American Birding® ASS O C I A T I O N THE NESTING SEASON • BIRDS OF THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN North American Birds A QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGICAL RECORD PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN BIRDING ASSOCIATION VOLUME 59: NO. 4, 2006 • JUNE THROUGH JULY 2005 Companion A trusted Friend f The incomparable EL combines maximum functionality with brilliant !■ optical performance and innovative design. Their lightweight and compact design allows for comfortable one handed operation. \ The unique wrap around grip makes them feel like an extension of your hand that you will not be separated from, for a “lifetime". www.swarovskioptik.com . . , I ■ . . . . . Adelson Library Laboratory of Orr&hctogy Cornell University Kheoe, Mew York 14850 The Nesting NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Season: June through July 2005 AMERICAN BIRDING ASSOCIATION • VOLUME 59 * NUMBER 4 • 2 0 0 6 Records of Rare and Uncommon Hudson-Delaware Great Basin Birds from Recent Surveys on St. Robert 0. Paxton, Joseph C. Burgiel, Brian L. K)JL Rick Fridell Croix, United States Virgin Islands Sullivan, Michael Powers, and Richard R. Veit Douglas B. McNair, Lisa D. Yntema, New Mexico Claudia D. Lombard, Carol Cramer-Burke, Middle Atlantic Sartor 0. Williams III and Fred W. Sladen J ' ' Todd M. Day Arizona The Changing Seasons: Southern Atlantic Mark M. Stevenson and Gary H. Rosenberg Madrean Summer Ricky Davis Edward S. Brinkley Alaska Florida Thede Tobish Editors’ Notebook JUJ David J. Powell British Columbia In Memorium: Ontario '“rr4 Donald G.Cecile James Garrett Granlund J Matthew L. Holder and David H. Elder Jack Reinoehl Oregon & Washington Eastern Highlands & Steven Mlodinow, David Irons, and Bill Tweit Little Ringed Plover ( Charadrius Upper Ohio River Valley dubius ) in Martinique: Victor W. Fazio III and Rick Wiltraut Northern California First for the West Indies Michael M. Rogers, Steven A. Glover, Vincent Lemoine Illinois & Indiana Luke W. Cole, and Scott B. Terrill James Hengeveld, Keith A. McMullen, First Record of Caribbean Martin and Geoffrey A. Williamson Southern California (Progne dominicensis ) for Aruba Guy McCaskie and Kimball L. Garrett Jeffrey V. Wells and Allison M. Childs Wells Western Great Lakes PederH.Svingen Baja California Peninsula A record of Cuban/Caribbean Martin Robert A. Hamilton, Richard A. Erickson, (Progne ciyptoleuca/dominicensis ) Iowa & Missouri Eduardo Palacios, and Roberto Carmona for the Bahamas James J. Dinsmore William E. Hayes Mexico Tennessee & Kentucky Hector Gomez de Silva Occurrence and abundance of Chris Sloan and Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr, tubenoses (Procellariiformes) Central America at Guadeloupe, Lesser Antilles, Central Southern H. Lee Jones and Oliver Komar 2001-2004 Robert D. Purrington Anthony Levesque and Pierre Yesou West Indies & Bermuda Northern Canada Robert L. Norton, Anthony White, Review of the status of American U 1 1 Cameron D. Eckert and Andrew Dobson Coot ( Fulica americana ) and Caribbean Coot (Fulica caribaea ) in Prairie Provinces Hawaiian Islands the United States Virgin Islands Rudolf F. Koes and Peter Taylor Robert L. Pyle and Peter Donaldson Douglas B. McNair Northern Great Plains Pictorial Highlights The Regional Reports W Ron Martin Southern Great Plains Atlantic Provinces & Joseph A. Grzybowski and W. Ross Silcock St. Pierre et Miquelon Bruce Mactavish Texas Mark W. Lockwood, Randy Pinkston, ON THE COVER: A bird of boreal and montane habitats, this Quebec and Ron Weeks American Three-toed Woodpecker was an utter surprise in Pierre Bannon, Olivier Barden, mesquite copse in the Cimarron National Grassland, Mor- Normand David, Samuel Denault, Idaho & Western Montana ton County, Kansas on 4 July 2005. The recent proliferation and Yves Aubry David Trochlell of astonishing bird records in the continent's interior— particularly in the Rocky Mountains, the Great Plains, and New England Colorado & Wyoming the Great Basin — is testimony both to the increasing JUU Wayne R. Petersen Christopher L. Wood, Tony Leukering, numbers, and skills, of bird observers in these regions and and Bill Schmoker to the sometimes drastic changes in the status of birds •Sr % " here. Photograph by Dave Seibel. ' AmericanBirding® ASSOCIATION CHAIR Richard H. Payne VICE-CHAIR Bettie R. Harriman BOARD OF DIRECTORS David M. Bird Paul Bristow Donald Dann John C. Kricher Dennis H. Lacoss Michael Ord Father Tom Pincelli Debra Shearwater Ann Stone William R. Stott, Jr. Harry Tow Bob Warneke Anthony W. White PRESIDENTS CEO vacant MEMBERSHIP Rich Downing CONVENTIONS AND CONFERENCES Tamie Bulow and Darlene Smyth CONSERVATION Betty Petersen EDUCATION Lori Fujimoto TREASURERS CFO Lesli Rhodes SECRETARY OF ABA Carol Wallace GENERAL COUNSEL Daniel T. Williams, Jr. PAST PRESIDENTS Allan R. Keith (1997-1999) Daniel T. Williams, Jr. (1993-1997) Allan R. Keith (1989-1993) Lawrence G. Balch (1983-1989) Joseph W. Taylor (1979-1983) Arnold Small (1976-1979) G. Stuart Keith (1973-1976) G. Stuart Keith (1970 pro tem) PAST 10URNAL EDITORS John W. Aldrich (1947-1951) ChandlerS. Robbins (1951-1954) Editorial Board, including Robbins, Ludlow Griscom, Allan Cruickshank (1954-1967) Richard L. Plunkett (1967-1970) Robert S. Arbib, Jr. (1970-1983) John Farrand, Jr. (1984-1985) Susan Roney Drennan (1985-1996) Kenn Kaufman (1997-1998) Michael A. Patten (1999-2000) North American Birds is published by the American Birding Association. The mission of the journal is to provide a complete overview of the changing panorama of our continent’s birdlife, including outstanding records, range extensions and contractions, population dynamics, and changes in migration patterns or seasonal occurrence. We wel¬ come submission of papers in these areas; papers and other communication should be sent to North American Birds, 9 Randolph Avenue, Cape Charles, VA 23310. For correspon¬ dence on photographic material, contact the Photo Editor at the email address below. PUBLISHER DIRECTOR OF PUBLICATIONS American Birding Association Bryan Patrick PUBLICATIONS CHAIR John C. Kricher EDITOR Edward S. Brinkley (ensifera@aol.com) COPY EDITOR Virginia Maynard ASSOCIATE EDITORS Louis R. Bevier P. A. Buckley Stephen J. Dinsmore Alvaro Jaramillo Paul E. Lehman Bill Pranty PHOTO EDITOR Matthew E Sharp (sharp@acnatsci.org) REGIONAL EDITORS Bruce H. Anderson, Maris Apse, Yves Aubry, Margaret J. C. Bain, Pierre Bannon, Olivier Barden, Joseph C. Burgiel, Adam M. Byme, Roberto Carmona, Eric Carpenter, Robert I. Cecil, Donald G. Cecile, Luke W. Cole, C. Dwight Cooley, Brian Dalzell, Normand David, Ricky Davis, Todd M. Day, Samuel Denault, James J. Dinsmore, Andrew Dobson, Peter Donaldson, Robert A. Duncan, Lucy R. Duncan, Cameron D. Eckert, Bill Eddleman, David H. Elder, Walter G. Ellison, Richard A. Erickson, Victor W. Fazio 111, Rick Fridell, Kimball L. Garrett, Steven A. Glover, Hector Gomez de Silva, Joseph A. Grzybowski, Robert A. Hamilton, James Hengeveld, Pam Hunt, Marshall J. lliff, David Irons, H. Lee Jones, Rudolf E Koes, Tony Leukering, Mark Lockwood, Bruce Mactavish, Nancy L. Martin, Ron E. Martin, Blake Maybank, Guy McCaskie, Keith A. McMullen, Steven G. Mlodinow, Robert L. Norton, Eduardo Palacios, Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr., Robert 0. Paxton, Simon Perkins, Wayne R. Petersen, Randy Pinkston, David J. Powell, Michael E. Powers, Bill Pranty, Robert D. Purrington, Robert L. Pyle, Michael M. Rogers, Gary H. Rosenberg, Bill Schmoker, Willie Sekula, W. Ross Silcock, Chris Sloan, Mark M. Stevenson, Brian L. Sullivan, Peder Svingen, Peter Taylor, Scott B. Terrill, Thede Tobish, Bill Tweit, Richard R. Veit, Phillip A. Wallace, Ron Weeks, Anthony W. White, Sartor O. Williams III, Geoffrey A. Williamson, Rick Wiltraut, Christopher L. Wood SUBSCRIPTIONS GRAPHIC DESIGN ADVERTISING Brenda Gibb Ed Rother Ken Barron Jim Harris North American Birds (ISSN 1525-3708) (USPS 872-200) is published quarterly by the American Birding Associa¬ tion, Inc. Periodicals postage paid at Colorado Springs, Colorado, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: return postage guaranteed; send address changes and POD forms 3579 to North American Birds, 4945 N. 30th Street, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80919-3151; (800) 850-2473. Subscription prices: $30/year (US) and US$35/year (Canada). Copyright © 2005 by the American Birding Association, Inc., all rights reserved. Printed by Publishers Printing, Shepherdsville, Kentucky. The views and opinions expressed in this magazine are those of each con¬ tributing writer and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of the American Birding Association or its management. ABA is not responsible for the quality of products or services advertised in North American Birds, unless the products or services are being offered directly by the Association. GST Registration No. R135943454. 534 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Remote. Wild. Unbelievable •Home to 1,000,000 Fur Seals •Spectacular Seabird Colonies •Arctic Fox and Reindeer •Brilliant Showcase of Wildflowers •Historic Russian Church •Native Aleut Culture V ST. PAUL ISLAND Alaska s Rribilofs 1-877-424-5637 www.alaskabirding.com the ^5255 GREAT TEXAS BIRDING CLASSIC CALLING ALL BIRDERS he Great Texas Birdin ms You and your team won’t | want to miss the 10th Anniversary of the GTBC as we celebrate a decade of coastal habitat conservation. For more information, contact Tournament Coordinator Carol Jones at the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory - www.gcbo.org l-866-GTBCLAS (482-2527) There’s something for everyone! cAv> iCcHs> •Jr -% T / ° OjjseP^^ TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE PROUD PARTNER JERRY HGUGRI V This book sets a new standard for raptor field guides. "The understanding of what hawkwatchers actually face in the field comes through on every page." — David Allen Sibley, from the foreword 339 color photos. 32 b/w photos. 7 1/2x9 1/2. Paper $19.95 Cloth $55.00 Parrots of the World Lavishly illustrated and beautifully presented, Parrots of the World is the most comprehensive hand¬ book for identifying some 350 species of parrots found throughout the world. 400 pages. 121 color plates. 378 maps. 8 1/2 x 12. Cloth $65.00 February % Birds Southeast Craig Robson I "This guide is a magnificent achievement, regionally without peer, and clearly 1 the essential guide for future visitors to the region." — World Birdwatch 304 pages. 142 color plates. 5 3/4x8 1/4. Princeton Field Guides Series Paper $29.95 Rick Cech and Guv Tudor BUTTERFLIES f^e east coast Here is an accessible, informative, and highly illustrated book that offers a fresh view of butterflies in the East Coast states, from the Atlantic seaboard to the Appalachians. 336 pages. 950 color photos. 275 maps. 8x11. Cloth $49.50 Princeton University Press 800-777-4726 • www.birds.princeton.edu All books available from ABA Sales • (800) 634-7736 • Email: abasales@abasales.com • www.americanbirding.org VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 2 535 Records of Rare and Uncommon Birds from Recent Surveys on St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands Douglas B. McNair Sapphos Environmental, Inc. 133 Martin Alley Pasadena, California 91105 (dmcnair@sapphosenvironmental.com) Lisa D.Yntema Post Office Box 1488 Frederiksted, USVI 00841-1488 Claudia D. Lombard United States Fish and Wildlife Service Federal Building 3013 Estate Golden Rock Christiansted, USVI 00820-4355 Carol Cramer-Burke St. Croix Environmental Association Arawak Building, Suite #3 Christiansted, USVI 00820 Fred W. Sladen Post Office Box 706 New London, New Hampshire 03257 Abstract This paper contains data from the first long-term avifaunal surveys on St. Croix conducted since the 1980s, supplemented by observations of other individuals and a rigorous assessment of the literature. The observations of 62 species included here span 2002 through July 2004 and empha¬ size site-specific breeding information of 23 locally rare or uncommon species (16 species of waterbirds and seven of land- birds). This includes the first and second confirmed breeding records of Least Grebe (Tachybaptu s domini- cus) and the first con¬ firmed breeding records of White¬ winged Dove ( Zenaida asiatica ) and Antillean Nighthawk ( Chordeiles gundlachii). Breeding information on all 23 species is essential for establishing conserva¬ tion priorities, for both species and sites, especially at manmade freshwater ponds, which had never been sampled ornithologi- cally. Many vagrants and scarce transients are also documented herein, including one new verified species, Connecticut Warbler ( Oporomis agilis), and the first report of Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penelope ) in the U. S. Virgin Islands. The status of many breed¬ ing and nonbreeding species was frequently reliably assessed by examining material in museum collections, which is essential for documentation of avian biodiversity on small subtropical islands like St. Croix, where habitat loss from development and other human uses is a continued threat. Figure 1 . One of two West Indian Whistling-Ducks that rested on a log on one of the lower freshwater ponds at the Carambola Golf Resort on 25 October 2002. This record was the first documented occurrence of this species in the U.S. Virgin Islands since 1941. Photograph by Floyd E. Hayes. Introduction Avifaunal surveys in the U. S. Virgin Islands (USVI), in the northern USVI, and on St. Croix began in the late 1850s (Newton and Newton 1859a-d; Cassin 1860, Newton 1860, Wetmore 1927). Like most subsequent visiting naturalists’, the Newton brothers’ studies on St. Croix were sporadic, although their efforts (confined to parts of two consec¬ utive years) were greater than most other short-term studies that followed them (e.g. , Cory 1890, 1891). Until the work of Norton (1979, 1981) and Sladen (1988, 1992) from the late 1970s through the 1980s, the only earlier long¬ term studies were conducted in the northern USVI by Nichols (1943), who was director at the Agricultural Experi¬ ment Station, and on St. Croix by Harry A. Beatty and George A. Seaman, resident nat¬ uralists, sportsmen, scientific collectors, and in the case of Seaman an employed wildlife biologist for 22 years (Seaman 1980, 1993; Sladen 1988). This paper docu¬ ments rare and uncommon birds of St. Croix from the first comprehensive avifaunal sur¬ veys conducted since the 1980s, especially for waterbirds, which are the dominant group there (Raffaele 1989, Leek and Norton 1991). New information on critical species such as White-cheeked Pintail (Anas ba- hamensis ) and Wilson’s Plover ( Charadrius wilsonia ) that have previously lacked sum¬ maries of their breeding (and nonbreeding) status will be documented more fully else- 536 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS where. The focus is on documentation of breeding information, which has been neg¬ lected on St. Croix. Methods Avifaunal surveys were conducted from February 2002 through July 2004, supple¬ mented by observations of other individuals acknowledged herein; unattributed records are by McNair (DBM). Information is in¬ cluded on one fairly common species, Rud¬ dy Turnstone ( Arenarici interpres ), for which there are sightings of marked birds. Recent observations are supplemented with docu¬ mentation for selected unpublished obser¬ vations since the period of Norton and Sladen (from the 1980s to the present). This includes undocumented details of breeding information for several species by Sladen (FWS) and information in Division of Fish and Wildlife [DFW] files. Finally, verified records (e.g., photographs by Carol Cramer- Burke; hereafter CCB) are emphasized. This includes documentation of historical speci¬ mens in museum collections that are essen¬ tial to reliable assessment of species status (for vagrants or rare and uncommon birds) , especially when adequate summaries are lacking. Future studies will include avifau¬ nal comparisons of species composition and abundance between freshwater and saltwa¬ ter (including brackish) sites. The emphasis throughout is on site-spe¬ cific information in salt- and freshwater (and terrestrial) environments that is critical to conservation of scarce species that may be declining (or increasing) on small islands, where threats to even a few sites may seri¬ ously diminish avian biodiversity. This in¬ cludes manmade freshwater wetlands that have never been systematically sampled be¬ fore in the USVI. Confirmed (e.g., active nests, adults with flightless young) and probable breeding evidence (e.g., adults on territory for over 10 days; Hayes and Samad 2002) are emphasized to distinguish breed¬ ing from nonbreeding birds unambiguously. The latter may outnumber the former at some breeding sites (e.g., Black-necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus), so this approach avoids the problem of incomplete documen¬ tation of breeding evidence that has charac¬ terized some avifaunal surveys in the USVI (e.g., Dammann and Nellis 1992). Other than nest data, data on abundance were based on counts of birds at each site, which included general observations and mapping of territories for some species. Material evi¬ dence (specimens, photographs) are archived at the following institutions: ANSP (Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences), DFW (St. Croix, USVI), FMNH (Field Mu¬ seum of Natural History, Chicago), NMNH (National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution), PUC (Pacific Union College, California), SEA (St. Croix Years: Jan 2002 to July 2004 Figure 2. Monthly rainfall (cm) at St. Croix from January 2002 through July 2004 (data from the United States Department of Agriculture Experimental Station at Kingshill). Environmental Association, Gallows Bay), UMMZ (University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Ann Arbor), UMZC (University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge, UK), and ZMUC (Zoological Museum of the Universi¬ ty of Copenhagen, Denmark). Site names follow McGuire (1925), Scott and Carbonell (1986), and Imsand and Philibosian (1987). A site is a discrete geo¬ graphic entity (e.g., Southgate Pond, Great Pond) that may include adjacent habitat (e.g., associated beach berm). Several sites are occasionally subdivided where pertinent for a particular species (especially at the Buccaneer Hotel, which has several impor¬ tant discrete salt- and freshwater sites for birds). Sites not listed in the above refer¬ ences, which only list three freshwater ponds on St. Croix (Castle Burk Pond, Creque Reservoir, Fredensborg Pond), are listed in Appendix I. The UVI Wetlands Re¬ serve cited herein is also called French Pond (actually two ponds; Imsand and Phili¬ bosian 1987). Rainfall data (January 2002 through July 2004, U.S. Department of Agri¬ culture Agricultural Research Station at Kingshill; Figure 2) included a 50-year rainfall event during mid-November 2003 (means of 40-55 cm depending on exact location on St. Croix) that fol¬ lowed a year-and-a-half drought. The rainfall data at Kingshill un¬ derstate the severity of the drought, which was more severe at most other locations on St. Croix. Results SPECIES ACCOUNTS West Indian Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna arborea — Two adults resting on a log at one of the lower freshwater ponds on the Carambola Golf Resort on 25 October 2002 (DBM, F. E. Hayes; PUC 1, Figure 1) was the first docu¬ mented occurrence of this West Indian en¬ demic in the USVI since 1941. Later sight¬ ings have been reported (e.g., Seaman 1955, Rodrigues 2002), but adequate documenta¬ tion is lacking (but see Seaman 1973, 1993). West Indian Whistling-Ducks were for¬ merly resident in mangrove swamp forest on St. Croix and St. Thomas, although pre¬ cise data are lacking for St. John (Newton and Newton 1859d, Beatty 1930, Nichols 1943, Seaman 1993). Newton and Newton (1859d) stated this species was pretty com¬ mon on St. Croix in 1857-1858 and collect¬ ed two specimens (whereabouts unknown), although its breeding status was not docu¬ mented. Beatty (1930) and Nichols (1943) stated that West Indian Whistling-Ducks were very rare throughout the USVI, al¬ though Beatty added that 15 years earlier it used to breed on St. Croix, when it was very common. Nichols (1943) added that it was formerly common and still occasionally Figure 3. Two Fulvous Whistling-Ducks that remained at Southgate Pond until 1 6 May 2004 provided the first verified record for the U.S. Virgin Islands. Photograph by Carol Cramer-Burke. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 537 Figure 4. A female Hooded Merganser lingered on St. Croix into summer 2004. This molting bird was present at Southgate Pond as late as 3 July (here). Photograph by Carol Cramer-Burke. seen on Water Island and on the St. Jameses cays off St. Thomas. The last verified records in the USVI until 2002 were seven specimens collected on St. Croix from 1939- 1941 (FMNH 414023, 414694-414699). Two of these specimens were downy chicks collected on 15 January 1941, the only con¬ firmed breeding record in the USVI. Nichols (1943) stated that an adult West Indian Whistling-Duck with seven nestlings was seen on a pond at Sprat Bay, Water Is¬ land on 29 May (year unknown) and re¬ ported second-hand information that it nested in hollow butts of dead agaves (Agave spp.) on Great St. James Island. Sea¬ man (1973, 1993) stated that a pair nested on Green Cay off St. Croix; the nest and clutch of 13 eggs were discovered on the ground underneath cactus and a bush on 16 September 1956. West Indian Whistling- Ducks are known to nest on offshore cays elsewhere (e.g., Antigua), and it is possible this was a whistling-duck nest (although possibly also a nest of White-cheeked Pin¬ tail, which nests regularly on Green Cay). Seaman (1957b) also stated that West Indi¬ an Whistling-Ducks formerly nested at Southgate Pond, which may have occurred, but documentation is lacking. Re-introduction of West Indian Whistling-Duck would be a high priority for the USVI (cf. , BV1, Lazell 2002) if suitable wetlands exist (cf. St. Kitts and Nevis, where only one wetland contains suitable habitat for this species; Childress and Hughes 2001). Great Pond, where this species used to occur on St. Croix (Seaman 1973) and where mangroves have increased for over the past decade, would probably be the best re-introduction site for this nocturnal species in the USVI. West Indian Whistling- Ducks prefer nesting in cavities, and place¬ ment of artificial cavity structures at Great Pond would be a prerequisite for re-intro¬ duction efforts. Fulvous Whistling-Duck D. bicolor — One bird was present at the VI Agricultural Station Middle Pond on 18 November 2003, during the mid-November rainfall event. Much later, two birds were pres¬ ent at Southgate Pond on 2 Jan¬ uary 2004 (CCD, L. Yntema; hereafter LDY) and again from 25 February through 16 May (SEA 1, Figure 3) and at Krause Lagoon Remnant on 3 January 2004; a single bird was present at Granard South Pond on 10 January 2004, and one adult in full breeding plumage was pres¬ ent at the Buccaneer Hotel golf course link #8 pond (fresh wa¬ ter) on 13-31 July 2004. These non-overlapping occurrences, except for the first and last, are treated herein as one. Thus con¬ sidered, these are the third, fourth, and fifth occurrences (and first verified record) of this species in the USVI, all at St. Croix. The first two occurrences were a flock of nine at Southgate Pond from 31 March to 10 April 1976 (Bond 1977; E. Roebuck, FWS; where¬ abouts of photograph unknown) and short¬ ly thereafter (19 April) a single bird at Pros¬ perity Marsh (FWS, E. Sladen, P. Sladen) and another single bird at Fredensborg Pond on 25 October 1983 (Norton 1984a; FWS, pers. comm.). Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope — One rufous-morph female that associated with a male American Wigeon (A. americana ) at Windsor South Pond on 15 November 2003 represented the first occurrence of the species in the USVI. White-cheeked Pintail — This species breeds at fresh- and saltwater sites, although until recently, only breeding at saltwater sites or on cays had been documented. White-cheeked Pintails nested at or near at least three freshwater sites in the interior of St. Croix during April and May 2002, twice during June 2003, and on at least twelve sites since mid-November 2003, including Southgate Pond, where at least 10 families fledged young. The number of documented breeding sites has approximately quadru¬ pled. New information on the nonbreeding status of White-cheeked Pintails in the USVI was also obtained at freshwater (and saltwater) ponds, where birds had been overlooked (or inadequately documented). As many as 350 birds in a single flock have been present since February 2002 at link #8 pond on the Buccaneer Hotel golf course where pintails are fed, a pro¬ nounced change from the high count of 23 at the Bucca¬ neer Hotel (apparently one pond) in 1972 (Leek 1975). Pintails are also fed at two sites on St. Thomas where birds congregate. Full details on the historical and current status of White-cheeked Pintails in the USVI will be published elsewhere (DBM and F E. Hayes, in prep.). Hooded Merganser L ophodytes cuculla- tus — One female was seen at Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond on 27 January 2004 (DBM, S. Fromer) during the passage of a cold front. Single females were seen later at Fredens¬ borg Pond on 2 March (S. Fromer, LDY), at Coakley Bay Salt Pond on 11-17 March (LDY), at Schuster Lower Pond on 28 April (LDY), and at Southgate Pond from 29 April to 3 July (SEA 2, Figure 4). Treating all these recent reports as one occurrence, this constitutes the fourth occurrence for St. Croix and fifth for the USVI. All birds have been females. Beatty (1945) collected one bird (FMNH 156719) out of a flock of three at Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond on 18 December 1944, W. Gladfelter (pers. comm.) saw an¬ other flock of three at Prosperity Marsh in the late 1970s, and FWS and E. Roebuck saw one bird at Prosperity Marsh on 14 De¬ cember 1981. Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis — This species is an irregular winter visitor in small numbers to St. Croix, but Ruddy Ducks rarely occur here during summer. An adult male in full breeding plumage and an adult female were present at Fredensborg Pond on 24 June 2002 and 1 June 2003, respectively; one female or immature bird was seen at Granard South Pond from 13 July to 2 Sep¬ tember 2002; and again at Granard South Pond, one female and up to three males in full breeding plumage were present from 3 April through 10 July 2004 (female last seen 23 June), but these birds did not breed (SEA 3, Figure 5). These summer birds were probably of the nominate West Indian sub¬ species. Least Grebe Tachybaptus dominicus — One pair nested in the northwestern hills at Creque Reservoir, where they successfully raised two broods from 3 February through 2 June 2002 (Rodrigues 2002; DBM, un- publ. data). Three young of the first brood were first seen on 7 March. Least Grebes Figure 5. This pair of Ruddy Ducks at Granard South Pond on 6 April 2004 was later joined by two adult males, also in full breeding plumage, but these birds did not breed. Photograph by Carol Cramer-Burke. 538 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS were last seen on 26 April (three young, first brood), 23 May (adult pair), and 2 June (two young, second brood). Eggs (second clutch) incubated on a low mound of dead vegetation 2 m from shore on 28 March had hatched by 16 April, when both broods were attended by adults. The pair and sec¬ ond brood presumably left in response to rapidly falling water levels with the onset of a prolonged drought; Creque Reservoir dried out completely by mid-June. This breeding record is the first for St. Croix. Creque Reservoir re-filled during mid-No¬ vember 2003. An adult Least Grebe in breeding plumage was detected on 22 Janu¬ ary 2004 and thereafter through 15 June (with occasional absences) but remained unmated. However, a pair raised four con¬ secutive broods (from four nests) at Wind¬ sor North Pond from February through July 2004; one, four, three, and four young suc¬ cessfully fledged, respectively (LDY, S. Fromer, DBM; SEA 4, Figure 6). This pair also built a fifth nest in late July, in prepara¬ tion for another breeding attempt. This breeding record is the second for St. Croix. Otherwise, Least Grebes have only been reported on St. Croix during Christmas Bird Counts from 1999-2002 (<6 birds; a count of 20 at Fredensborg Pond is erroneous) apart from some recent reports of nonbreed¬ ing birds. This includes one adult seen by LDY away from Creque Reservoir at nearby Annaly Pond on 17-18 December 2000. Other recent reports include single adults in breeding plumage at Hermitage Pond on 5- 14 October 2003 and at Williams Pond on 6-19 January 2004 (LDY, DBM), but these birds were unmated (the latter bird may have moved to nearby Creque Reservoir). At Windsor South Pond, a single immature (probably from the first brood) was seen from 20 May through 23 July 2004, where¬ as one to two adults in nonbreeding plumage were present 14-29 July. Also on 14 July, an immature (probably from the sec¬ ond brood) was at Longford Lower Pond, the only occurrence from outside the north¬ western hills. Reports earlier than 1999 have not been substantiated ( contra Bond 1984, Raffaele 1989; also see Bond 1986), except for one adult ca. 1998-1999 that was retrieved from a small pond at Grove Place ( fide LDY), also outside the northwestern hills. In the northern USVI, Least Grebes re- cently bred at several sites on St. Thomas and St. John (L E. Hayes, unpubl. data). Least Grebes also nested on St. Thomas and St. John more than 60 years ago (Nichols 1943). The recent spate of Least Grebes since 1999 and confirmed nest records on all three large islands suggest that this species is re-occupying breeding range in the USVI (DBM and L E. Hayes, in prep.), as breeding at some sites (e.g., Creque Reser¬ voir on St. Croix) would not have been overlooked in the 1980s. Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps — A nest with five eggs located by DBM (DFW 1, Figure 7) was found placed at the pond surface over a crotch of dead twigs and branches of a tree that had fallen into one of the lower ponds at the Carambola Golf Re¬ sort in mid-December 2002, but this breed¬ ing attempt failed. At the same site, a new nest with four eggs was discovered during May 2003, and four small young with par¬ ents were later seen in June. A new nest with one egg discovered on 1 November 2003, at the same site, failed because of ris¬ ing waters from the mid-November rainfall event. Pied-billed Grebes also nested in the smaller pool at the Buccaneer Hotel Waste- water Treatment Ponds during January 2004, when three of four eggs hatched and the young fledged. These nests with eggs are the first to be documented in the USVI. Oth¬ er nests with eggs and family groups with recently hatched young have been seen on at least 12 other freshwater ponds on St. Croix. The breeding status of the Pied-billed Grebe will be fully documented elsewhere (McNair et al., in prep.). White-tailed Tropicbird Phaethon lep- tums — Two pairs nested in low limestone crevices (1-2 m above sea level) at Canegar- den Cliff, where they successfully raised one young each in 2002. In 2003 and 2004, one pair fledged one young from the same crevice; all birds departed by May (CDL; T. Lance, pers. comm.). Birds may remain into June, and two to four pairs have nested here since before 1980 (Seaman 1980, 1993; Norton 1988a; R. Philibosian, FWS, and T. Lance, unpubl. data), the only breeding site on St. Croix. Seaman (1980, 1993) reported about 10 breeding pairs at Canegarden Cliff before 1980. Imsand and Philibosian (1987) reported this species nesting nearby at Watchho (Vagthus Point) peninsula, but this report has been retracted (R. Phili¬ bosian, pers. comm.). In the nineteenth century, Newton and Newton (1859d) stat¬ ed that they sometimes ob¬ served tropicbirds on St. Croix, probably this species. Brown Pelican Pelecanus occidentalis — The only con¬ firmed breeding site of this federally listed endangered species at St. Croix before 2000 was along the north slope of Buck Island (Seaman 1961, Seaman and Randall 1962, Collazo et al. 1998, 2000, Witmer et al. 2002). More recent data on Buck Is¬ land include seven pairs nest¬ ing in trees on 7 August 2002 (adults incubating eggs; R A. Mayor, DBM), although larger numbers (ca. 35 pairs) have nested here. The National Park Service (NPS) claimed that as many as 100 pairs have recently (April 2001) nested at Buck Island (Witmer et al. 2002), but this figure has never been confirmed, and supporting data are lacking. A set of two eggs was collected on St. Croix as early as 10 March 1924 (whereabouts un¬ known), probably from Buck Island but per¬ haps from Green Cay (see below), because Brown Pelicans do not nest on St. Croix proper ( contra Beatty 1930). On Green Cay, about 50 pairs of Brown Pelicans nested from May through Septem¬ ber 2000 (during successful rat eradication conducted from June 2000 to February 2001; CDL). In the Caribbean, Brown Peli¬ cans are one of only two seabirds that com¬ monly nest on cays occupied by rats (Camp¬ bell 1991). Brown Pelicans again formed a breeding colony on Green Cay in 2003, when censuses were conducted by CDL and DBM from 23 April through September, when ca. 48 pairs nested (DFW 2, Figure 8), and in 2004, when over 60 pairs nested (nest-building began as early as 5 December 2003 and egg-laying began in February and March). Nest success was high in both sea¬ sons (CDL and DBM, in prep.). Reliable information on fledgling success of Brown Pelicans has never been obtained before on either of these two cays off St. Croix except on Green Cay in 2003 and 2004. Long-term monitoring of colonies at Buck Island, Green Cay, and elsewhere in the northern USVI and BVI is strongly rec¬ ommended (Comprehensive Wildlife Con¬ servation Plan; Hayes et al. 2005). American Bittern Botaurus lentiginosus — One bird was flushed at the margin of Schuster Lower Pond on 15 November 2003. This marks the third occurrence for St. Croix and the fifth in the USVI. The first bird (adult female) on St. Croix was collect¬ ed by Seaman (1954b; USNM 599682) at Anguilla on 7 October 1953, and S. Fromer flushed another bird from the margin of the upper pond at the Carambola Golf Resort Figure 6. This adult Least Grebe (with its mate) successfully raised four consecu¬ tive broods at Windsor North Pond from January through July 2004. The pair was building a nest in preparation for their fifth breeding attempt on 24 July (here). Photograph by Carol Cramer-Burke. