Thank you, Jonathan.
Your note ignited my curiosity to go snooping around in eBird, where I see
that the most siskins recorded in a single eBird entry in Idaho is of 385
birds, by Terry Gray on 24 Feb 2012. Knowing Terry, I’m guessing he
probably counted them on photos he took of that event? =)
His entry here: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S10000562
Just for fun, I think the most siskins I’ve seen at one time was at Oregon
Dunes NRA two months ago, when a few hundred (best estimate) funneled down
from the sky into trees all around me, which set off a couple of Wrentits
into impressively loud, un-choreographed wailing! This in turn reminds me
of a time 15 yrs ago when several hundred Bohemian Waxwings had provided a
similar stage for a frenzied/neurotic Townsend’s Solitaire; I had no idea
that a solitaire was capable of all that cussing!
So many birding tales to tell… =)
Larry in west Boise, where it’s been surprisingly birdie at our feeders and
along our nearest stretch of Greenbelt, noting that Tom McCabe is finding a
more interesting mix of raptors along his usual stretch of Greenbelt just
east of us, eh?
From:
Jonathan Barnett
Sent: Friday, December 8, 2017 9:45 AM
To: IBLE
Subject: [IBLE] Large mixed flock of birds this morning
There haven’t been many birds around for awhile, but this morning, a large
flock of Pine Siskins, American Goldfinches, and Dark-eyed Juncos descended
on my yard.
The predominant species was the one I would least expect – Pine siskins. I
counted over 30! I don’t believe I have ever seen that large of a siskin
flock in my lifetime.
Winter is coming. we still have snow on the ground up here in Horseshoe
Bend. Happy Holidays everyone! Jonathan Barnett