Irruptives here still

This winter started with visiting irruptive birds: Irruptive meets invasive (2017/11/20); Irruptive winter? (2017/12/4). The earliest arrivals were Common Redpolls and Pine Grosbeaks. Many irruptives are still here.

An irruptive is an arctic species that may or may not search for food locally in any particular year. Sometimes they appear; sometimes they do not.

Now, three months after these early winter observations, the area still boasts irruptive species.

Sometimes the Pine Grosbeak arrives in great numbers, but this year brought only a few. This female is feeding on waxberries.

Not seen early in the winter, Bohemian Waxwings have now arrived in numbers.

The Bohemian Waxwing is a beautiful bird with a crest and a yellow tipped tail.