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 539 Figure 7. This Pied-billed Grebe nest was built over a foundation of dead twigs and small branches of a tree that had fallen into one of the lower ponds at the Carambola Golf Resort. The eggs in the nest are difficult to see in this photograph (20 December 2002). Photograph by W. Coles. on 17 December 2000. Great Blue Heron Anlea herodias — Previously undoc¬ umented at St. Croix was one pair that nested with Great Egrets (A. alba) (and Black- crowned Night-Herons [ Nyc - ticorax nycticorax ]) at UV1 Wetlands Reserve on 28 April 1985, when a nest in a Black Mangrove ( Avicennia germinans) contained three downy young (FWS). Also, two adult Great Blue Herons were on an empty nest at Green Cay on 2 June 1985, from which one juvenile with pinfeathers on its head seen on 11 May at nearby South- gate Pond may have been raised (FWS). The only doc¬ umented historical breeding record was at Mangrove Fagoon on St. Thomas, where two pairs nested, low in mangroves, near a single pair of Great Egrets (Nichols 1943). One Great Blue Heron clutch was collected on 21 April 2005 (WFVZ 155641). Great Egret — This species is not known to breed in the USVI except on St. Croix (Raffaele 1989; DFW, unpubl. data), other than one pair that purportedly nested at Mangrove Fagoon, St. Thomas, where three large young were seen in a nest on 21 April (year not given; Nichols 1943). This record was not verified, and the nest, among man¬ grove roots, was only 75 cm above water, which would be unusual. Feck and Norton (1991) stated Great Egrets had nested on St. John, but we can find no basis for this state¬ ment. All breeding records have heretofore been from coastal environments, including the only upland nest records. A single pair (with young) nested in a large Tamarind (Tamarindus indica ) on the berm of Great Pond on St. Croix on 26 July 1983 (FWS). At least two pairs again nested in this tree on 30 April 1988. Unusual, therefore, was a colony of five pairs on nests, again in a large Tamarind, but in the interior at Castle Burk Pond from March through May 2004. This constitutes the first confirmation of breed¬ ing at a freshwater wetland in the USVI. Tricolored Heron Egretta tricolor — Two pairs nested during April and May 2002 at a mixed heronry in a large isolated clump of Red Mangroves ( Rhizophora mangle ) 5 m tall along Alucroix Channel, St. Croix. Both nests were 2-3 m above water; the one nest examined on 21 April contained two eggs. At least one pair again nested at this colony site during April and May 2004. At Great Pond, three adults were present (two build¬ ing a nest) at a mixed heronry in Red Man¬ groves 8 m tall on 20 March 2004, and on 27 March one adult was feeding three large fledglings in another nest (FDY, DBM, CCB). The only other confirmed breeding records on St. Croix, in May-June 1985 and on 15 June 1988, consisted of single pairs at mixed heronries that nested in xeric wood¬ land on Green Cay and in a Red Mangrove at Southgate Pond, respectively (FWS, un¬ publ. data). The only confirmed breeding record in the northern USVI was a nest with three eggs 1.2 m high in a small mangrove on Steven Cay, off St. John on 21 April (Nichols 1943; WFVZ 155647, year un¬ known). The first Tricolored Heron in the USVI was observed by Danforth (1930) at Ben¬ ders (= Benner) Fagoon, St. Thomas on 4 January 1927. Seaman (1993) observed Tri¬ colored Herons only three times on St. Croix, where the first bird was collected at Krause Fagoon in 1941 on 20 (not 21) Sep¬ tember (Beatty 1944; FMNH 156303, adult male). Tricolored Herons have remained generally scarce in the northern USVI but are uncommon on St. Croix. Nonetheless, breeding records remain scarce even here. Green Heron Butorides virescens — Two to three pairs nested aseasonally (December 2003 through February 2004) at Southgate Pond, probably an indirect response to the mid-November 2003 rainfall event. The five active nests (eggs and young) were built in White Mangroves ( Laguncularia racemosa) in the same area used by breeding coots Fulica spp. At Manning Bay Fagoon, a single fresh Green Heron egg was found floating on the water among Red Mangroves on 10 January 2004, and at least 12 “drop” eggs were seen along the western shoreline of Great Pond during the latter half of March (FDY, DBM, CCB). Black-crowned Night-Heron — The first confirmed breeding records in the USVI oc¬ curred in 1982, when FWS discovered 13 nests in White Mangroves (7-10 m tall) at the southeastern corner of Southgate Pond on 24 April. Black-crowned Night-Herons nested in the same White Mangroves in 1984 and 1988, when 10 nests (3-7 m high) were active on 1 1 March and 30 April, respectively. Some 22 nests were built in 1984 (by 18 April, when some nests had eggs, although some young had already fledged from oth¬ er nests; Norton 1984b, Sladen 1992, FWS, unpubl. data). Other reports of breed¬ ing on St. Croix at the former Krause Fagoon and the UVI Wetlands Reserve (Scott and Carbonell 1986, Rodrigues 2002) have not been substan¬ tiated (although at the latter site on 28 April 1985, adults were on two nests that lacked eggs or young). The only documented breeding record of Black- crowned Night-Herons on St. Croix since the 1980s was a colony of about 15 pairs (with small numbers of Great Egrets) at a small mixed mangrove swamp in Estate Fongford along the south shore at Halfpen¬ ny Bay in 2003. Many of the 12 large Black- crowned Night-Heron young seen at some of the low, well-hidden nests were about to fledge in late March; all but about three young had fledged by early May. Twenty years earlier, on 26 March 1983, 25 birds roosted at this site, although breeding was not documented (FWS). Black-crowned Night-Herons remain scarce in the northern USVI, although the first confirmed breeding record recently oc¬ curred at St. Thomas (Hayes et al., in prep.). Black-crowned Night-Herons have nested in freshwater swamps on Puerto Rico (Raffaele 1989) but not in the USVI. Nonetheless, on St. Croix, Black-crowned Night-Herons oc¬ cur in greater numbers and at proportional¬ ly more freshwater than saltwater sites com¬ pared to Yellow-crowned Night-Herons ( Nyctanassa violacea). American Flamingo Phoenicopterus ruber — Europeans are responsible for the extirpation of this species from St. Croix and possibly from St. Thomas (Newton and Newton 1859d, Wetmore 1918), although substantial numbers may have remained on St. Croix into the early nineteenth century, as they did in the BV1 (mainly at Anegada Island; Fazell 2001, 2002). Three of only four reports of flamingos in the USVI since the 1960s have been one bird at Krause Fa¬ goon Remnant on 3 November 1967 (Sea¬ man 1973, 1993), three birds at West End Salt Pond in 1995 (M. Evans), and an im¬ mature at Ruth Island on 25 September 1996 (later in October at West End Salt 540 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Pond; W. C. Knowles and M. Evans, unpubl. data). The earliest bird was probably an es¬ caped captive flamingo from St. Thomas; the provenance of the later birds was un¬ known. In addition, a flock of 6-12 Ameri¬ can Flamingos that included some imma- tures was present at the West End Salt Pond from December 1992 to June 1993 (M. Evans, L. E. Yntetna). These birds may have wandered from Anegada Island, where they were successfully re-introduced in 1992 (flamingos were once abundant on Anegada Island; Lazell 2001, 2002), or from else¬ where such as Hispaniola. An earlier (1987) trial restoration effort to Guana Island, BVI failed, but efforts are underway again to re¬ introduce the species there (Lazell 1987, 1996, 2001, 2002). Osprey Pandion haliaetus — Although the West Indian race ridgwayi has not bred in the Virgin Islands (Wiley 1984, Norton 1989b, contra Nellis 1979), a few immatures (including some of the continental race car- olinensis\ Leek 1975, Wiley 1984, Norton 1989c) may remain through the summer (e.g., at Manning Bay from 2002-2004). A similar situation has prevailed in Puerto Rico, where since the 1990s several pairs (including a pair on 30 March 2003; R. Ro¬ driguez, pers. comm.) have built nests but not laid eggs (J. A. Colon and A. G. Tossas, pers. comm.). An ill Osprey at Fortuna Bay, St. Thomas on 15 September 2002 (found dead on 17 September) had been banded as a nestling near Barnegat Light, New Jersey, on 2 July 1994. American Coot F. americana and Caribbean Coot F. caribaea — A colony of seven to eight pairs of both species nested in manglars of White Mangroves from winter 2003 through spring 2004 at Southgate Pond, their most suitable breeding site in the USVI. One to three pairs of coots have also nested on St. Croix at five freshwater farm ponds since 2002. Full details will be pre¬ sented elsewhere on the historical and cur¬ rent breeding status of coots in the USVI (and eastern Caribbean; McNair 2006) as well as on their breeding ecology at South- gate Pond (McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press). American Golden-Plover Pluvialis domini- ca — Late during autumn migration was one juvenile resting on the beach berm at Man¬ ning Bay on 14 December 2002. One bird was also seen on St. Croix in early December 1984 (Norton 1985a), and one or two birds each were seen in late December 1985 on the St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John Christ¬ mas Bird Counts. Beatty (1930) stated that he shot a male from a flock of three at Krause Lagoon on 29 December 1921, but we have been unable to locate any specimen. Ameri¬ can Golden-Plovers occur regularly though rarely in eastern North America during De¬ cember (Paulson and Lee 1992). VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBE Snowy Plover C. alexandrinus — One ju¬ venile was loosely associated with other shorebirds at a small roost on the beach be¬ side a temporary tidal pool at Coakley Bay, St. Croix on 14 October 2002. Single Snowy Plovers on St. Croix were detected eight times between February 1989 and Septem¬ ber 1996, although published details are lacking. Gorman and Haig (2002) also cite other occurrences in the USVI, where Snowy Plover is not a resident species and has never been proven to breed. It breeds nearby in BVI on Anegada Island, which has extensive, wide sandy beaches (Gorman and Haig 2002). The one purported historic egg set in the USVI, at St. Croix (Beatty 1930, Seaman 1993, Gorman and Haig 2002), was probably that of a Wilson’s Plover, although Snowy Plovers may have nested on saline flats in Jerusalem (part of the former Krause Lagoon). Wilson’s Plover — Forty to forty- five pairs breed at ca. 15 sites at which over 35 nests have been discovered. The most suitable site is Great Pond, where up to 10 pairs occur and where nonbreeding numbers are high¬ est year-round. Full details will be pub¬ lished elsewhere (DBM, in prep.). Unusual at this latitude was a nest with four eggs at Krause Lagoon Remnant from 14 June through 3 July 2004. American Oystercatcher Haematopus pal- liatus — Oystercatchers nest annually off St. Croix on two nearshore cays (Green Cay, Ruth Island), where they have been con¬ firmed breeding (Yntenra and Sladen 1987; FWS, unpubl. data). At Ruth Island, two pairs nested during May 2002 (when one pair was seen with one dependent juvenile), and one pair each nested during spring 2003 and 2004. At Green Cay, one pair nested during April and May 2002 through 2004 Figure 8. Two healthy nestling Brown Pelicans were still not yet large enough to stray from their nest at Green Cay (11 May 2003). Photograph by T. Lance. 4 (clutch of two eggs each year and one young fledged in 2003; CDL, DBM). One to occa¬ sionally two pairs of oystercatchers have nested along the northeastern and north¬ western shores of Green Cay for over 20 years (FWS, CDL, and DBM, unpubl. data). Along the rocky exposed northwestern shore of St. Croix, A. Mackay and J. Rebholz discovered a pair at a nest with three eggs at a small cove (in Sweet Bottom Estate) just west of Davis Bay on 17 April 1996. Anoth¬ er pair at a nest with one egg was discovered on 7 May 2003 at Judith Fancy (just outside Salt River Bay), but this nest failed. These two reports are the first confirmation of breeding oystercatchers on St. Croix proper. Black-necked Stilt — The first confirmed freshwater breeding records in the USVI oc¬ curred on St. Croix in short grass at the margin of Granard South Pond (nest with one egg discovered on 4 May, but nest failed), at the golf course link #9 pond of the Buccaneer Hotel (pair with three downy young ca. four days old on 11 May), and at Teagues Bay Pond (pair with one pre¬ fledged young on 14 June) in 2004. Black¬ necked Stilts nest at many sites in saltwater wetlands. Willet Catoptrophorus semipalmatus — This species used to nest at Krause Lagoon, where Beatty (1943) first confirmed breed¬ ing on 11-21 May 1942 (downy chicks two days old collected on 1 June 1942; FMNH 415953-415954). The last nests on St. Croix proper were discovered by FWS during 1985-1986. At Krause Lagoon Remnant (in a large open area between Hovensa and Alu- croix Channel), one nest contained 4 eggs on 18 May 1985, and the same nest had one chick and three eggs (two pipped, one crushed) on 26 May; three territorial adults were at this location during mid-June 2004. At the former Alumina plant (now St. Croix Renaissance Park) from 5-9 May 1986, one nest with four eggs was located between the main plant and the large settling pond. Two pairs nested at Hovensa in 1986. One pair with two chicks 4-6 days old were seen in the southeastern corner near the sludge farms on 9 June. Another nest with four eggs was found nearby, inside a machinery and equipment scrap yard south of the sludge farms on 1 1 June; three chicks (prob¬ ably from this nest) 3-4 days old were seen there on 30 June. Ruth Island, where nests and young have been found during May and early June (Yntema and Sladen 1987), is the only current documented breeding site in the USVI. Two pairs of Willets nested on Ruth Island in 2002, when on 29 May two nests with three and four eggs, respectively, were found by DBM on the sandy beach near the northern tip and at the southern tip near the top of mounded coral rubble (DFW 3-4, Figures 9a, 9b). In 2003, one nest with two eggs was again found on the beach near 541 Figures 9a, 9b. One of two Willet nests found on Ruth Island on 29 May 2003 contained four eggs and was placed near the top of a scantily vegetated coral rubble dome. The nest and clutch are difficult to see in the middle of the barren habitat (Figure 9a), easy to see from close up (Figure 9b). Photographs by \N. Coles. the northern tip and was active from 1-27 May. In 2004, CDL found one nest with four eggs on 23 May, again near the top of the coral dome at the southern tip, but no eggs or adults were pres¬ ent on 29 May. Willets, probably local breeding birds, are most fre¬ quently seen foraging east or west of Ruth Island at six other sites along the south shore from West End Salt Pond to Great Pond. Beatty (1943) stated that Wil¬ lets were regular winter visitors to St. Croix, and he collected a fe¬ male Western Willet (subspecies inomatus ) at