Here in Allegheny County, Pine Siskins moved into my yard on or around 12 December, and have been here ever since. On the first day I counted upwards of 40 birds, and now (mid January), daily counts easily exceed 100 with a peak between 130 and 150. They are remarkably aggressive both with each other and in their fearlessness of humans... I think I could probably get them to eat out of my hand if I really tried. On two occasions while I stood quietly nearby with my camera, one of them actually perched on my camera lens before diving into the frenzy at the feeders!

 

Besides the wonderful photos, having such a large and confiding flock of siskins right in my own backyard has afforded me an opportunity to study this species as I never have before. The range of variation among individuals is really staggering, with some birds so pale that I could somewhat imagine them being mistaken for a different species by an unsuspecting observer in the old days. (See far down in the right column for two pictures of the palest and most distinct bird in the flock.) In these parts, opportunities like these are, as they say, once in a lifetime.

 

Periodically I'll update this page with some additional photos as I get them. Click on any of the pictures below to display a larger image.

 

Following are some pictures I got in the afternoon of 17 January, including nicer shots of ultra-pale siskin that has been present since late December. I have recently decided that this is probably a green morph Pine Siskin. I also uploaded one photo showing a closeup of the same bird's tail and rump, and another of the bird with its wings fully extended, showing the extent of yellow on the underside. These three photos are on the right immediately below. The last new photo below on the right is a different pale siskin showing the underside of the fully underside wing. Note this is a different bird than the one pictured directly above it. It is pale, but still considerably more streaked than the bird pictured in the three frames above it.