Hello All

I apologize for keeping on about redpoll ID.

There are two races of Hoary Redpoll: hornemanni and exilipes. The former
breeds in Greenland and occasionally occurs in eastern North America. Some
member of this race can be very white (and somewhat large). I've seen one of
these. It really stood out.

Unfortunately, most of the Hoaries in North America (and probably all of the
Hoaries out west) are exilipes. These look VERY MUCH like the pale end of
Common Redpoll variation. Such birds are unlikely to be obvious to the casual
glance. They will NOT stand out dramatically among a hoard of Commons --
hence the existence of so very many articles on redpoll ID and such lengthy
debates at bird records committee meetings.

For those interested, please look at Czaplak's article in Birding, referenced
in a recent post by Ian Paulson. This article is both informative and
humbling.

Cheers and Happy New Years
Steven Mlodinow
SGMlod at aol.com