Hammer Pond (a brackish salt pond severely al¬ tered by development on the eastern side of Salt River Bay at Judith Fancy) on 24 October 1933 (Danforth 1935; USNM 354058). Seaman (1973), in ad¬ dition to Krause Lagoon, also stated that Willets were found most regularly at Judith Fancy, although we do not know if they ever nested there. FWS (unpubl. data) found that 2-8 Willets reg¬ ularly occurred year-round on St. Croix, most frequently with Whimbrels ( Numenius phaeopus ) at Great Pond during winter (al¬ though only reported on 4 out of 21 years on St. Croix Christmas Bird Counts). Currently, Willets have mainly been seen on St. Croix during the breeding season from 14 April through July, al¬ though single birds were also seen during autumn 2003 at Great Pond (23 October) and Manning Bay Lagoon (4-11 November). Whimbrel — Unlike in the northern USV1 (Hayes et al., in prep.), small numbers of Whimbrels are regularly reported in man¬ grove lagoons on St. Croix (and less fre¬ quently on the beach or on open headlands), especially at Great Pond (Sladen 1992). Numbers have declined (maximum of seven birds), probably because Red and Black Mangroves have rapidly increased at Great Pond and less open mudflat is available. Marbled Godwit Limosafedoa — One bird at the large cooling pond of St. Croix Re¬ naissance Park on 25 September 2002 rep¬ resented the fourth occurrence on St. Croix (and the USVI). Earlier autumnal vagrants were two birds at Krause Lagoon on 11 No¬ vember 1921 (one shot, whereabouts un¬ known; Beatty 1930), one female collected on 9 October 1939 (FMNH 127032), and one individual at Long Point from 14 Sep¬ tember through 5 October 1988 (Norton 1989a; FWS). Ruddy Turnstone — At least seven birds originally captured, banded, and color- marked during migration in late spring (May to early June) 1999-2002 at Delaware Bay, Delaware (one bird) and New Jersey (six birds; Kathy Clark, Endangered & Nongame Species Program, New Jersey Di¬ vision of Fish & Wildlife, pers. comm.) were resighted at four sites on St. Croix (Frederiksted Harbor, Batist Point, Green Cay, Protestant Cay) from January 2002 through March 2004. From 7 January through 9 May 2002, up to three birds in the same flock were ob¬ served by F E. Hayes and DBM at Frederik¬ sted Harbor. These birds fed among a flock of as many as 50 turnstones along the wa¬ terfront on an exposed limestone shelf (less frequently on the sandy beach) and oppor¬ tunistically on fish and other food left by humans on the pier as well as on food left on the grassy lawn of a park. Turnstones also roosted on new and abandoned pier pil¬ ings. DBM also saw one other marked bird on 29 March along the south-central coast at Batist Point, where it was roosting with six other turn- stones on tidal wrack. Two more marked Ruddy Turn¬ stones were seen the following winter at Protestant Cay, one from 10 October 2002 through 5 March 2003 (roosting at the old east dock with 20 other turnstones on the latter date), the other bird on 10 January and 26 February 2003. One of the three birds at Frederiksted Harbor and the bird at Batist Point in 2002, from different cohorts in 2001 (9-18 May and 29 May through 4 June, respec¬ tively), may have returned to St. Croix in 2003-2004, although individuals from the same co¬ hort could not be distinguished from each other. One tumstone in a flock of eight was seen by DBM and CDL foraging in tidal wrack on the windward side of Green Cay on 23 April 2003, and two more birds, in full breeding plumage and basic plumage, respectively, were seen at Frederiksted Harbor on 1 June and 11 November 2003. Thus, six of the minimum num¬ ber of seven marked Ruddy Turnstones remained for long periods at two of the most fa¬ vorable sites on St. Croix (Fred¬ eriksted Harbor, Protestant Cay), where both anthro¬ pogenic and natural habitats (rocky coasts, sandy beaches) provided foraging and roosting sites, including an apparent plentiful supply of food from human refuse. In the nearby Lesser Antilles, single Ruddy Turnstones banded in New Jersey and Virginia have been recovered in Martinique during Au¬ gust and September (Buden and Wetenkamp 1993). Red Knot Calidris canutus — Most knots in the USVI have been reported at Krause Lagoon Remnant, or before then at Krause Lagoon (Scott and Carbonell 1986, Sladen 1988; FWS, unpubl. data). This included the first occurrence on 11 December 1921 (Beatty 1930) and the only known speci¬ mens (male, female) collected in the USVI on 19 August 1939 (FMNH 158094- 158095). Knots were not recorded in the USVI during spring migration until the 1980s, which include our only June reports on 17-29 June 1982 and 9-30 June 1986 (Krause Lagoon Remnant: the large cooling pond of St. Croix Renaissance Park; Norton 1982, 1986c; Sladen 1988; FWS). Still scarce in spring, one bird was seen on 4 May 2002 by DBM and A. S. L. Rodrigues, this 542 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS time at nearby Manning Bay Lagoon, where other Red Knots have been seen recently. White-rumped Sandpiper C.fuscicollis — One adult in partial breeding plumage was observed by DBM and CDL with other small sandpipers at Great Pond on 24 April 2003. The only other spring reports in the USVI (also at St. Croix) were a flock of 12 at Krause Lagoon on 5 June 1933, five birds at Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge sand flats on 13 May 1982, one each in 1983 at the Alumina plant (now St. Croix Renais¬ sance Park) and Great Pond on 21 and 28 April, respectively, and one bird at Sandy Point on 8 May 1986 (Beatty 1936, Norton 1986b; FWS). The report of five birds at Great Pond on 5 April 2002 (Rodrigues 2002) was not substantiated. Reports of White-rumped Sandpipers in the USVI on Christmas Bird Counts have also not been substantiated. Pectoral Sandpiper C. melanotos — One bird was roosting with other shorebirds on 14 April 2003 at Manning Bay Lagoon. The only other spring reports in the USVI (also at St. Croix) were at Southgate Pond, one bird on 2 May 1982 and a flock of 10 on 6 May 1984 (FWS; not 12 May, contra Norton 1984b). The report of one bird at St. Croix on a Christmas Bird Count was not sub¬ stantiated. Ruff Philomachus pugnax — One male, mainly in nonbreeding plumage and loosely associating with Greater ( Tringa melanoleu- ca ) and Lesser ( T.flavipes ) Yellowlegs, was present on 5-6 April 2004 at the largest set¬ tling pond (for red bauxite tailings) on St. Croix Renaissance Park next to the An¬ guilla Landfill. This is the second report for St. Croix. The first was one bird in flooded fields at Prosperity on 9 October 1985 (Norton 1986a; FWS). Raffaele (1989) stated one other report exists for St. Croix, but it has not been located. The species has also been reported once during autumn at St. Thomas (Norton 1981; Leek and Norton 1991). Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor — One adult of this rare species on St. Croix (Sladen 1988) was seen in 2002 at Great Pond on 4 August, our earliest re¬ port during autumn migration. Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis — Up to two first-year birds were present at Frederiksted Harbor from 1-21 December 2003 and later at St. Croix Renaissance Park beside the Anguilla Landfill on 13 January 2004. Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus — An adult was noted with several Laughing Gulls (L. atricilla ) in Chris- tiansted Harbor on 4 August 2003 (C. Faanes). The only other report of this species on St. Croix (and the USVI) was also an adult at Sandy Point on 8 May 1986 (not 8 March, Leek and Norton 1991; FWS, pers. comm.). Gull-billed Tern Sterna nilotica — One to two adults associated with other species of terns in 2002 at several sites in the West End (especially the salt pond, a favorite site; Leek 1975) from 7-25 May and at the large cooling pond of St. Croix Renaissance Park from 15 July through 25 September. Gull¬ billed Terns are a regular though generally scarce vernal and autumnal migrant on St. Croix, where the first reports occurred in 1933-1934 (Beatty 1936), not 1954 ( contra Leek 1975). The only specimens from St. Croix were collected in 1940-1942 (April- June; August-September; FMNH 127861- 127862, 158803-158809; UMMZ 124893), which may have been pre- and post-breed¬ ing birds from the former colony at Cock¬ roach Cay off St. Thomas (Beatty 1941, Nichols 1943). Roseate Tern S. dougallii — This tern was only seen during autumnal migration, flying east between Green Cay and the mainland (one bird, 19 August; flock of seven, 30 Au¬ gust) or just north of Green Cay (flock of 70, 27 September) in 2002. The species is rarely reported from St. Croix, where it was not reliably documented (Newton [1859b] presumably misidentified this species) until 1972 (Leek 1975), contra Beatty (1930) and Nisbet (1980), even though Roseate Terns are common to abundant summer residents in the northern USVI. Common Tern Sterna hirundo — One Figures 10a, 10b. This single Antillean Nighthawk egg (repre¬ senting a complete clutch) was laid on caliche rubble in an aban¬ doned industrial area at the St. Croix Renaissance Park (Figure 10a). A young chick was present seven days later on 22 July 2002 (Figure 10b). Photographs byM. A. Mahoney. adult in breeding plumage roosted with other terns at Ruth Island on 29 May 2002. The only other spring occurrences on St. Croix were birds associating with other terns at the West End Salt Pond, from mid- June through 7 July 1983 (maximum of 13 Common Terns, including eight adults in breeding plumage) and two pairs from 7 June through 12 July 1985 (Norton 1983, 1985b; FWS). Birds reported at St. Croix on three Christmas Bird Counts were not sub¬ stantiated. Bridled Tern Sterna anaethetus — Three adults were seen by DBM and R A. Mayor in the vicinity of several other seabirds on 21 May 2003 at the FAD A buoy (1200 m wa¬ ter depth), 5.5 km northwest of Buck Is¬ land, St. Croix. This report is one of few of this pelagic species off St. Croix (FWS, un- publ. data), where it has undoubtedly been overlooked. The only specimen known to us is a juvenile collected off St. Croix on 24 September 1944 (USNM 121845). Sooty Tern Sterna fuscata — The only ex¬ tant specimen (juvenile) collected on St. Croix was in the interior at Estate Granard on 14 August 1986 (UMMZ 228335), al¬ though Beatty (1930) stated he shot a male (whereabouts unknown) on the rocks along the coast at Hams Bluff on 20 March 1924. An injured bird was also given to the St. Croix Animal Shelter on 23 September 1986 (whereabouts unknown; FWS). Brown Noddy Anous stolidus — An adult with an injured wing that landed in a boat just off Buck Island, St. Croix on 2 May 2003 was retrieved by NPS personnel and eventually sent to rehabilitator T. Lance, but the bird never recovered from its in¬ juries and died in July (specimen not saved). The only specimens were collect¬ ed off St. Croix from July through October in 1939-1940 (FMNH 158950-158952). Thus, the bird photographed on a seawall near Frederiksted during May 1973 (Leek 1975) was not the first record for St. Croix. The only other reports of Brown Noddy for St. Croix are several in the 1980s (FWS, unpubl. data). White-crowned Pigeon Patagioenas leucocephala — The only documented breeding site on St. Croix after Hurricane Hugo in 1989 was Ruth Island (Knowles 1997, 1999; McNair, in prep.). This species continues to breed there, but pop¬ ulation surveys in 2002-2004 also docu¬ mented ca. 15 other breeding sites in man¬ grove and littoral habitats on St. Croix, including all four cays. All sites contain low numbers of breeding pairs (<12 pairs/site), except at Ruth Island and Great Pond, where an estimated 40-100 pairs nest at each of these two sites. White-crowned Pigeons typically breed from April through September (when adults with two recently fledged young on VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 543 Green Cay were observed as late as the 27th), but J. W. Wiley, CDL, and DBM also discovered three active nests on Green Cay in January (2003), when breeding is or¬ dinarily rare. Following the mid-November rainfall event of 2003, White-crowned Pi¬ geons nested during winter in mangrove wetlands and littoral woodland on at least four sites (Buccaneer Flotel, Great Pond, Sugar Bay, UV1 Wetlands Reserve). Full details of recent population surveys on St. Croix will be pub¬ lished elsewhere (DBM, in prep.). In the northern USVI, breeding was confirmed in 2003 at Mangrove Lagoon, St. Thomas (Hayes et al., in prep.). White-winged Dove Zenaida asiatica — Apart from a small population introduced in 1965 that did not persist (Seaman 1963, 1964, 1965), this species was formerly a ca¬ sual spring and summer vagrant on St. Croix (Bond 1960, Norton 1989c). White¬ winged Doves have recently established themselves there as a permanent resident (since 1999; L. LeBlanc, unpubl. data). However, birds are generally less numerous during winter (suggesting continued move¬ ment between the USVI and Puerto Rico, which is the presumed origin of these birds and where this species has greatly increased; Rivera-Milan 2001, pers. comm.). White¬ winged Doves have been seen on St. Croix on at least 23 sites since 2002, all sites but one (Carambola Golf Resort) in the dry zone (the same habitat preference the species has in Puerto Rico). White-winged Doves have not nested at all sites. Breeding is concentrated at Ruth Island (14 nests dis¬ covered in 2003) and several sites in the East End (breeding confirmation includes one bird that had just fledged at the St. Croix Yacht Club). The number of adult birds on St. Croix during the main breeding season (March-July) is small (ca. 75-100), and although increasing, White-winged Doves occupy rather restricted habitat, where they may remain local and uncom¬ mon. Birds have also occupied the northern USVI (Hayes et al., in prep.). Full details on their rapid range expansion throughout the USVI will be published elsewhere (DBM and F E. Hayes, in prep.). Bridled Quail-Dove G cotry gon mystacea — This West Indian endemic was thought to have possibly been extirpated from St. Croix following Hurricane Hugo (Wauer and Wunderle 1992), but Bridled Quail-Doves have persisted or new birds have re-established a small population in guts of the northwestern hills (Rodrigues 2002; DBM, unpubl. data). This columbid is closely associated with dense understory of moist, closed forest along guts where per¬ manent or temporary streams used to flow more frequently. Bri¬ dled Quail-Doves will always be generally un¬ common because of their exacting habitat requirements, but im¬ proved watershed management and re¬ growth and expansion of forests will increase their prospects. Singing males (and other birds) were present from 2002-2004 in at least 18 sites, with a maximum of six males per site (Mt. Eagle north slope). The most accessible location, with about five pairs, is along Creque Dam Road, where the pair at the lowest elevation (ca. 100 m) was tend¬ ing one fledgling (that had just left the nest and was almost captured) on 2 June 2002. The apparent southwestern limit of their range in the northwestern hills is a gut alongside Mahogany Road, which contains a temporary pool next to a USGS gage sta¬ tion at Estate Jolly Hill. This area contains two pairs of quail-doves (including adults with two juveniles on 3 April 2003; LDY, unpubl. data), and the temporary pool fre¬ quently provides them with fresh water. One adult was poached there in April 2002. Nearby in Prosperity, one bird was shot in the late 1960s, an adult male was collected at Prosperity Garden on 19 May 1938 (USNM 354229), and another bird was seen at Prosperity in 1926 (Danforth 1930, Seaman 1968). It is uncertain if Bridled Quail-Doves still occur at Prosperity. The only extralimital site for Bridled Quail- Doves ever reported on St. Croix was east of Christiansted at Estate Mount Welcome about 0.6 km east of Spring Gut Road, where R. O’Reilly heard two birds singing ca. 1995. Bridled Quail-Doves used to be not un¬ common in the western part of St. Thomas (Nichols 1943), where the one egg collected by Nichols is now in the WFVZ (155672). This species remained locally fairly common on St. Thomas until at least the mid- to late 1950s (Seaman 1955, 1957a). Recent reports have been scarce. Three birds were detected in 2003 by E E. Hayes at Perseverance Bay during January and February, while one bird was heard singing in a ravine above Char¬ lotte Amalie by DBM on 5 February. Yellow-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus ameri- canus — This species is generally uncommon during autumn migration in the USVI, in¬ cluding St. Croix (McNair et al. 2002). Thus, somewhat unusual was a modest “fallout” of 12 birds (10 at the St. Croix Yacht Club) seen by DBM and E E. Hayes on 24 October 2002. Mangrove Cuckoo Coccyzus minor — This cuckoo is generally much less numerous in the USVI in mangrove wetlands than in xeric forest and thorn scrub, as well as moist forest (Robertson 1962, Askins and Ewert 1991; DBM, pers. obs.). At St. Croix, Wauer and Sladen (1992) reported Mangrove Cuckoos in mangrove swamp forest at Sug¬ ar Bay in 1987, and remnant swamp forest there after Hurricane Hugo still supports some birds (up to three singing during sur¬ veys from October 2002 through April 2003). Mangrove Cuckoos breed in man¬ grove wetlands during the winter (e.g., in January at Anegada Island, BVI; LaBastille and Richmond 1973), so observers should be alert to document breeding during this period (Beatty 1930). The only other records of birds in mangrove wetlands on St. Croix from 2002 through July 2004 were single singing males at Coakley Bay Salt Pond (19 September 2002) and St. Croix Renaissance Park (27 May 2003) and one bird at Prosperity Marsh on 10 April 2004 (LDY). While Hurricane Hugo in September 1989 decimated mangrove forest on St. Croix (much less damage in the northern USVI), Mangrove Cuckoos may always have been generally scarce in mangrove wetlands except mature swamp forest (e.g., they are currently absent from immature mangrove wetlands at Great Pond, which has recently become one of the largest mangrove tracts on St. Croix). Antillean Nighthawk Chordeiles gund- lachii — The first confirmed nest records on St. Croix, where Antillean Nighthawks are near the eastern limit of their breeding range (at Anegada Island, BVI and recently at Guadeloupe; A. Levesque, pers. comm.), were discovered at St. Croix Renaissance Park. Females were flushed off three clutch¬ es of one egg each placed on caliche rubble in an abandoned industrial area between the main plant and largest cooling pond. The first nest, co-discovered by R E Mahoney on 15 July 2002, was photographed by M. A. Mahoney (DFW 5-6, Figures 10a,b). Two nests 400 m apart in 2003 were active from 23-27 May and 23 May to 9 June, respec¬ tively; the latter nest may have been suc¬ cessful. In 2004, two downy chicks from one nest were discovered by CDL and J. Wakefield in the same area at St. Croix Re¬ naissance Park on 24-27 May. At a second site (Hovensa), they discovered three nests. The first nest, which was later abandoned, had one egg on 30 May. Two downy chicks were observed at the second nest in June. The third nest had two young fledge in late June. All nests were in tank fields in the vicinity of storage tanks. Antillean Nighthawk is a locally uncommon summer resident from mid-April to mid-August on the south side from the West End eastward to Estate Canegarden, and its status appears Figure 1 1 . This probable first-year Connecticut Warbler landed on the deck of a boat halfway between Virgin Gorda, BVI, and St. Croix, USVI on 8 October 2002. Photograph by G. Kunkel. 544 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS to have been stable since ca. 1985, when the first birds (three individuals) discovered since before 1970 ( fide G. A. Seaman) were seen at Golden Grove on 14 July 1985 (FWS). Maximum counts have been 10 birds during June 1988 and on 4 August 1986 (Norton 1987a, 1988b) and nine birds at La Reine on 20 August 2002, the last date birds have been heard calling. Recent reports on St. Thomas (no confirmed nest records) are summarized by Hayes et al. (in prep.). The clutch of two eggs collected on St. Thomas (Nichols 1943) is now in the collections of WFVZ (155634). Nighthawk sp. Chordeiles sp. — One silent bird was flying along the waterfront at Fred- eriksted on 3 November 2003, the latest oc¬ currence in the USVI. Black Swift Cypseloides niger — One bird was observed on 12 August 2002, flying northward above a pasture at Prosperity. The only previous reports for the USVI were sin¬ gle birds at Frederiksted on 23 July 1933, at Sprat Hall Beach on 23 March 1983, at Sprat Hall Estate on 6 June 1985, and on 9 May 1990 (Danforth 1934, Norton 1990; FWS). Several of these birds were with Caribbean Martins ( Progne dominicensis). Purple-throated Carib Eulampis jugularis — One bird was seen foraging in a bougainvillia along the waterfront at Fred¬ eriksted on 29 July 2002 by CDL, A. Mack- ay, and three other individuals. The only other occurrence on St. Croix was one pho¬ tographed by FWS at a feeder in Bellevue Es¬ tate on 3 May 1987, although the photo¬ graphs are not diagnostic (Norton 1987b; DBM, pers. exam.). The long, decurved bill suggests the bird was a female. The only oth¬ er occurrence in the USVI, also at a feeder during spring 1987, was at St. John in Cruz Bay on 30 March (Norton and Hobbs 1987; not 17 April, contra Raffaele 1989). This bird was also probably a female. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sphyrapicus varius — One individual was seen foraging in Black Mangroves on 13 December 2002 at Sugar Bay, St. Croix. On St. Thomas, one im¬ mature female was seen by B. Hayes and E E. Hayes at Turpentine Run from 28 February through 8 March 2003. These two reports are the only documented occurrences of the rare Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in the USVI since the 1980s, although the first bird was reported long ago at St. Croix (Newton 1860), and four other birds were collected on St. Croix and St. Thomas from 1859 through 1866 (UMZC 26/Pic/33/b/13, 26/Pic/33/b/17; two specimens in ZMUC). Most birds reported in the USVI, when dis¬ tinguishable, have been immatures, usually females (Newton 1860, Beatty 1930, Seaman 1954a; specimen data). Caribbean Martin — This martin oc¬ curred at ten salt- and freshwater sites from 10 February through 27 September (2002-2004) but regularly only at three of these (Frederiksted Harbor, Fredensborg Pond, Hovensa). The largest daily numbers were noted at Fredensborg Pond and the Carambola Golf Resort during mid-April through mid-May (18 birds) and late August through early September (23 birds), which presumably included vernal and autumnal migrants. Autumnal timing coincided with the departure of four birds (including one female) from the Frederiksted Pier after 27 August (2002). Three pairs nested there in lateral brackets affixed to the tip of the pier from May through July, 2002 through 2004 (and earlier; Raffaele 1989, based on FWS, unpubl. data). At least two pairs nested at Hovensa on the east side of the refinery in 2004 (5-10 birds seen regularly), where CDL observed them from May through July in pipes at openings to fire water lines on top of two tanks of two emergency process units which have not been used for several years (W. Bradford, pers. comm.; CDL), Two pre-fledged chicks at one nest were ob¬ served in July. Reports of Caribbean Martins at St. Croix on three Christmas Bird Counts have not been substantiated. Caribbean Martins also nested at the tip of the Frederiksted Pier (one or 2 pairs) and at Hovensa (6-8 pairs) in the 1980s. At Hoven¬ sa (e.g., May-June of 1985-1986), birds nest¬ ed in drain pipes of oil barges along the dock, in lighters, and in other structures (FWS, unpubl. data). Birds also nested at two other locations the latter half of the twentieth century, in 1975-1976 along the northwestern coast in caves under low-lying rock above the beach just west of Davis Bay (4-6 pairs; FWS) and from 1981-1983 at Canegarden Cliff (3-5 pairs), where as many as five birds have been seen since 2002 (CDL). Martins also may have nested in mooring bits (of the former Alumina plant) at Alucroix Harbor from 5-14 June 1983 (FWS). Otherwise, no other information on confirmed breeding sites in the USVI exists since the first half of the twentieth century (Beatty 1930, Nichols 1943; Seaman 1973, 1980). Bank Swallow Riparia riparia — One bird was seen at Southgate Pond from 22 May through 1 June 2004 (DBM, LDY), the first spring occurrence for St. Croix. Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler Den- droica coronata coronata — This species has been an infrequent winter resident in the USVI (Pashley 1988, Raffaele 1989, Askins et al. 1992) since it was first seen by Beatty (1936) in 1935 (not 1933, contra Pashley 1988), who soon thereafter collected a male at the West End Salt Pond, St. Croix on 27 December 1937 (USNM 355750). Recent re¬ ports strongly suggest Myrtle Warblers are associated with fresh- and saltwater environ¬ ments in the USVI (cf. , Beatty 1936). These reports include two birds seen by F E. Hayes on 19 January 2003 at Francis Bay, St. Thomas. On St. Croix, birds (all females when noted) have been seen each year since 2002 at a total of seven sites: up to three birds in Black Mangroves at Great Pond from 18 February through 22 March 2002 (DBM, A.S.L. Rodrigues), one in pondside vegeta¬ tion at Mountain Mint Dairy Farm at Estate Petronella on 24 February 2002, one in large shade trees along the waterfront at Frederik¬ sted on 26 April 2002 (latest spring report in the USVI), one at a pond on the Reef Condos golf course on 3 March 2003, one at Fre¬ densborg Pond from 27 January through 25 February 2004, two at Windsor South Pond on 27 January 2004 (one remaining until 18 March; LDY), and three at Granard South Pond on 25 February 2004. Palm Warbler Dcndroica palmarum — This warbler has been an infrequent winter resi¬ dent in the USVI (Pashley 1988, Raffaele 1989, Askins et al. 1992; although see Beat¬ ty [1930] who was the first individual to re¬ port Palm Warblers in the USVI, at St. Croix). The only reports on St. Croix since the 1980s have been single birds in scrub be¬ side Great Pond on 16 January 2002 (Ro¬ drigues 2002) and 23 October 2003, in a pasture beside the VI Agricultural Station Middle Pond from 23 February through 28 March 2002, and in low beach scrub at the northern tip of Ruth Island on 1 May 2003. Hayes et al. (in prep.) also recently reported a single bird at St. Thomas. Connecticut Warbler Oporomis agilis — G. Kunkel photographed a probable imma¬ ture that landed on the deck of a boat locat¬ ed about halfway between Virgin Gorda, BVI, and St. Croix, USVI on 8 October 2002 (DFW 7, Figure 11). This bird and other in¬ dividuals in a small flock that probably were Connecticut Warblers were observed at night as they were illuminated by the deck lights of the east-bound cruise ship M/V Cen¬ tury. This furnishes the first verified record (and second occurrence) of Connecticut Warbler in the USVI. The first was one im¬ mature at the former Alumina plant (now St. Croix Renaissance Park) on 30 October 1988 (FWS, R. Wauer). Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas — This warbler has been an infrequent winter resident in the USVI (Pashley 1988, Raffaele 1989, Askins et al. 1992, Wauer and Sladen 1992) since an immature male was first reported in 1958 at St. Croix (Seaman 1959; ANSP 169929). Some reports on Christmas Bird Counts at St. Thomas and St. Croix are probably not credible. Recent valid reports of single birds at freshwater wetlands on St. Croix in 2002 were on 15 February, 23 February, and 28 March at Prosperity Marsh, at the VI Agricultural Station Middle Pond, and at Fredensborg Pond, respectively, in 2003 at Cruzan Rum Pond on 21 December, and in brackish wetlands in 2004 at South- V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 545 Table 1 . Estimated area (haa) for five wetland types on each main island (St. Thomas6, St. John, St. Croix) in the United States Virgin Islands. St. Thomas St. John St. Croix All Islands Wetland Type Number/Area (ha) Number/Area (ha) Number/Area (ha) Number/Area (ha) Freshwater ponds 31 7.5 8 1.6 199 43 238 52.2 Mixed swamps< 2 7.8 1 0.3 7 9.1 10 17.1 Salt flats 7 4.1 26 6.7 31 54.5 64 65.3 Salt ponds 35 16.8 33 43.8 42 228.8 110 289.3 Mangrove wetlands6 76 73.3 46 38.6 92 145.7 214 257.6 All Wetlands 151 109.5 114 91 371 481.1 636 681.6* a Calculated from data in CDC (2001 ). The minimum surface area for each wetland is 0.014884 ha (= 1600 square feet). b Includes Water Island but none of the other islands or cays off St. Thomas. ‘ A type of saltwater wetland. d Includes all four types of mangroves (forest, woodland, shrubland, fringing) listed by CDC (2001). e Difference of rounding error of 0.2 ha from the five wetland types. gate Pond from 21 January through 11 February. Lesser Antillean Bullfinch Loxigilla noctis — This bullfinch was first reported in southeast¬ ern St. John in 1971 (Raffaele and Roby 1977) and is now widely distributed over the en¬ tire island (Norton 1979, 1981; F E. Hayes, unpubl. data). It is generally common to abun¬ dant in xeric forest (Askins and Ewert 1991) but remains generally scarce in moist forest on St.John (e.g., one male seen by E E. Hayes at 215 m; cf., Norton 1979). Lesser Antillean Bullfinches were first reported at St. Croix in 1979, in moist forest at New Canaan, where one pair was present until at least 1984, when a nest with abandoned eggs was dis¬ covered on 28 July (Norton 1984c, 2000; not 1983, contra Leek and Norton 1991). Thereafter, only two other sites were discov¬ ered at St. Croix during the 1980s, in 1985 (Norton 1985b), and one bird was seen on one date at Salt River in the late 1980s (Wauer 1988). Since 1997, at least one bird was detected at the USDA Experimental For¬ est in Estate Thomas from 12-15 May (E. Garcia, R. Garcia), and one pair at Belvedere Estate on the north-facing slope of the northwestern hills has built or attempted to build nests most years in a yard where its oc¬ currence has nonetheless been erratic (S. Fromer, unpubl. data). In 1997-1998, single young were noted in nests in small Turpen¬ tine ( Bursera s imaruba) trees during October and November. Bullfinches have also been detected at nearby residences in Belvedere Estate, where its occurrence has also been erratic, and not too distant at Betzys Jewell Estate (adult male on 14 May 2004) and Lit¬ tle Fountain Estate (pair in yard during ear¬ ly April 2004 'fide S. Fromer). Recently, up to 15 birds were reported in moist forest along Creque Dam Road at and near the reservoir (Rodrigues 2002; DBM, unpubl. data), which is probably the primary current site (some reports of other birds on recent Christmas Bird Counts from lowland areas of St. Croix are probably incorrect). Single birds (female or male) were also reported in moist forest in 2002 on 21 July and 17 Au¬ gust at and near a permanent spring in a gut on the north slope of Mt. Eagle. A female was also seen in mangrove forest at Sugar Bay on 3 January 2003. One pair was present in thick vegetation along the north coast be¬ tween Cane and Davis Bays on 25 October 2003, and another bird was nearby on the same date. All of these aforementioned sites are in northwestern St. Croix. The only reli¬ able report from the East End of St. Croix was one female at a feeder on 30 January 2002 (Rodrigues 2002). Lesser Antillean Bullfinches on St. Thomas have recently been seen at three sites, at Red Hook, where E E. Hayes ob¬ served two females on 27 March 2003 (for the preceding month one pair had apparent¬ ly been present here, where a female had once flown out of a Bananaquit [Coereba flaveola] nest , fide E E. Hayes), and during August 2003, when D. Spencer saw a pair on a hillside near Havensight and several pairs in northeastern St. Thomas. The origin and status of the Lesser Antil¬ lean Bullfinch in the USVI is puzzling. It pri¬ marily occupies xeric habitats on St. John, where it is numerous, moist forest on St. Croix, where it is rare and local, and has per¬ haps only recently established itself in xeric habitat at several sites on St. Thomas. Only one bird has been collected, at St. John (Raf¬ faele and Roby 1977), which is one sub¬ species ( ridgwayi ) from the northern Lesser Antilles. Lesser Antillean Bullfinch has still not been documented from BVI (except for unconfirmed reports from Norman and Pe¬ ter islands in 1972 [Raffaele and Roby 1977] but even if correct bullfinches did not persist there [Mirecki et al. 1977]). Thus, bullfinch¬ es are unknown between source populations in the Lesser Antilles and the USVI. Raffaele and Roby (1977) argued that hurricane transport of birds from the north¬ ern Lesser Antilles was probably the most likely mode of origin for birds at St. John. Norton (1984b) later invoked a similar ar¬ gument for the arrival of birds at St. Croix, albeit from a different hurricane ( David in 1979 rather than Donna in 1960). Hurricane transport of bullfinches could possibly ac¬ count for the species’ current distribution and abundance in the USVI, based on the paths of these two hurricanes and proximi¬ ty to source populations, L. n. ridgwayi in the northern Lesser Antilles and L. n. coryi