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Hoary Redpoll

Carduelis hornemanniOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Finches (Fringillidae)

Hoary Redpoll (exilipes) Winter Male Portrait
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General

Hoary Redpoll: Small finch (exilipes), with buff-gray, brown-streaked upperparts and brown-streaked white underparts washed pink. Head has red cap and black chin patch. Wings are black with two white bars. Rump is pale gray or white with few or no streaks. Tail is black and notched. Female lacks pink wash on underparts.

Range and Habitat

Hoary Redpoll: Breeds along Arctic coasts, wandering southward in winter to much of Canada and northern U.S. Inhabits weedy pastures and roadsides in winter; stays on tundra in summer.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"zzzzzz-chee-chee-chee-chee", "tweet"

Interesting Facts

 The Hoary Redpoll has very fluffy body feathers that help it stay warm in extremely cold temperatures. It has feathers on areas of its body that are bare in most other birds.

 If temperatures get too warm, it may pluck out some of its body feathers. These feathers will grow back in a few days.

 The species name commemorates the Danish botanist Jens Wilken Hornemann.

 A group of redpolls are collectively known as a "gallup" of redpolls.



Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for Hoary Redpoll
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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family Buntings, Finches, Sparrows (Emberizidae)_blue
Species Carduelis hornemanni
Length8.5 - 9.25 Inches
Wingspan8.875 Inches

Hoary Redpoll

Hoary Redpoll: Small finch (exilipes), buff-gray, brown-streaked upperparts and brown-streaked white underparts washed pink. Head has red cap, black chin patch. Black wings with two white bars. Rump is pale gray or white with few or no streaks. Black tail is notched. Black legs and feet.

● Song: "zzzzzz-chee-chee-chee-chee", "tweet"

● Foraging & Feeding: Hoary Redpoll: Eats seeds and insects; forages on the ground and in bushes and trees.

● Breeding & nesting: Hoary Redpoll: Four to six green to blue green eggs spotted with red brown are laid in a nest made of twigs, grass, and rootlets, lined with soft grass, feathers and hair, and built in the middle of a low bush or on the ground sheltered by rocks or vegetation. Incubation ranges from 9 to 12 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Hoary Redpoll: Common Redpoll has conspicuous streaks on rump, flanks, and undertail coverts, heavier brown streaks on nape and upperparts, and slightly larger bill.

Flight Pattern

Swift bounding flight on rapidly beating wings alternating with brief periods of wings pulled to sides.
Hoary Redpoll (exilipes) Winter Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Hoary Redpoll: Breeds along Arctic coasts, wandering southward in winter to much of Canada and northern U.S. Inhabits weedy pastures and roadsides in winter; stays on tundra in summer.
BreedingMonogamous, Semicolonial
PopulationFairly common
MigrationNorthern birds migrate
Weight0.5 Ounces