Georgia is in the midst of an irruption this winter — and bird lovers are delighted. Not to be confused with an eruption, an irruption is a dramatic, irregular migration of large numbers of birds to areas where they aren’t typically found.
In particular, Georgia is being inundated this winter with northern-nesting pine siskins, very small, mostly brown songbirds with sharp, pointed bills and short notched tails. Homeowners — including me — all over Georgia are seeing sizable flocks of the little birds at their feeders.
“I have had 50 or more pine siskins at my feeders for … several days,” said John Grimm of Sandy Springs. “I can’t keep the feeders full.”
“We have had a plethora of pine siskins,” said Matt Geddie in Kennesaw. “They will easily go through a pound or two of sunflower (seeds) per day.”
Pine siskins are said to be irruptive because they may appear occasionally at feeders in Georgia during some winters, only to be absent altogether in other winters. The birds breed during the summer in coniferous or mixed coniferous-deciduous forests as far north as central Alaska and northern Canada. They do not nest in Georgia.
According to the National Audubon Society, the siskins usually irrupt southward in years when there is a shortage of food in their northern home range. This winter, the magnitude of the irruption has come as a surprise. A scarce supply of conifer seeds across Canada’s boreal forest apparently has caused the birds to push south in “mind-boggling numbers,” said the society.
So, if you’ve never seen a pine siskin, this year you can hardly miss them. Pine siskins are brown, very streaky birds with yellow edgings on wings and tails. Flashes of yellow can erupt as they take flight or flutter at branch tips. They readily visit feeders offering nyjer and sunflower seeds.
Some other northern-nesting songbirds also are having notable irruptions in Georgia this winter. Evening grosbeaks, red crossbills and red-breasted nuthatches have been appearing in large numbers in northwest Georgia; purple finches are showing up over most of the state.
IN THE SKY: From David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer: The moon will be first quarter on Wednesday night. Mercury is low in the west just after dark. Venus is very low in the east and rises just before sunrise. Mars is high in the southwest at dusk.
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