White-winged Crossbill invasdion of '08-'09

This winter has been the largest irruption of White-winged Crossbills in Ohio history. Nearly every conifer with cones cannot hide from these nomadic finches. At the beginning of winter, I decided to keep track of this invasion by maintaining the map below. Let me tell you, I had no idea I would be so busy keeping the map updated!

The numbers represent high counts for each county. As of today, White-winged Crossbills have been reported in 45 of the 88 counties in Ohio. I wouldn’t be surprised if every county had them by now. The map can be a little misleading since the majority of the empty areas represent sparsely populated areas of Ohio, which get very little coverage by birders.

If you’re interested in following the map for updates, go to www.rarebird.org and click on ‘Ohio Statewide’.