Identifying and Documenting a Rare Bird

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As many FeederWatchers can attest, nothing is more exciting than identifying a new species in your yard, especially a rare bird! For FeederWatch a bird is considered “rare” if it is seen outside of its typical winter range. Birds often show up in unexpected places, but what causes birds to roam far from their typical ranges into uncharted areas is never certain.

If you are participating in Project FeederWatch and you are fortunate enough to see a rare bird during the FeederWatch season, we would like to know about it. Snap a photo or draw a sketch of the bird, noting any distinctive characteristics. Take careful notes about what you see, recording plumage, bill shape, eye color, and any other features that will aid in identification.

Your careful documentation of this bird will ensure that your report becomes part of the scientific record.

Instructions for reporting your bird to FeederWatch are located in the Instruction Booklet and under Detailed Instructions. You also may wish to report your sighting to a local bird club, nature center, or state or provincial wildlife agency (your state or province may have an avian records committee).

Confirmed rare bird reports are posted in the Explore section of the web site and discussed in our reports.

What is an Irruption?

Some birds usually spend their winters in remote areas of the north, such as the boreal forests of Canada. Some years, when these forests produce a smaller seed crop, the birds will move in search of adequate food resources. These movements are called irruptions. Some birds fly far from the boreal forests to locations such as California (Pine Siskin), the Southwest (Evening Grosbeak), or mid-Atlantic states (Common Redpoll). Other irruptive species include Red-breasted Nuthatch, Pine Grosbeak, Hoary Redpoll, Red-winged Crossbill, and White-winged Crossbill. Wherever they go, these birds usually are seen raiding feeders in flocks. A FeederWatcher might see hundreds of irruptive finches at feeders one year but almost none the next.

The vast network of FeederWatchers makes it possible to track the widespread population movements of irruptive species. To view a stunning example of an every-other-year irruption of a species, visit the Map Room and look at the map for Common Redpoll.