Birds of North Carolina
their Distribution and Abundance
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
FRINGILLIDAE Members: Redpoll 548
General Comments
The Redpoll is still another "winter finch", one of the several very rare ones -- along with White-winged Crossbill and Pine Grosbeak -- to stray as far south as North Carolina. Redpolls are birds of the tundra, muskegs, and boreal forest borders of northern Canada and Alaska, but each winter they move southward in large numbers. However, only in a handful of these winters do birds typically reach Virginia, and usually several Redpolls are seen in North Carolina within a given decade. In the state, Redpolls are most likely to be seen associating with American Goldfinches or Pine Siskins, feeding in weedy fields, in alder thickets, or occasionally in treetops. Thankfully, Redpolls are ardent feeder visitors, and most birders in the state probably saw their first or only Redpoll at such a location. Note that there are a handful of reports of Redpolls annually (on eBird lists), but most of these seem to be of misidentified House Finches; reports with photographs are strongly encouraged for acceptance.

NOTE: In 2024, the AOS (formerly AOU) considered that the Hoary Redpoll was just a subspecies of Common Redpoll, and thus all of the members of this boreal group of finches became simply the Redpoll.

Breeding Status
Nonbreeder
NC BRC List
Definitive
State Status
none
U.S. Status
Definitive
State Rank
SZ
Global Rank
G5
Coastal Plain
Sporadic winter visitor. Very rare along the northern coast (including the adjacent mainland and Roanoke Island), and casual elsewhere. Apparently no records for the western half of the region, including the Sandhills. There are more than 30 reports from the province, and the vast majority are from the Outer Banks. Mainly Dec to Feb (early date -- 19 Oct; seasonal late date -- 26 Mar). There are also two outlier reports in May (latest date is 21 May). In 2003, there was a record irruption of Common Redpolls on the NC coast, including 167 on the Bodie-Pea Islands CBC, which is easily a high count for the southeastern US (Chat 68:96). (Other) Peak counts: 50, of which two flew onto the boat, seen about 85 miles northeast of Cape Hatteras, 11 Feb 1953; 18, Currituck Banks, 19 Oct 1977 -- a quite early date for such a large number of birds.
Piedmont
Sporadic winter visitor. Very rare in the northern half of the province, and casual in the southern portion. There are about 31 reports, generally falling between Dec (early date -- 18 Nov) and mid-Mar (late date -- 14 May), with a peak in late Dec and early Jan (a CBC bias?). Peak counts: 6, North Wilkesboro, 29 Jan 1968; "small flock" (3?), Winston-Salem, 5 Apr 1953.
Mountain
Sporadic winter visitor. Very rare, with only about 14 reports, almost all falling between 27 Dec and 5 Mar. Outside of this time window, there are single reports on 29 Oct 1939, 20 Nov 2020, and 18 Apr 2008. Peak counts: 12, Balsam Mountain Preserve (Jackson), 30 Nov - 1 Dec 2007.
Finding Tips
The species is too rare and erratic to search for, and thus more than likely you will need to wait for a bird to show up at a feeder.