Redpolls

[Gentoo]

How many spieces are there these days? Is the Common Redpoll of North America a different race than the Mealy Redpoll of Europe or is it monotypic? If not how do they differ? Is Lesser Redpoll now a distinct species? I know in NA there are two races of the Hoary (Arctic) Redpoll. Are there more?

Any info is greatly appreciated. Not too good on my Redpolls.

[AlexC]

Coincidentally just wrote this up here (http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=75307) about Clements view on redpolls:

Just to add some taxonomic fun to the convo, Clements refers to 4 subspecies of Common Redpoll (Carduelis flammea): Nominate flammea, which Sibley dubs "Southern"; rostrata, or "Greenland"; islandica (range restricted to Iceland), and the exclusively European Lesser (Common) Redpoll, C. f. cabarat. Clements then gives 2 Hoary/Arctic Redpoll subspecies: C. h. hornemanni - Sibley's "Greenland/Hornemann's"; and C. h. exilipes, or "Southern".

[Gentoo]

Sorry, I posted this thread before your response in the other one. Since this was a taxonomy specific question, I thought I'd ask it here. So whats the status on the North American Common Redpoll? I gather it's the nominate flammea?

[AlexC]

Sorry, I posted this thread before your response in the other one. Since this was a taxonomy specific question, I thought I'd ask it here. So whats the status on the North American Common Redpoll? I gather it's the nominate flammea?

Haha, yeah, I just didn't see this post - I read ID updates THEN taxonomy updates, so I was laughing to myself that it would have been more appropriate for me to write it here and refer to it there!

The great majority of North American redpolls are what Sibley refers to as "Southern" subspecies, so yes, C. f. flammea for Common (and C. hornemanni exilipes for Hoary). I lack personal experience with this species, but I'm guessing that Sibley referring to the other North American redpoll possibilities as "Greenland" implies that they are restricted to North American land closer to Greenland.

Clements ranges
C. f. flammea: N Eurasia and n North America
C. f. rostrata: N Labrador, Baffin I. and s Greenland; winters to ne US, Br. Isles
C. f. islandica: Iceland
C. f. cabarat: British Isles, Alps and mountains of Czechoslovakia
C. h. exilipes: Tundra of n Eurasia and n North America
C. h. hornemanni: Ellesmere I., Baffin I. and n Greenland; winters to n US, Br. Isles

[Gentoo]

Ahh thank you very much. Just the type of answers I was looking for.