at Saba (closest to St. Croix). The abundance and rarity of ridgwayi and coryi at St. John and St. Croix, re¬ spectively, would also corre¬ spond to the abundance and rarity of these two subspecies at their nearest source to the USVI. However, the timing of Hurricane Donna, 1 1 years be¬ fore birds were first reported in southeastern St. John (al¬ though they were already lo¬ cally fairly numerous), and the rarity of coryi at Saba, from where it would hence be un¬ likely to disperse to St. Croix (where the subspecies is un¬ confirmed), suggests that hur¬ ricane transport to the USVI is unlikely. Hurricane transport of birds only to St. John, then later to St. Croix — without transport of birds to inter¬ vening islands in the BVI given that similar habitats exist on these islands — appears to be unlikely (Bond 1972, 1974, 1978). Lesser Antillean Bullfinches may have had a natural range expansion to the USVI, unaided by hurricane transport. The appar¬ ent range expansion to St. Thomas may rep¬ resent recent arrivals from nearby St. John, where bullfinches are numerous and occur in similar habitat. However, bullfinches should then have occurred earlier on St. Thomas, not much later than on St. Croix (although hurricane transport to St. Croix could account for this difference in the tim¬ ing of their arrival at the two islands). Bullfinches may have possibly arrived si¬ multaneously on St. John and St. Croix, be¬ cause unlike St. John, birds on St. Croix could have been overlooked earlier because they are rare and local here. If simultaneous arrival occurred, later movement to St. Thomas may represent a continuation of a natural range expansion unaided by hurri¬ cane transport. Lesser Antillean Bullfinches also may have been introduced to all three main is¬ lands in the USVI, or have arrived on these islands as the result of a combination of a natural range expansion (by hurricane transport or unaided by hurricanes) and in¬ troduction of birds. Raffaele and Roby (1977) documented that caged birds were released at nearby Tortola in 1971, but they did not persist there (or on Norman and Pe¬ ter islands; Mirecki et al. 1977). The Puerto Rican Bullfinch (L. portoricensis ) on St.John also did not persist (Bond 1964, Raffaele 1989). Thus, the two inadvertent introduc¬ tions of bullfinches to the Virgin Islands of which we are aware did not result in estab¬ lishment of populations of either species. However, Lesser Antillean Bullfinches have 546 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS not occupied the larger cays that contain ap¬ propriate habitat or expanded their range east- or westward from the USVI (as pre¬ dicted by Raffaele 1989), which is highly in¬ consistent with a natural range expansion for Lesser Antillean landbirds, where their distributions are otherwise continuous through the BV1 thence to the USVI (Robertson 1962). Regardless, the origin and status of the Lesser Antillean Bullfinch in the USVI remains puzzling, including the primary restriction of birds on St. John to xeric forest but on St. Croix to moist forest. Lesser Antillean Bullfinches from all three main islands in the USVI must be collected to perform morphometric and genetic analyses to determine the most likely origin of this polytypic species and to elucidate whether the range expansion was by natural means, introduction by humans, or a com¬ bination thereof. Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheucticus lu- dovicianus — An adult male in breeding plumage was seen at the Carambola Golf Resort, St. Croix on 30 March 2002. The only other reports of Rose-breasted Gros¬ beaks in the USVI have also been during spring, an adult male at St. John on 25-26 April 1964 (Bond 1964) and one bird at St. Croix on 31 March 1968 (Bond 1968). Single birds have also been reported at St. John on three Christmas Bird Counts, but further details are lacking. Raffaele (1989) stated that Rose-breasted Grosbeak had been reported from St. Thomas, but documentation for this claim has not been lo¬ cated. Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus — Single males were seen at Schuster Lower Pond (LDY, CCB) and flying over Fredensborg Pond on 28 April and 6 May of 2004, respective¬ ly. The only other spring oc¬ currence of a Bobolink on St. Croix is one male collected by G. A. Seaman on 9 May 1959 (Bond 1966; ANSP 169933). Shiny Cowbird M olothrus bonariensis — Recent reports by S. Fromer, LDY, and CCB at feedlots and animal pens on Windsor Farm included two males on 22 December 2002, and in 2004 one male on 4 March, six birds on 18 March, two females on 4 May, one male on 22 June, and a pair on 24 July. As well as being rare on St. Croix, Shiny Cowbirds are rare in the northern USVI ( contra Leek and Norton 1991; although see Norton 1981). House Sparrow Passer domesticus — Raf¬ faele (1989) states this species inhabited the area of Miller Manor Hotel in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas in the early 1950s. House Sparrows were not reported there¬ after in Charlotte Amalie except by Robert¬ son (1962), who stated they were estab¬ lished on St. Thomas, and by Norton (1993, 1995), who reported that one entered a ceil¬ ing cavity of a building in an urban district in 1981, though otherwise House Sparrows did not reappear in the capital until 1984. Apparently, a residual population remained in Charlotte Amalie, although no other de¬ tails are available. House Sparrows reached all three main islands in the USVI during the mid-1990s, although this range expansion is poorly documented. Their presumptive arrival was from Puerto Rico, where House Sparrows were established by 1972 and have since in¬ creased, especially in the early 1990s (Moreno 1997). House Sparrows reached the Culebra archipelago, just west of St. Thomas, by 1993. The first two birds reached St. John at Cruz Bay on 12-15 July 1993 (Norton 1993), and W. Henderson first observed House Sparrows at Coral Bay ca. 1993. House Sparrows reached Tortola, BVI in 1995 (Petrovic 2003). House Spar¬ rows also reached two islands in the Lesser Antilles (St. Martin and Guadeloupe) in 1999, where House Sparrows are now at the southeastern limit of their range in the West Indies and where breeding was confirmed on both islands in 2002 (Levesque and Clergeau 2003). The simultaneous arrival of House Sparrows in the USVI and the liming and path of their subsequent range expan¬ sion in the eastern Caribbean suggest that birds did not arrive on boats shipping grain, as suggested earlier by Raffaele (1989) and Norton (1995), but that their range expan¬ sion was natural. On St. Croix, House Sparrows are now widely distributed and numerous in urban areas, at industrial sites including rural or semi-rural areas, and at many agricultural areas with livestock such as the equine race¬ track across from Henry E. Rohlsen Airport or (formerly) Mountain Mint Dairy Farm at Estate Petronella. Large numbers (>75) for¬ merly feeding in now defunct livestock yards at Mountain Mint Dairy Farm often roosted nearby in mangroves at Great Pond. Discussion Observations of 62 species on St. Croix em¬ phasized site-specific con¬ firmed breeding evidence of 23 locally rare or uncommon species, especially for 16 wa- terbirds. This includes the first and second breeding records of Least Grebe, full documentation of the first breeding records of Great Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, and Black-crowned Night-Heron in the 1980s, plus subsequent confirma¬ tion of breeding of the latter two species since 2002, the first breeding records of White-cheeked Pintail, Great Egret, and Black-necked Stilt in freshwater environments (manmade ponds), and the first breeding records of American Oystercatcher from St. Croix proper. Also, addi¬ tional breeding information for Pied-billed Grebe, White¬ tailed Tropicbird, Brown Peli¬ can, Green Heron, American Coot, Caribbean Coot, Wil¬ son’s Plover, and Willet is documented. The tiny White¬ tailed Tropicbird colony at Canegarden Cliff will proba¬ bly soon naturally disappear from St. Croix. Documenta¬ tion of breeding information for eight species cited herein (White-cheeked Pintail, Pied- Appendix 1 . Site numbers, names and geographic coordinates on St. Croix for sites not listed in McGuire (1925), Scott and Carbonell (1986), or Imsand and Philibosian (1987). Site Site Site Coordinates Number Name N Lata/WLonga Freshwater Ponds 1 Annaly Pond 17.74646/64.85276 2 Buccaneer Hotel: golf course link #8 pond 17.75208/64.67507 3 Buccaneer Hotel: golf course link #9 pond 17.75277/64.67736 4 Buccaneer Hotel: Wastewater Treatment Pond 17.75312/64.67333 5 Carambola Golf Resort Lower Ponds 17.74278/64.81641 6 Carambola Golf Resort Upper Pond 17.74984/64.82368 7 Cruzan Rum Pond 17.70555/64.82808 8 Granard South Pondb 17.71056/64.70720 9 Hermitage Pond 17.74967/64.80918 10 Longford Lower Pond 17.71060/64.69569 11 Reef Condos Golf Course Pond # 2 17.75339/64.61003 12 Schuster Lower Pond 17.75373/64.65785 13 Schuster Upper Pond 17.75132/64.65691 14 Teagues Bay Pond 17.75909/64.61368 15 VI Agricultural Station Middle Pond 17.72312/64.80725 16 Williams Pond 17.73382/64.88170 17 Windsor North Pond 17.76125/64.77360 18 Windsor South Pond 17.75775/64.77155 Other Sites 1 St. Croix Renaissance Park' 17.69584/64.76728 a Coordinates given using decimal system. b Named Manchenil Pond in Rodrigues (2002). ‘ Formerly the Martin Marietta Alumina Corporation plant (old alumina refinery); part of Krause Lagoon Remnant. V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 547 billed Grebe, Great Egret, Green Heron, American Coot, Caribbean Coot, Wilsons Plover, Black-necked Stilt) and some other waterbirds not cited herein (e.g.. Least Tern [Sterna antillarum ]) requires more extended treatment (e.g., Cattle Egret [ Bubulcus ibis]: McNair et al., in prep.; American and Caribbean Coots: McNair 2006). Of the total of 24 species of waterbirds that have been proven to nest on St. Croix since the late 1850s (excluding three species extirpated since approximately the middle half of the twentieth century: West Indian Whistling- Duck, Least Bittern ]Ixobiycluts exilis ], Clap¬ per Rail iRallus longirostris]) , we failed to confirm only one species that has previously nested at least once on St. Croix (this study; DBM, in prep.), that being Ruddy Duck (one breeding record at Rust-op-Twist during the early twentieth century; Seaman 1993). However, Ruddy Ducks have subsequently nested at Southgate Pond (in 2005; McNair et al., in prep.). Long-term surveys of wetland birds, cou¬ pled with rigorous assessment of historical data (since the 1850s) and wetland status can provide major impetus for their protec¬ tion and conservation. The field work of Norton and Sladen was performed after the partial or complete loss (degradation or de¬ struction) of some saltwater (and brackish) wetlands in the northern USVI and on St. Croix. This loss accelerated over the past 40-50 years because of development. In all, ca. half of the mangrove wetlands have ei¬ ther been degraded or destroyed on St. Croix, where only about 150 ha is now left (Table 1). Unfortunately, we cannot infer exactly what wetland birds were lost at many sites because supporting data are lim¬ ited. Our most important saltwater wetland today, Great Pond, has virtually no avian in¬ formation before the 1980s. In addition, lack of site specificity of some bird reports has also reduced our ability to assess site ef¬ fects of habitat loss (or gain). Nonetheless, salt ponds and mangrove wetlands are still the dominant wetland types in the USVI, in¬ cluding St. Croix (CDC 2001; Table 1). Mangrove wetlands are obviously still im¬ portant for waterbirds, but our observations also document the value of manmade ponds, which had been previously over¬ looked except for a few ponds such as the largest (2.95 ha), Fredensborg Pond. The loss (or gain) of specific salt- and freshwater wetlands should be tracked closely in fu¬ ture, such as the creation of ponds on the three golf courses of St. Croix since the 1960s. Freshwater ponds in the USVI were first constructed during the second quarter of the twentieth century, and most are on St. Croix, which has over 125 viable ponds (CDC 2001, Table 1; DBM, LDY, and CCB, pers. obs.). St. Croix has freshwater ponds important to wetland birds other than the 18 listed (Appendix 1). The creation of man-made freshwater ponds, now 10% of the total amount of wetland habitat on St. Croix, has helped offset the loss of saltwater wetlands, at least for species not restricted to salt water, and led to a pronounced in¬ crease of some species (e.g., Common Moorhen [Gallimila chloropusj; DBM, un- publ. data). Freshwater ponds or brackish sites that lack appreciable tidal inflow have water lev¬ els that may fluctuate greatly, on either a seasonal or annual basis, which affects habi¬ tat availability and quality for wetland birds (such as their ability to occupy or breed at a site). Saltwater wetlands without tidal in¬ lets, such as Southgate Pond in the semi- arid eastern end of St. Croix, regularly dry out during spring and summer unless rain¬ fall is plentiful (Sladen 1992). By mid-sum¬ mer 2002, water levels in most freshwater ponds and some brackish sites were low (and some salt- and freshwater ponds dried out completely). The large cooling pond at St. Croix Renaissance Park, which had been one of the three most favorable sites for many species of wetland birds (especially shorebirds) on St. Croix (Sladen 1988), was flushed with hypersaline water then drained after autumn 2002. Consequently, wetland birds other than breeding Least Terns and a few other species rarely occurred at these sites until the heavy rainfall of mid-Novem¬ ber 2003. We also documented breeding informa¬ tion for seven species of landbirds (White- crowned Pigeon, White-winged Dove, Bri¬ dled Quail-Dove, Antillean Nighthawk, Caribbean Martin, Lesser Antillean Bullfinch, and House Sparrow). This in¬ cludes the first confirmed breeding records of White-winged Doves and Antillean Nighthawks. The current breeding distribu¬ tion and abundance of White-crowned Pi¬ geons and the dynamic range expansion of the White-winged Dove require more ex¬ tended treatment than presented herein. Bridled Quail-Doves appear to have recov¬ ered from any decline wrought by Hurri¬ cane Hugo, whereas the influence of hurri¬ cane transport on the range expansion of the Lesser Antillean Bullfinch, though prob¬ ably less likely than previously suggested, is still unsolved. As for wetland birds, our breeding information on landbirds is essen¬ tial in prioritizing species and sites. We have also documented herein one new verified species (Connecticut Warbler) plus the first (unverified) occurrence of Eurasian Wigeon in the USVI in addition to records or reports of many other vagrants and scarce transients, such as West Indian Whistling-Duck and American Flamingo, which have not recovered from past human persecution. Other than avifaunistic infor¬ mation for individual species accounts cited herein, the significance of occurrences of these species is better assessed at a regional level, e.g., the eastern Caribbean (cf. Mc¬ Nair et al. 1999, 2002). Acknowledgments This study was partially funded by a grant from the United States Fish & Wildlife Ser¬ vice (Federal Aid Program, Wildlife Con¬ servation and Restoration Project W-15). W. Bradford, K. Clark, J. A. Colon, O. Davis, S. Fromer, T. Lance, L. LeBlanc, P A. Mayor, R. O’Reilly, R. Philibosian, F Rivera- Milan, A. S. L. Rodrigues, A. G. Tossas, J. Wakefield, and J. W. Wiley contributed their observations and/or answered queries about the avifauna of St. Croix or other in¬ formation, W. Coles, F E. Hayes, T. Lance, and M. A. Mahoney contributed some pho¬ tographs, the Conservation Data Center of the University of the Virgin Islands shared unpublished data on wetlands in the USVI, J. Gonzalez and R. Vasquez provided rain¬ fall data, R. Corado (Collections Manager, Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoolo¬ gy), J. R Dean (Collections Manager, Divi¬ sion of Birds, Department of Systematic Bi¬ ology, Smithsonian Institution), J. FjeldsA and N. Krabbe (Zoological Museum of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark), J. G. Hinshaw (University of Michigan Museum of Zoology), L. Joseph and N. Rice (Or¬ nithology Department, Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia), R. Symonds (University Museum of Zoology Cam¬ bridge, UK), and D. Willard (Collections Manager, Ornithology, Field Museum of Natural History) contributed data from mu¬ seum collections, F E. Hayes reviewed the penultimate draft of the manuscript, and P. A. Buckley, L. R. Bevier, and A. Jaramillo re¬ viewed the submitted manuscript. Copies of unpublished reports listed below are available from DBM. Literature cited Askins, R. A., and D. N. Ewert. 