The
'Common Redpoll', ''Carduelis flammea,'' is a species in the
finch family. It breeds somewhat further south than the
Arctic Redpoll, also in habitats with thickets or shrubs. Nominate ''C. f. flammea'' ('Mealy Redpoll') breeds across the northern parts of
North America and
Eurasia. There is also an
Icelandic subspecies, ''C. f. islandica'', and one which breeds in Greenland and
Baffin Island, ''C. f. rostrata''. All forms
migrate further south in winter into southern Canada, northern USA and most of Eurasia. These birds are remarkably resistant to cold temperatures and winter movements are mainly driven by the availability of food. Common Redpoll is smaller, browner and more streaked than Arctic; there are two distinct populations (one lighter, one darker) united in ''islandica'', the relationships of which are unresolved (Seutin ''et al.'', 1995).