It looks like birders will be in for a treat this winter. Early prognostications of an “irruptive” winter are proving true. A small flock of white-winged crossbills continues to be seen at Grandfather Mountain, reports of red-breasted nuthatches in the Piedmont of North and South Carolina are becoming commonplace on different listserves and, on the first day of winter, I had an evening grosbeak at my feeders.

The cause of these irruptions is not completely understood. This winter seems to indicate that harsh weather is not a primary factor. It is generally believed a lack of food on regular wintering grounds spurs these irruptions. Other data seems to point to a cyclic nature. Of course, there is no reason to think there is one specific causal factor that spurs irruption for every species across all ranges. One would be hard pressed to find a winter where there was no irruption of any species anywhere across the country, but it is a real treat for birders when these gypsies show up.

Evening grosbeaks are gorgeous birds. The male sports a bright, golden-yellow forehead and supercillium (eyebrow) that looks like some type of futuristic helmet. This helmet contrasts with a black crown that changes to brown on the nape and breast. The male’s breast and lower back are yellow and there are large white wing patches on the black wings. The tail is black.

The female is dove-gray with smaller white patches on her wings. There is generally a golden or yellowish tinge around the nape and neck. The female’s tail also shows much white.

These large (8 inches) nomadic finches generally travel in conspicuous, large, noisy flocks. They can really dent your winter sunflower seed budget. As noisy and voracious as they are, I can’t resist them. If flocks are present I will spread sunflower seeds along the railing of the back deck. In past winters I have had as many as 80 grosbeaks lined up along the railing. A pretty impressive sight.

Evening grosbeaks range from east to west across Canada and the northern US and regularly in the west, south to northeast Mexico. In an irruptive winter they could show up almost anywhere.

There are three different races of evening grosbeaks. The subspecies encountered in WNC is Coccothraustes vespertinus vespertinus. Coccothraustes v. brooksi breeds from western Canada to central Colorado. Coccothraustes v. montanus is found throughout the southwestern US and down to Mexico.

Other irruptive species that often make it to WNC include red crossbills, pine siskins and purple finches. Red crossbills are more commonly seen in the summer across our region. Pine siskins may appear any time of the year, while purple finches are primarily winter visitors.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is seeking data on irruptive species. If you have observed any of these species in your backyard or while on an outing in the region you can assist Cornell by logging onto their website and submitting your sightings. Go to www.birdsource.org; there will be a pulldown under the heading Birding Projects; scroll down to Irruptive Bird Survey and follow the instructions.

It looks like it will be a great winter to keep an eye out for these irregular wanderers.

(Don Hendershot can be reached at don@smokymountainnews.com)

 

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