There are lots of Redpolls around the birdfeeders this year. And usually if you look closely there will be one Redpoll in the flock that looks a lot whiter. That could be a another species of Redpoll called a Hoary Redpoll. It seems there are many Hoary Redpolls around Minnesota this winter.
Hoary Redpoll
Hoary Redpoll and Common Redpoll
In this photo there is a Hoary Redpoll and a Common Redpoll together. Hoary males will have less red on their breast than a Common and the Hoary has a stubbier beak, but that’s hard to see unless you are really close. Hoary’s also have a whiter rump and very few streaks on their flanks.
So the next time a flock of Redpolls fly into your feeders, see if you can see the difference.