1991. Im¬ pact of Hurricane Hugo on bird popula¬ tions on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Biotropica 23: 481-487. Askins, R. A., D. N. Ewert, and R. L. Norton. 1992. Abundance of wintering migrants in fragmented and continuous forests in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Pp. 197-206 in Hagan, J. W., III, and D. W. Johnston, eds. Ecology and Conservation of Neotropical Migrant Landbirds. Smithsonian Institu¬ tion Press, Washington, D.C. Beatty, H. A. 1930. Birds of St. Croix. Journal of the Department of Agriculture of Puerto Rico 14.3: 135-150. - . 1936. New bird record for St. Croix, V. 1. Auk 53: 456-457. - . 1941. New bird records and some notes for the Virgin Islands. Journal of 548 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Agriculture of the University of Puerto Rico 25.4: 32-36. - . 1943. Records and notes from St. Croix, Virgin Islands. Auk 60: 110-111. - . 1944. Some new records for the Virgin Islands, U.S.A. Auk 61: 146. - . 1945. Hooded Merganser in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, U.S.A. Auk 62: 461. Bond,J. 1960. Fifth Supplement to the Check¬ list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadel¬ phia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1964. Ninth Supplement to the Check¬ list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadel¬ phia, Pennsylvania. - . 1966. Eleventh Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1968. Thirteenth Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1972. Seventeenth Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1974. Nineteenth Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1977. Twenty-first supplement to the Check-list of birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1978. Twenty-second Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1984. Twenty-fifth Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1986. Twenty-sixth Supplement to the Check-list of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Buden, D. W., and R. L. Wetenkamp. 1993. North American bird band recoveries from the Lesser Antilles. Ornitologia Neotropical 4: 83-90. Campbell, E. W. 1991. The effect of intro¬ duced roof rats on bird diversity of Antil¬ lean cays. Journal of Field Ornithology 62: 343-348. Cassin,J. 1860. Catalogue of birds from the island of St. Thomas, West Indies, col¬ lected and presented to the Academy of Natural Sciences by Mr. Robert Swift. With notes. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 13: 374- 379. Childress, R. B., and B. Hughes. 2001. The status of the West Indian Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna arborea) in St. Kitts-Nevis, January-February 2000. Pitirre 14: 107- 112. Collazo, J. A., T. A. Agardy, E. E. Klaas,J. E. Saliva, and J. Pierce. 1998. An inter- decadal comparison of population pa¬ rameters of Brown Pelicans in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Colonial Waterbirds 21: 61-65. Collazo, J. A., J. E. Saliva, and J. Pierce. 2000. Conservation of the Brown Pelican in the West Indies. Pp. 39-45 in Schreiber, E. A., and D. S. Lee, eds. 2000. Status and Conservation of West Indian Seabirds. Society of Caribbean Ornitholo¬ gy, Special Publication 1. Conservation Data Center (CDC). 2001. Virgin Islands Rapid Environmental Assess¬ ment: St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John. University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands. Cory, C. B. 1890. On a collection of birds made during the winter of 1889-90, by Cyrus S. Winch, in the islands of St. Thomas, Tortola, Anegada and Virgin Gorda, West Indies. Auk 7:373-375. - . 1891. A list of the birds collected in the islands of St. Croix and St. Kitts, West Indies, during March and April, and in Guadeloupe during August, September, and October, 1890. Auk 8: 47-49. Dammann, A. E., and D. W. Nellis. 1992. A Natural History Atlas to the Cays of the U. S. Virgin Islands. Pineapple Press, Inc., Sarasota, Florida. Danforth, S. T. 1930. Bird records from the Virgin Islands. Journal of the Department of Agriculture of Puerto Rico 14: 107-134. - . 1934. The Black Swift (Nephoecetes niger niger) in St. Croix. Auk 51: 84. - . 1935. Supplementary account of the birds of the Virgin Islands, including Culebra and adjacent islets pertaining to Puerto Rico, with notes on their food habits. Journal of Agriculture of the Uni¬ versity of Puerto Rico 19.4: 439-472. Gorman, L. R., and S. M. Haig. 2002. Distri¬ bution and abundance of Snowy Plovers in eastern North America, the Caribbean, and the Bahamas. Journal of Field Or¬ nithology 73: 38-52. Hayes, EE.,D. B. McNair, J. J. Pierce, and R. Platenberg. 2005. A Plan for Research, Management, and Conservation of Wildlife in the United States Virgin Islands. Divi¬ sion of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Planning and Natural Resources, Govern¬ ment of the United States Virgin Islands. Hayes, E E., and I. Samad. 2002. Avifauna of the “dragon’s teeth”: the Bocas Islands, northern Gulf of Paria, between Venezuela and Trinidad. Pp. 62-85 in Hayes, E E., and S. A. Temple, eds. Stud¬ ies in Trinidad and Tobago Ornithology Ho¬ nouring Richard ffrench. Occasional Paper 11, Department of Life Sciences, Univer¬ sity of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. Imsand, S., and R. Philibosian. 1987. Ex¬ ploring St. Croix. Travelers Information Press, Pasadena, California. Knowles, W. C. 1997. Determination of breeding characteristics of the White- crowned Pigeon (Columba leucocephala ): breeding population size, nesting season¬ ality, number and success on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Final report, Pittman- Robertson Grant W10, Study 1, Division of Fish and Wildlife, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Knowles, W. C. 1999. Determination of population size and trends of columbids on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Annual narrative report, Pittman-Robertson Grant W12-3, Study 1, Division of Fish and Wildlife, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. LaBastille, A., and M. Richmond. 1973. Birds and mammals of Anegada Island, British Virgin Islands. Caribbean Journal of Science 13: 91-109. Lazell, J. 1987. Flamingos, iguanas, and the restoration of rare species. The Island Sun 1307 (18 July): 14 + 22. Sun Enterprises Ltd., Tortola, British Virgin Islands. - . 1996. Guana Island: a natural history guide. The Conservation Agency Occasion¬ al Paper 1: 1-20. - . 2001. Restoration of the Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) to Ane¬ gada, British Virgin Islands. Pitirre 14: 113-114. - . 2002. Restoring vertebrate animals in the British Virgin Islands. Ecological Restoration 20: 179-185. Leek, C. E 1975. Notes on unusual and rare birds of St. Croix. Condor 77: 107. Leek, C. E, and R. L. Norton. 1991. An An¬ notated Checklist of the Birds of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Antilles Press, Christianst- ed, St. Croix. Levesque, A., and P. Clergeau. 2003. First colonization of the Lesser Antilles by the House Sparrow and its range in the West Indies. Abstract 55. Scientific Program of the Fourteenth Regional Meeting of the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, 21-25 July 2003, Hilton Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago. McGuire, J. W. 1925. Geographic Dictionary of the Virgin Islands of the United States. Special Publication 103. U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Department of Com¬ merce. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. McNair, D. B. 2006. Review of the status of American and Caribbean Coots in the United States Virgin Islands. North Amer¬ ican Birds 59: 678-684. McNair, D. B., and C. Cramer-Burke. In press. Breeding ecology of American and Caribbean coots at Southgate Pond, St. Croix: use of woody vegetation. Wilson VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 549 Bulletin 118. McNair, D. B., E. B. Massiah, and M. D. Frost. 1999. New and rare species of Nearctic landbird migrants during au¬ tumn for Barbados and the Lesser An¬ tilles. Caribbean Journal of Science 35: 46- 53. McNair, D. B., E Sibley, E. B. Massiah, and M. D. Frost. 2002. Ground-based Nearc- tic-Neotropic landbird migration during autumn in the eastern Caribbean. Pp. 86- 103 in Hayes, E E., and S. A. Temple, eds. Studies in Trinidad and Tobago Ornithology Honouring Richard ffrcnch. Occasional Pa¬ per 1 1, Department of Life Sciences, Uni¬ versity of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. Mirecki, D. N.,J. M. Hutton, C. M. Panned, T. J. Stowe, and R.W. Unite. 1977. Report of the Cambridge ornithological expedi¬ tion to the British Virgin Islands 1976. Churchill College, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Moreno, J. A. 1997. Review of the subspe¬ cific status and origin of introduced finches in Puerto Rico. Caribbean Journal of Science 33: 233-238. Nellis, D. W. 1979. Record of Puerto Rican Screech Owl, Turkey Vulture and Osprey from St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Wilson Bulletin 91: 148-149. Newton, A. 1860. [Letter to the editor]. Ibis, Series 3, 2: 307-308. Newton, A., and E. Newton. 1859a. Obser¬ vations on the birds of St. Croix, West In¬ dies, made between February 201*1 and August 61^, 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 41^ and September 28^, 1858 by Edward Newton. Ibis, Series 3, 1 : 59-69. Newton, A., and E. Newton. 1859b. Obser¬ vations on the birds of St. Croix, West In¬ dies, made between February 201^ and August 6*^, 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 41^ and September 28 , 1858 by Edward Newton. Ibis, Series 3, 1: 138-150. Newton, A., and E. Newton. 1859c. Obser¬ vations on the birds of St. Croix, West In¬ dies, made between February 20t'1 and August 61^, 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 4t^ and September 28 , 1858 by Edward Newton. Ibis, Series 3, 1: 252-264. Newton, A., and E. Newton. 1859d. Obser¬ vations on the birds of St. Croix, West In¬ dies, made between February 20^ and August 6 , 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 4^ and September 28^, 1858 by Edward Newton. Ibis, Series 3, 1: 365-379. Nichols, R. A. 1943. The breeding birds of St. Thomas and St. John. Memoirs of the Society of Cuban Natural History “Felipe Poey” 17:23-37. Nisbet, 1. C. T. 1980. Status and trends of the Roseate Tern ( Sterna dougallii ) in North America and the Caribbean. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Contract Re¬ port 50181-084-9, Newton Corner, Mass¬ achusetts. Norton, R. L. 1979. New records of birds for the Virgin Islands. American Birds 33: 145-146. - . 1981. Additional records and notes of birds in the Virgin Islands. American Birds 35: 144-147. - . 1981. West Indies region. American Birds 35: 231-232. - . 1982. West Indies region. American Birds 36: 1019-1020. - . 1983. West Indies region. American Birds 37: 1030. - . 1984a. West Indies region. American Birds 38: 251-253. - . 1984b. West Indies region. American Birds 38: 968-970. - . 1984c. West Indies region. American Birds 38: 1064-1065. - . 1985a. West Indies region. American Birds 39: 214-215. - . 1985b. West Indies region. American Birds 39: 965-966. - . 1986a. West Indies region. American Birds 40: 163-164. - . 1986b. West Indies region. American Birds 40: 528-529. - . 1986c. West Indies region. American Birds 40: 1259-1260. - . 1987a. West Indies region. American Birds 41: 151-152. - . 1987b. West Indies region. American Birds 41: 493-494. - . 1988a. West Indies region. American Birds 42: 485-486. - . 1988b. West Indies region. American Birds 42: 1343-1344. - . 1989a. West Indies region. American Birds 43: 174-175. - . 1989b. West Indies region. American Birds 43: 371-372. - . 1989c. West Indies region. American Birds 43: 1372-1373. - . 1990. West Indies region. American Birds 44: 501-502. - . 1993. West Indies region. American Birds 47: 1154. - . 1995. West Indies region. Field Notes 49: 313-314. - . 2000. West Indies region. North Amer¬ ican Birds 54: 223-225. Norton, R. L., and A. Hobbs. 1987. First record of Purple-throated Carib for the Greater Antilles and notes on vagrants in the Virgin Islands. Caribbean Journal of Science 23: 462-463. Pashley, D. N. 1988. Warblers of the West Indies. I. The Virgin Islands. Caribbean Journal of Science 24:11-22. Paulson, D. R., and D. S. Lee. 1992. Winter¬ ing of Lesser Golden-Plovers in eastern North America. Journal of Field Ornithol¬ ogy 63: 121-128. Petrovic, C. 2003. Status of the House Spar¬ row in the British Virgin Islands. Abstract 22. Scientific Program of the Fourteenth Regional Meeting of the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, 21-25 July 2003, Hilton Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago. Raffaele, H. 1989. A Guide to the Birds of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Second edition. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Raffaele, H. A., and D. Roby. 1977. The Less¬ er Antillean Bullfinch in the Virgin Is¬ lands. Wilson Bulletin 89: 338-342. Rivera-Milan, E E 2001. Transect surveys of columbid nests on Puerto Rico, Vieques, and Culebra Islands. Condor 103: 332- 342. Robertson, W. B., Jr. 1962. Observations on the birds of St. John, Virgin Islands. Auk 79: 44-76. Rodrigues, A. S. L. 2002. U. S. Virgin Islands rapid bird assessment. The Nature Con¬ servancy of the U. S. Virgin Islands. 114 pp. + appendices I-1II. Scott, D. A., and M. Carbonell (compilers). 1986. A Directory of Neotropical Wetlands. International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), Cambridge, United Kingdom, and Inter¬ national Waterfowl and Wetlands Re¬ search Bureau (IWRB), Slimbridge, Unit¬ ed Kingdom. Seaman, G. A. 1954a. Yellow-bellied Sap- sucker on Anegada, British West Indies. Wilson Bulletin 66: 61. - . 1954b. American Bittern in Virgin Is¬ lands. Wilson Bulletin 66: 148. - . 1955. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished quarterly report (June), St. Croix. - . 1957a. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished quarterly report (March), St. Croix. - . 1957b. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished quarterly report (September), St. Croix. - . 1959. New bird records for St. Croix, Virgin Islands. Wilson Bulletin 71: 96. - . 1961. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished quarterly report (June)> St. Croix. - . 1963. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished an¬ nual report (1962-1963: June 1963), St. Croix. - . 1964. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished an¬ nual report (1963-1964: June 1964), St. Croix. - . 1965. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished an¬ nual report (1964-1965: July 1965), St. Croix. - . 1968. Wildlife resources survey of the 550 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS ■ - - - Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished an¬ nual report (1967-1968: 1968), St. Croix. - . 1973. Sticks from the Hawk’s Nest. Prestige Press, St. Croix. - . 1980. Ay-Ay: an Island Almanac. MacMillan, London. - . 1993. Every Shadow is a Man: a Jour¬ ney Back into Birds and Time. Antilles Graphic Arts, Gallows Bay, St. Croix. Seaman, G. A., andj. E. Randall. 1962. The mongoose as a predator in the Virgin Is¬ lands. Journal of Mammalogy 43: 544- 546. Sladen, E W. 1988. Some new records and observations of birds in the Virgin Is¬ lands. American Birds 42: 1227-1231. - . 1992. Abundance and distribution of waterbirds in two types of wetlands on St. Croix, U. S. Virgin Islands. Omitologia Caribena 3: 35-42. Stengel, C. A. 1998. The survey of the salt ponds of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Final re¬ port. EPA Wetlands Protection C-21. Di¬ vision of Fish and Wildlife. Wauer, R. H. 1988. Salt River’s terrestrial fauna of special concern. Unpublished re¬ port, U.S. National Park Service, St. Croix. Wauer, R. H., and E W. Sladen. 1992. Im¬ portance of Virgin Islands mangrove habitats to migrant and wintering birds. Omitologia Caribena 3: 50-54. Wauer, R. H., andj. M. Wunderle, Jr. 1992. The effect of Hurricane Hugo on bird populations on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Is¬ lands. Wilson Bulletin 104: 656-673. Wetmore, A. 1918. Bones of birds collected by Theodoor de Booy from kitchen mid¬ den deposits in the islands of St. Thomas and St. Croix. Proceedings of the United States National Museum 54: 513-522. Wetmore, A. 1927. The Birds of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands. New York Academy of Science Scientific Survey of Porto Rico and Virgin Islands. Volume 9, parts 3 and 4: 245-406. Wiley, J. W. 1984. Status of the Osprey in the West Indies. Pp. 9-16 in Westall, M. A., ed. Proceedings of the Southeastern U.S. and Caribbean Osprey Symposium. Inter¬ national Osprey Foundation, Inc., Flori¬ da. Winner, G. W., E Boyd, E. Campbell, III, J. Wakefield, and Z. Hillis-Starr. 