January 24, 2013 About an hour ago, as Jane and I were preparing to take our daily, morning, hike around our Flint Ridge property, I spotted a single common redpoll feeding among the hoards of other finches and sparrows at the sunflower tubes. All winter I have been trying to visually and mentally transform house finches into redpolls, an ability that is apparently beyond my powers. But this delightful little finch is definitely a redpoll, a lively and beautiful male, pinkish vest pattern and all. The pinkish vest is fairly pale, but the streaking is fairly strong, so I see no reason to call it hoary. After we finished our walk (nothing unusual in the woods) I reloaded the feeders, and the redpoll is still hanging around, both on the feeders and on the ground. So far I have seen only the one individual, or at least only one at any given time. I have been patiently waiting for the last month or more for this bird. Common redpoll joins my "yard list" as species number 136, not bad for an average 57 acre piece of Ohio Appalachian upland and forested ravines without a pond and without conifers. Earlier this late-autumn/winter redpolls have been sighted at Dawes Arboretum (14 miles west of me), Burr Oak (30 miles south), and near Cumberland during the Wilds event last weekend (28 miles ESE), so it is about time! Off topic: If anyone knows a good website for winter mammal tracks, or even a good book or chart (gasp!), I would like to consult such a work. This morning we found an unusual track in the inch of fresh powdery snow. Its a sinuous small-footed track, feet placed next to each other about eight inches apart, with either its body or its tail continuously dragging. It fit through a two-inch gap in the welded wire fencing. I'm thinking weasel or mink... We haven't seen this track before, but we have seen mink, both live and roadkilled. Bob Evans Geologist, etc. Hopewell Township, Muskingum County ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]