I’m just a sort of super-amateur birdwatcher and not in any clubs or anything, so looking for a second opinion. I saw about 6 birds this morning which, looking in my books, can only be hepatic tanagers, but as I’m in northern Idaho this is DEFINITELY WAAYY out of their normal range. It’s been a warm winter-- is this possible?
Pictures of the birdies .
Whaddya think?
I believe those are Pine Grosbeaks.
The main detail that doesn’t seem to fit for Pine Grosbeak is the apparent lack of wing bars or wing pattern. But it’s a little hard to see if all the birds lack it.
Definitely not Hepatic Tanager - the bill shape is wrong.
I think I’m going with Red Crossbills - right color ( unbarred wings and reddish males with yellowish females ). Can’t…quite…make out the crossed bill, but it is certainly a possibility.
I concur.
- Tamerlane
You could be right. I didn’t think the bills were crossed, which I why my first guess was the grosbeak (and I thought capybara would have been likely to note such a detail). The color is closer to that of a Red Crossbill, and the lack of wingbars would also fit.
But those would be the main possibilities.
As far as I could tell, at least with the males the wings were really pretty uniformly unmarked. I checked for the crossed bill-- it was more blunt and not crossed. . . I think. I’ll have another look if I see them again. It’s hard to tell when they are chowing down. The coloring seems closer to the red crossbill, though than the grosbeak-- the males certainly had that auricular coloration that the crossbills have and the grosbeaks lack. The beak didn’t strike me as seed-crackin’ stubby as the grosbeak. Crossbill seems like a possibility-- they had the reddish back instead of the off-grey. I think you might be right, Tamerlane.
I’m going with Pine Grosbeaks too. Bill just doesn’t look right for a Crossbill. I’m up on the Canadian border and the buggers are eating me out of house and home. Don’t forget that they are pretty uncolorful at this point because of winter plumage.
Hmm. Ok, I’ll see if they come back in the morning and try to get a better gander at the bills.
Bare-- are you up in Bonner’s Ferry or something? Hi, neighbor! (C d’A here)
After staring at those photos for awhile I think I’m sticking with Red Crossbills. Check out the second one, with the females on the ground. Especially the one on the far right. I could be fooling myself, but I think that is a crossed bill.
- Tamerlane
I’m not real familiar with these species but according to David Allen Sibley there should be a noticeable difference in size between the two, with the Pine Grosbeak averaging about 50% larger than the Red Crossbill, at 9" long and 6 1/4", respectively. So if they are about the size of House Sparrows they are probably Crossbills.
For my money they look like Red Crossbills, what with no evidence in any of the pictures of any wing bars.
I can’t be sure about that, but the head and bill shape are leading me to agree with you.
However, here I’m (thankfully) out of practice with winter finches. 
Well, isn’t this fun, though? May I should take a badly lit, out of focus photo of a bird every day and play a “what the hell was this” game. Tomorrow I’ll take a picture of a Jardine’s Parrot and post it and ask “I saw this in my yard and I think it’s a kingfisher?”
They’re back this morning and you guys were exactly right-- they are crossbills (it’s hard to tell when they are eating). Thanks for the input.