A gorgeous male Lesser Redpoll, Acanthis cabaret, fka Carduelis caberet, eating a seed while perched on a twig.
Lesser Redpolls are tiny finches, similar in size to Siskins. Although not perviously uncommon in Scotland*, there was a long period in which I saw very few, then they were feeding in front of the photo hide which used to be at my local RSPB reserve, especially in springtime, then suddenly, they started coming into gardens, more or less across central Scotland in the same year. At one time, I had up to nine on or around my feeders at the same time. However, they seem to have diminished in my garden, like a lot of other species, in recent years.
*Lesser Redpolls have, however, been declining in population and they are now Red Listed in Birds of Conservation Concern 4.
Their natural food is seeds like birch and alder, and they can hang upside down to feed on these. In autumn, they will also take seeds of the willowherbs (fireweed).
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I have a selection of photos available to purchase as stock photos from iStock.
A small selection of photos of a Lesser Redpoll perching on hazel twigs is available as Rights Managed stock photos from Alamy.
