Jefferson Evening Grosbeaks

[David Govatski]

On Wednesday I counted 82 evening grosbeaks at our feeders. This number is down from previous weeks. The warmer weather is likely reducing their caloric needs. I also counted 9 pine siskins, 7 purple finches, and about 35 goldfinches. No pine grosbeaks seen at the feeders in the past week but I still see some along the roads and out in northern hardwood forests. We had 16 species for the weekend backyard bird count and that was a high number for the winter when we usually have 13 species. But I was around watching for four hours and picked up some species we don’t get everyday like brown creeper, raven, and Cooper’s hawk.

A friend told me he saw an evening grosbeak on one of his tray feeders just before sunrise and the bird was not moving and had its eyes closed. He thought the grosbeak was dead. He walked out and the bird took flight. It apparently was sleeping on the bird feeder.

David Govatski
Jefferson, NH