpoll flights originate in Arctic Canada directly to our north, but some Common Redpolls banded in Ohio have been recaptured in Alaska, indicating a northwestward migration after leaving Ohio. Other flights have included small numbers of "Greater" Redpolls from Greenland." While numbers are usually low, flocks of 50 to 100 do occur, and counts as high as 1000 have been recorded near Lake Erie. Peterjohn notes a Rob Harlan report of 360 Common Redpolls at one location in Holmes County during the winter of 1993-94.
Nobody knows if these birds will stay around or if their numbers will increase or decrease in the coming weeks. Another northern bird, the Red-breasted Nuthatch was reported quite widely last fall, but by mid-December they had almost completely disappeared, as evidenced by 62 birders on the Millersburg Christmas Bird Count failing to locate even one. We're not quite sure where they went.
On a different note, the cold, snowy weather has resulted in various sightings of Snow Buntings and even a few Lapland Longspurs. Several flocks of blackbirds are still roaming the area and a skilled birder reported finding one Yellow-headed Blackbird with a flock of Common Grackles and Red-winged Blackbirds. The flock was seen on January 9 along Moreland Road near Fredericksburg Road in southern Wayne County. Please report any additional sightings of Yellow-headed Blackbirds as they are extremely rare here.
Good birding!
Bruce Glick
birderbruce@yahoo.com
330-317-7798
