According to Ryan Mandelbaum, a reporter for Audubon Magazine, “This Winter Marks an Incredible 'Superflight' of Hungry Winter Finches,” which is the title of the article that appears in the current edition of Audubon Magazine. “Across the country, birders are being treated to one of the biggest irruption years of boreal birds in recent memory.”
An irruptive migrant is a species that usually migrates short distances at the most, but occasionally moves far south in very large numbers.
Have you noted an increase in the finches and members of the finch family in your area? Because I spend a ridiculous amount of time on Facebook and belong to a number of birding groups there, I’ve noticed many people commenting about unusual numbers of birds, Pine Siskins in particular.
Mandelbaum reports that “Finch researchers are calling this year a “superflight,” where every species of boreal finch is irrupting, or moving southward in search of food. A perfect storm of feast and famine appears to be driving this banner finch year, affecting Common and Hoary Redpolls, Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Grosbeaks, Pine Siskins, Red and White-winged Crossbills, and Purple Finches. Other irruptive passerines, like Blue Jays, Bohemian Waxwings, and Red-breasted Nuthatches, are also on the move. "There's not enough food to support them, so they’re just spilling out of the boreal forest.” says Matt Young, ornithologist and founder of the Finch Research Network.
“Many of North America’s finches live in the forests of Canada (and in northern parts and higher elevations of the United States), where they rely on a selection of conifer or other boreal trees for food—especially their fruits and seeds in the winter. However, many of these trees produce food in cycles, supplying an abundance of seeds in “mast years” and very little to no sustenance in other years. Birds dependent on these trees undergo movements in response to these cycles, staying and breeding in areas where seeds and fruits are plentiful and heading elsewhere when crops fail. In a meager year for seed stocks, birds will dip southward in search of food, and during a widespread crop failure, they venture far into the United States to find sustenance. This is one of those years.”
”These irruptions have always been a major winter event for birders and ornithologists, but they've recently become more predictable thanks to the annual Winter Finch Forecast, a report started by Ron Pittaway and now run by Tyler Hoar. The forecast uses mast-crop observations from across Canada to predict the movements of finches and other boreal species each winter. This year’s forecast predicted notable movements for a handful of species, but once fall began, more birds started moving south into the U.S. sooner and in much larger numbers than expected. Why the numbers have surpassed expectation isn't clear—the pandemic made it difficult to collect data from the far north—but widespread crop failure is believed to be the main cause.
“First came the Red-breasted Nuthatches in the summer; this “honorary finch” undergoes similar irruptive behavior, and its early movements can foretell a strong finch flight. Then, the finches began arriving, inundating northern feeders before heading south in a trickle and then a full-blown wave. Purple Finches led the way, followed by enormous flocks of Pine Siskins, including more than 10,000 passing through Cape May’s Higbee Beach in one day. Evening Grosbeaks were next, along with Redpolls and Red Crossbills. The movements have brought mind-boggling records: a Common Redpoll visited a feeder in Albuquerque, New Mexico, while a pair of Evening Grosbeaks were found in the Florida Panhandle. Pine Siskins began migrating at night—extremely unusual for the species—and even made it to Bermuda. Meanwhile, Arctic-residing Hoary Redpolls turned up in Cleveland, Ohio.
“The abundance of summertime food followed by the widespread crop failure unexpectedly lined up for finches across species and across North America, says Hoar of the Finch Forecast. There were few food sources for the budworm-loving birds once the budworm season ended, and the scarcity of food wasn’t just limited to forests in northern Canada. “The food sources that would have held back most of those finches in southern Canada and northern border states were mostly quite poor,” he says. “So the birds kept moving further south in search of food.”
“The West has coincidentally gotten a taste of the finch fun for reasons unrelated to the boreal forests. Southern California-breeding Lawrence’s Goldfinches have poured into Arizona as part of their own food-dependant cyclical movements, and Cassin’s Finches have shown up farther east than usual, perhaps due to their own irruptive cycles aligning with this past summer’s wildfires, says Young.”
“The Evening Grosbeak showing is perhaps most notable. The striking finches have become increasingly scarce in the eastern U.S., so such a big irruption has been thrilling for birders and experts. While this year's irruption isn’t record-setting, future irruptions could be, say Young and Hoar. Both point to a budworm outbreak in the 1970s that brought Evening Grosbeaks to feeders across the country in droves. As the current budworm outbreak intensifies in the coming years, it may continue to drive Evening Grosbeaks and even bigger irruptions that could rival those numbers from the 1970s.”
“Luckily for birders stuck at home during this pandemic-stricken 2020, all of these finches are hungry and showing up anywhere there's a meal. “Winter finches are saying ‘hey, we need food, we need food,’” Hoar says. So if you can do so safely, get outside and try to find some of these winter visitors at your local park. And if you have feeders, be sure to keep them stocked, maybe buy some backup seed, and enjoy the show.”
So, have you been enjoying the show? Share with us in the comments whether you’ve noticed any migrants unusual for your area that may be part of this finch irruption. And feel free to share any and all things birdy with your fellow Choristers here.
The floor is open. Start sharing!