This tiny finch – only slightly bigger than a blue tit – is streaky and brown with patches of red on its head and sometimes its breast. They like to hang upside down to feed in trees. It has recently been 'split' from the mealy (or common) redpoll, a larger and paler species which is a winter visitor to the UK.
Key ID Features:
Three species of Redpoll are regularly seen in the UK-Common or Mealy, Lesser and the much scarcer Arctic, an occasional winter visitor from Scandinavia..
In all varieties the males sport a red forehead and usually a pink washed breast, both lacked by the female. They also all share a yellow triangular bill with a dark base.
The Lesser Redpoll is the smallest and only UK resident, although most often seen in winter months, especially in the south.
It has a richer brown colouration, heavily streaked with buff wing bars rather than white of Common or Arctic varieties.
Overview
Scientific name: Carduelis flammea cabaret.
Family: Finches (Fringillidae)
Where to see them:
They breed in woodland, but also visit gardens. Lesser redpolls can be seen dangling from tiny twigs in birch and alder trees, or perhaps on shrub stems. This is a widespread breeding species in Scotland, northern and eastern England and Wales. It is less common in central, southern and south-west England, but does occur in these places in winter.
Seen in UK:
In many areas, winter is the easiest time to see lesser redpolls, after the trees have lost their leaves. Their breeding population has declined and they're much less common than they once were.
What they eat
Seeds, particularly of birch and alder, plus plants like willowherb and sorrel, but they also visit bird feeders.
Text (c) RSPB, used with permission
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Photographer: Tim Tapley
