Common Redpolls are still the most numerous birds by far in our yard, and in many places around town. When they first arrived months ago, their little tweets and zeeps were gentle, but lately their sounds have escalated in volume and persistence. Oddly they often sound much like Dickcissels and not much like they did earlier. Maybe they are getting into breeding mode, with all this sunlight and temperatures in the 20s above (not below). I have taken their being around for granted in the last weeks, but I will really miss them when they depart to go wherever they go in the summer (north I assume).
The only other flocking birds in our neighborhood are the Bohemian Waxwing that come though every couple of days looking for berries probably, which our neighborhood mostly lacks.
Yesterday I went to west Anchorage to see if other neighborhoods had anything around that we don’t have. Other than Rock Pigeons and Starlings (not found in our neighborhood), birds there were similar to ours, but I think we have cornered the market on redpolls. I also drove out to Point Woronzoff to see what the view was on such a sunny day.
Then it was back home to watch the squabbling, feeding redpolls —
and back to writing, writing, writing…
Lynn Barber's Birding Blog 