Redpoll Identification

Adult male (Common)

Small finch with a red cap, two white wingbars, notched tail, and short yellow bill surrounded by black. Adult male "Common" form has a rosy-red wash on the breast and upper flanks and brownish streaked upperparts.

Female/immature (Common)

Small finch with a short, conical yellow bill. Female/immature "Common" form is brown and streaky with a tiny red patch on the crown. Note streaking on undertail coverts on both sexes.

Adult male

Small, energetic finch with red cap, yellow bill, streaked upperparts, and two white wingbars. Adult male "Common" form has pinkish-red wash across breast and streaked flanks. Often visits bird feeders when populations irrupt south to the northern U.S. and southern Canada.

Adult male (Hoary)

Adult male "Hoary" form is mostly white with a red crown patch and a pink washed chest. Some individuals like this one are extremely pale with limited streaking on the sides while others are darker with more streaking.

Female/immature (Hoary)

Female/immature "Hoary" form is white overall with a red crown patch and lightly streaked back and sides. Note unstreaked undertail coverts.

Female/immature

Acrobatic little songbird, often seen hanging upside down in pursuit of seeds. The "Hoary" form (seen here) is typically paler and smaller-billed than the "Common" form.

Adult male (Lesser)

The "Lesser" group, restricted to Europe, is smaller and darker than other Redpoll subspecies groups.

Female/immature (Lesser)

Nonbreeding female/immature "Lesser" group has a strong brownish wash on the head.

Female

Feeds mainly on seeds, but also eats insects when they are available. Female/immature "Lesser" Redpoll, found only in Europe, has a distinctive brownish wash on the head, throat, and flanks.

Juvenile (Common)

Juvenile "Common" is dark brown and heavily streaked overall and lacks adult's yellow bill.

Adult male (Common)

Small-billed finch with heavily streaked sides. Adult males have a red crown and a pink-washed chest.

Flock (with Snow Buntings)

Often forages in large flocks in weedy fields during the nonbreeding season.

Female/immature (Common)

All forms have a small red cap (the "poll" in redpoll) on the forehead.

Female/immature (Hoary)

Feeds largely on birch and willow seeds during the nonbreeding season.

Adult male (Hoary)

Breeds in arctic tundra and boreal forest across much of the Northern Hemisphere.

Female/immature (Hoary)

The "Hoary" form has an unstreaked white rump and a cold pale appearance overall.

Flock

During the nonbreeding season, flocks of several hundred individuals feed on seeds in weedy fields.

Flock

Often found at backyard bird feeders in the winter in the northern U.S. and southern Canada.

See more images of this species in Macaulay Library

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The Four Keys to ID

Size & Shape
A small songbird with a small head and small, pointed bill. The tail is short with a notch at the tip.
Relative Size
About the size of an American Goldfinch.
sparrow-sized or smaller
Measurements
Both Sexes
Length: 4.5-5.5 in (11.5-14 cm)
Weight: 0.3-0.7 oz (9-20 g)
© Annie Lavoie / Macaulay Library
Color Pattern
Redpolls have a small red forehead patch (the "poll" in redpoll), two white wingbars, and black feathering around a yellow bill. The "Common" form is brown and white with heavily streaked sides. Male "Common" has a rosy-red wash on the breast and upper flanks. The "Hoary" form is pale whitish with gray-brown streaks. Male "Hoary" is strikingly white, while female is noticeably darker and often difficult to distinguish from the "Common" form.

© John Kuenzli / Macaulay Library
Behavior
Habitat

Regional Differences

With the lumping of Common, Lesser, and Hoary Redpolls into a single species in 2024, ornithologists recognize five Redpoll subspecies groups: "flammea," "rostrata/islandica," "Lesser," "exilipes," and "hornemanni." These five groups in turn are organized into two "forms," with "flammea," "rostrata/islandica," and "Lesser" clustered together as a "Common" form, and "exilipes" and "hornemanni" grouped together as a "Hoary" form. Extensive variation makes identification to group challenging at times. The "Common" form is generally darker, with the "Hoary" form paler. Within the "Common" form, "Lesser" individuals are the smallest, while "rostrata/islandica" birds are 50% heavier than "flammea" individuals. Birds in the "hornemanni" group are typically the palest and largest of all Redpolls—at 20 grams, they weigh about twice as much as "Lesser" individuals.

Relative Size

Measurements
Both Sexes
Length: 4.5-5.5 in (11.5-14 cm)
Weight: 0.3-0.7 oz (9-20 g)

Species in This Family

More to Read

Redpoll Photos and Videos

Adult male (Common)

Female/immature (Common)

Adult male

Adult male (Hoary)

Female/immature (Hoary)

Female/immature

Adult male (Lesser)

Female/immature (Lesser)

Female

Juvenile (Common)

Adult male (Common)

Flock (with Snow Buntings)

Female/immature (Common)

Female/immature (Hoary)

Adult male (Hoary)

Female/immature (Hoary)

Flock

Flock

Compare with Similar Species

Looking for ID Help?

The Four Keys to ID

Relative Size

MeasurementsBoth SexesLength: 4.5-5.5 in (11.5-14 cm)Weight: 0.3-0.7 oz (9-20 g)

Regional Differences

Regional Photos

Species in This Family

More to Read

Measurements
Both Sexes
Length: 4.5-5.5 in (11.5-14 cm)
Weight: 0.3-0.7 oz (9-20 g)