Male Pine Grosbeak Eating Crabapples, Erieville, New York

It appears that I'm out of fresh material from Virginia at the moment, so until I get more it's back to some images from New York. This photo of a male Pine Grosbeak was taken on Damon Road near the town of Erieville in upstate New York. This winter there were numerous species of finches traveling down to upstate New York from the more northern areas of boreal forest that they usually inhabit in search of food. Some of these species of finches include Evening Grosbeak, Pine Grosbeak, Pine Siskin, White-winged Crossbill, and Common Redpoll among others. While male Evening Grosbeaks come in a close second to Pine Grosbeaks, I must admit that Pine Grosbeaks are my favorite winter finch. There is something about finding a magenta colored bird in the winter time that is just so magical. Additionally, I had always assumed that they would stick out like a sore thumb, but when found among a crabapple tree they actually blend in quite well!

Male Pine Grosbeak, Damon Road, Erieville, New York