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"Improbable as it was, a tundra bird whose normal winter range is far north had found its way to our thistle sock in El Prado, New Mexico!" --Ann Ellen Tuomey
Ann Ellen and James Tuomey found a Common Redpoll on their thistle sock in El Prado, New Mexico, on November 26, 2007. After reporting the bird to the New Mexico Bird Records Committee, they learned that it was the first confirmed sighting of a Common Redpoll in the state of New Mexico. Ann Ellen and James submitted a Rare Bird Form to Project FeederWatch along with photos of the bird. When we asked them if they would like to share the story of how they discovered this rare bird, Ann Ellen sent us a wonderful account of their exciting week. Here are excerpts of her story.
After spending Thanksgiving weekend constantly peering through
binoculars for our Project FeederWatch count, on Monday I was taking a
break from watching birds. But not my husband, Jim. Since he had spotted
both a Western Meadowlark and a Spotted Towhee on Sunday (both
infrequent winter visitors) and had just observed this season's first
appearance of a Sharp-shinned Hawk, he was too enthused to stop.
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"Come here, quick, with your binoculars." I know that command well. After he directed me to the thistle sock, I exclaimed, "Wow, I think it's a Redpoll." And Jim agreed. Neither of us had ever seen a redpoll--only
admired its illustration in Sibley when we were checking out other finches.
In my excitement over the sighting I misread the range map of the Common
Redpoll, thinking the small bit of winter range in northeast Colorado was in
New Mexico. I concluded that the redpoll was uncommon, but not rare. Still I knew it
was worth reporting to the New Mexico Audubon Society. That's when things got
more interesting. |
| Photo by Jim Tuomey |
We emailed the news of our sighting to our State Audubon Rare Bird Alert
and immediately received a response advising us to send a report to the
New Mexico Bird Records Committee (NMBRC). We provided the pertinent details to the Committee Secretary:
small finch, bright red cap, black lores and throat, pointed yellow
bill, forked dark tail, white breast (no pink in breast), streaked
flanks, prominent white wing bar; tail of redpoll noticeably longer than
that of siskins.
The redpoll didn't show up on Tuesday and neither
did a response from the Committee Secretary due to email problems. But
Jim noticed a car parked out on our road for several hours. A birder? It turned out that Jerry Oldenette
had seen our emails, which were posted on an email list,
and had driven about 200 miles to check out our report.
Tuesday night the email came through from the Records Committee
Secretary. "To date, there is no verified record for the species in the
state...most turn out to be Cassin's Finch. However, your written
description sounds very much like Common Redpoll." And the word was out.
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Wednesday morning, just after first light, a call came from Jerry Oldenettel, who had stayed overnight nearby for the chance of
adding the Common Redpoll to his state list. He didn't have to wait
long. He and another out-of-town birder were shivering
in our carport while Jim and I were inside, all with binoculars fixed on a
thistle sock hanging from the aspens in front of our house. SHE
APPEARED. I quickly dialed Jerry's cell phone and heard his no-nonsense response, "We're looking at it now."
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| Photo by Jerry Oldenettel |
Moments later we, and the birders of New Mexico, had our verification. Jerry, who had just been rewarded for his long trip and great
patience, was a member of the NMBRC, and
he took several digital photos of our unusual visitor, documenting the sighting.
Once our
sighting was confirmed, we were eager to share the news; we notified all
the bird enthusiasts we knew and sent a report with photos to Project
FeederWatch. In the next seven days, about 40 people-- ranging from high school
students to retirees--visited our house in northern New Mexico, and with
very few exceptions, observed the female Common Redpoll who fed
at our thistle sock frequently for a full week.
We were pleased to have her show up for our FeederWatch count the next weekend. She was last observed on Tuesday, December 4,
a week and a day after Jim first spotted her. We miss
the sightings as well as the enthusiastic, interesting, and
knowledgeable people who came to see the bird, many bearing gifts of
thistle seed. But now we can enjoy the raptors that visit our feeder area without worrying that one of them will catch the redpoll.
Our excitement
reached its peak when we received this message from Sartor O.
Williams of the New Mexico Bird Records Committee, "We've been waiting
for this species to show up in the state for many years. It's great to
finally get it confirmed." Yes, it's great.
Learn more about the Common Redpoll and see a map showing the normal range of this irruptive finch. |
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