Pine Grosbeak
Pinicola enucleator

f4.5 @ 1/3200s, ISO:1600, Nikon D3S w 500mm

\"Pine Grosbeak,\" Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The pine grosbeak is a large member of the true finch family, Fringillidae. It is found in coniferous woods across Alaska, the western mountains of the United States, Canada, and in subarctic Fennoscandia and Siberia. The species is a frugivore, especially in winter, favoring small fruits, such as rowans (mountain-ashes in the New World). With fruit-crop abundance varying from year to year, pine grosbeak is one of many subarctic-resident bird species that exhibit irruptive behavior. In irruption years, individuals can move long distances in search of suitable food supplies, bringing them farther south and/or downslope than is typical of years with large fruit crops. In such years in the New World, they may occur well south of the typical extent of winter distribution, which is the northern Great Lakes region and northern New England in the United States.

Anchor Point, Alaska

03/16/2015