2002. The eradication of introduced rats at Buck Is¬ land Reef National Monument, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Final report. U.S. De¬ partment of Interior, National Park Ser¬ vice, Buck Island Reef National Monu¬ ment, Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Ynterna, J. A., and E W. Sladen. 1987. Ruth Island survey. Final report, endangered species project ES-1, Study IIB, Job IIB-1. Division of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Virgin Islands. O - - 1 " ■ ' VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER The Friends of North American Birds SUPPORT THE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS , THE ABA’S JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGICAL RECORD Since its inception, the fund has allowed for many improvements to the journal's look and feel. The journal is now mailed in a protective wrapper to insure its delivery in one piece. The content has benefited from an increase in page count which has allowed for additional articles with even more detailed analysis. The amount of color pages has increased which has allowed for expanded Pictorial Highlights and an occasional Photo Salon. All of this has been made possible with your generous contributions. There are more plans in the works for future issues but the fund does need your continued support. To become a “Friend of NAB”, simply donate $50 or more. Each "Friend of NAB" will be recognized annually.in the first issue of each volume of North American Birds. Send donations to: The Friends of NAB, ABA, 4945 N. 30th Street, Suite 200 Colorado Springs, CO 80919-3151 551 record — but monsoons brought rain to the Chisos and Davis Mountains by late July, and Hurricane Emily brought coastal rains in late July. Colorado’s June was average, but July was the state’s third driest since 1895. Naturally, the continent was not uniform¬ ly sweltering, and even in the hotspots there were cool spells. Southern Quebec and New England cooled rapidly in mid-June (almost 12° F below normal), which had a negative impact on cavity nesters. Beach-nesting species in the Northeast also suffered during this cool, wet period, and high tides of 7 and 21 June washed out nesting attempts by many species across the mid-Atlantic region. From the western Great Lakes westward, temperatures in June and July were far more moderate, and rainfall was much more plen¬ tiful. Northwestern Ontario had one of its coolest, wettest Junes on record, and cool, wet weather was the norm through much of the Yukon and Northwest Territories, making fieldwork difficult but sparing the region from the forest fires that have plagued it in recent seasons. In some areas, rains were too plentiful. In the southern third of the Prairie Provinces region (and adjacent northwestern Minnesota), heavy rains in June and early July caused record-breaking floods. June was one of the wettest on record in much of the U.S. Great Plains as well, although July was warm and mostly dry, and the same reversal was true in Montana and Idaho, where July was the sixth driest ever recorded. For the most part, the Great Plains and Great Basin welcomed the rains. After six years of drought, Utah and Nevada (among Colorado's first Tropical Parula sang lustily, revealing its posi¬ tion high in the trees of Grandview Cemetery, Fort Collins throughout its stay from 18 June through 4 (here 1) July 2005 This bird, along with the state's two White-eared Humming¬ birds this season, provoked much speculation about the "next' Mexican vagrants to follow. Photograph by Bill Schmoker. Edward S. Brinkley 9 Randolph Avenue Cape Charles, Virginia 23310 (ensifera@aol.com) Kentucky, temperatures hit the 90° F mark and higher in Louisville on 23 days out of 61; Nashville, Tennessee hit or surpassed that mark on 33 days. Denver, Colorado, which enjoyed a more seasonable June, matched its record high of 105° F on 20July. The trend toward warmer years, and warmer summers, would seem to have no end in sight (Figure 1). Large areas of the continent were not just hot but very dry. Forest fires in June in the Abitibi and Lac Saint-Jean regions of Quebec disrupted the nesting season in this part of the boreal forest, while in the Alaskan interior, enormous fires raged in several areas, mostly in July, after the peak of breeding there. The very hot July in Ari¬ zona saw the second-latest onset of mon¬ soon rains there on record, fully two weeks late; Arizona wildfires burned a record 270,000 hectares. The eastern Midwest was also dry, the driest June since 1992 in Indi¬ ana and Illinois; in 135 years of observa¬ tions, Chicago has its driest 20 May-6 July period on record. Eastern Iowa and cen¬ tral/eastern Missouri suffered under drought, and Tennessee and Kentucky were also dry, but hurricane rains replenished reservoirs in the first half of July. Texas was mostly hot and dry — Houston’s 20 mm of June rain made it the driest June on Summer 2005 will be remembered al¬ most everywhere as another warm summer in another warm year — the warmest year in the Northern Hemisphere since record-keeping began in the 1860s, and globally the second warmest year on record after 1998, which had strong El Nino conditions. On the Hudson Bay coast at Ku- ujjuarapik, at the mouth of the Great Whale River, temperatures soared to a record 99° F on 12 July. In June, Boston temperatures av¬ eraged over 9° F degrees above normal; June temperatures were about 6° F above normal in upstate New York. Central and southern parts of Ontario were also abnormally hot (just the northwestern areas were spared), and Ohio and northern Appalachia had the fourth warmest summer on record (al¬ though east of the Allegheny Mountains, temperatures were more moderate). In Illi¬ nois, June was the warmest since 1971, al¬ most 4° F above average statewide (6.2° F above normal in Chicago); July tempera¬ tures were high but less noteworthy. Across the middlewestern prairies, especially in In¬ diana, Illinois, and Iowa, it was the warmest June since 1991; Iowa had its first 100-de- gree days since 2003. To the southeast, in § Vs))/ tga 552 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS other western states) were in dire need of rains to boost breeding populations of many species, both in grasslands and wetlands. New Mexico, like Texas and Arizona, was mostly hot and dry but had had ample win¬ ter/spring rains to sustain a good nesting season. Most grassland regions that received ample rain reported good breeding by spar¬ rows and other landbirds. Grasshopper Spar¬ rows, Dickcissels, and Bobolinks seemed to benefit from the moist conditions and from delayed hay harvest through much of their ranges; Le Conte’s Sparrow and Yellow Rails too were widely reported, though some may have simply moved from marshes to wet fields and thus become more conspicuous. Nonetheless, the report of “hundreds” of Yel¬ low Rails in the Rainy River district of On¬ tario is most impressive, and strays were in the Dakotas, British Columbia, and Idaho, that state’s third. Other wetland birds— such as Black Terns and Anas ducks — were also reportedly nesting well in the Plains; Joe Grzybowski and Ross Silcock report that marsh birds in the Southern Great Plains re¬ gion will still take several more years of good rains to rebound. In eastern Montana, water- birds displaced by flooding were sometimes able to renest elsewhere or delay nesting. In Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, where riparian floods were devastating, observers report nesting losses by Spotted Sandpiper, Belted Kingfisher, and Bank Swallow, along with disruption of Western Grebe and Franklin’s Gull colonies. As in 2004, the American White Pelican colony at Chase Lake National Wildlife Refuge, North Dako¬ ta, was again abandoned suddenly this sea¬ son, for reasons unknown. Huge counts of that species from Manitoba and Saskatchewan, where the pelicans took advantage of widespread flood¬ ing, were surely one result of this abandonment. A bright spot in all the flooding, wildlife officials of the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority collected 260 Piping Plover eggs from nests about to be flooded out at Lake Diefenbaker; the young birds were captive-reared and re¬ leased at Chaplin Lake. The Pacific coastal weather was deftly described by Steve Mlodinow, Bill Tweit, and David Irons as “a mo¬ saic varying from extreme drought to near deluge,” especially in June. The Jet Stream guided storms mostly south of Alaska through the period, lashing southern British Columbia and Washington through June and northern British Columbia in July, giving more southerly areas an abrupt break from the rains. To the south, California’s tranquil weather was little remarked, aside from a cool, wet June that hurt cavity-nesting species, especially insectivores like bluebirds and swallows. But the calm summer was ap¬ parently disastrous for many seabirds: the lack of upwelling seawater, normally generat¬ ed by persistent westerly winds, created oceanic conditions resembling those of El Nino events. Near-complete breeding failure and widespread mortality were documented in several alcids and in piscivores like cor¬ morants. Over on the Atlantic coast, a size¬ able die-off of tubenoses was not easily ex¬ plained, but most of the dead and dying birds were emaciated; a dearth of prey resources was apparent from New England to Florida. And in the continent’s interior, several un¬ usual early-season hurricanes brought seabirds of many species to states that rarely witness such events. Outside the usual contexts of nesting suc¬ cesses and losses and the vagaries of weather, the short summer season was long on records of unusual birds. To be sure, there was much continuity with the events of the spring, can¬ vassed beautifully in the spring “Changing Seasons” (Leukering and Gibbons 2005): eastern warblers, vireos, mimids, Scarlet Tan- agers, and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks contin¬ ued to trickle into the West through the mid¬ dle of June; the spring’s memorable northward flight of Hooded Oriole was de¬ tected also in Seattle in June (Washington’s fifth); Wilson’s Plovers kept up their spring streak of straying, turning up in California, Quebec (its first), New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts (up to 4 birds in that state!); May’s Soras and Virginia Rails in Alas¬ ka tried to nest; White Ibis continued their explorings, reaching Ohio (thrice), West Vir¬ ginia, New Mexico, and Missouri; and Crest¬ ed Caracaras were noted in northern Califor- NORTHERN HEMISPHERE TEMPERATURE ANOMALY 1960-2005 °C 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.0 -0.2 -0.4 -0.6 -0.6 -1.0 -1.2 Ton year mean I960 1970 1980 1990 2000 Figure 1. Northern Hemisphere average annual temperatures compared to the 1961-1990 average. Graphic courtesy of the Hadley Centre, University of East Anglia, United Kingdom. nia. And there were new patterns, perhaps minor patterns but heartening for summer birders: single Short-tailed Albatrosses off Oregon, northern California, and southern California; a few Red-necked and Little Stints found on East and West Coasts (and inland, a Red-necked Stint at China Lake, California 13 June, and a Little Stint at Bitter Lake, New Mexico 31 May); single Lesser Sand-Plovers in Oregon, northern California, and Alaska; McKay’s Bunting possibly nesting at King Is¬ land, Alaska, and at Pauline Cove in the Yukon Territories in July; Manx Shearwaters off California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia — and two Manx behaving as though nesting at Middleton Island, Alaska, for most of July. Singular vagrants, admitted¬ ly fewer than in other seasons, were still im¬ pressive: Gray Flycatcher in Alberta; Gar- ganey at Bamegat, New Jersey; a possible Northern Jacana in Brownsville, Texas; Mag¬ nificent Hummingbird in South Dakota; Western Reef-Heron and two Little Egrets in Newfoundland; Tufted Duck in the Yukon; Black Turnstone in Arizona; Tropical King¬ bird in Louisiana; Spotted Towhee in Nunavut; and Masked Duck at Sarasota, Florida. But the seasons clear theme was the slight but startling influx of “Madrean” birds into new areas of the United States, whether as prospectors, vagrants, post-breeding dis¬ persants, or all-of-the-above. The Mexican Mountains and the Square (or Mostly Square) States Readers unfamiliar with the ecoregional designation of the “Madrean Pine-Oak Woodlands” may appreciate a sidebar here. This region, in broadest terms, includes about 461,265 km2 of Mexico’s main moun¬ tain chains: the Sierra Madre Occidental, the Sierra Madre Oriental, the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, the Sierra Madre del Sur, the Sierra Norte de Oaxaca, and isolated moun- taintop islands in Baja California (particu¬ larly around the Sierra de la Laguna); small¬ er enclaves of subtropical pine-oak woodland are also found on mountaintops in southern Arizona and New Mexico and in western Texas, where they are often called the “Madrean Sky Island Archipelago” by biologists. Pines, firs, and oaks of many species dom¬ inate the ecoregion; these pine-oak woodlands have an island-like dis¬ tribution because they are sur¬ rounded by more extensive floristic provinces, usually tropical or arid ones. This insular quality is espe¬ cially prominent in the northern Mexican Highlands (Sierra Madre Occidental) and the Madrean Sky Island Archipelago. Despite the isolation between these sky islands, bird species clear¬ ly move between them, as ornithologists and birders have noted familiarly in south¬ eastern Arizona, where small influxes of Aztec Thrushes, Eared Quetzals, and Plain- capped Starthroats have been observed for several decades. The source for such small invasions would seem obvious enough: the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental extend southward from the United States through Sonora, Chihuahua, Durango, 2010 VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 553 Nayarit, Sinaloa, to the Rio Grande de San¬ tiago in Jalisco. To the east, the Sierra Madre Oriental pine-oak forests reach their north¬ ern limit in West Texas and extend south¬ ward through Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi, Queretaro, and Gua¬ najuato. Both corridors stretch for over 1000 km into Mexico and serve as natural pathways for expansion or for “escape” flights during times of scarcity or natural disaster. Naturally, most of the birds appear¬ ing in the United States are found in some abundance in neighboring Mexico; and most of the birds we consider vagrants are regular (if some¬ times lit tie -known) con¬ stituents of the montane avifau¬ na of Mexican border states. As Ted Floyd has pointed out in a recent editorial in Birding (37: 570-571), one of the reper¬ cussions of the potential redis¬ covery of Ivory-billed Wood¬ pecker in Arkansas — at the heart of the continent, in a beautiful National Wildlife Refuge, just off an interstate highway, and “five miles from the nearest McDon¬ alds” — is the realization that the sport of birding has focused for decades on the liminal: Alaskan islands, the Florida Keys, the U.S./Mexican border, or pelagic waters. The woodpecker (whose confirmation, in the opinion of some, still awaits unequivocal published documenta¬ tion) was apparently right here among us: we failed to look for it, we failed to see it, and in so doing we lost decades that could have been devoted to its conservation and the preservation of its habitat. Our hobby took the easy short-cut to “rarities” — not the high road, and certainly not the most difficult path. We have been neophiles. And in rush¬ ing to the edges, we failed to see the very heart of the continent and its wonders. In our defense, sort of: most people live on the edges. Over half (55 percent or so) of all U.S. citizens now live in 772 coastal counties on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Great Lakes. Be¬ tween 1965 and 1995, coastal populations grew by 41 million, much faster than the country as a whole; and between 1960 and 1990, coastal population density in the Unit¬ ed States increased from 275 to nearly 400 people/km2. By 2025, nearly three-fourths of all U.S. citizens are expected to live in coastal/lacustrine counties. The least popu¬ lous parts of the Lower 48 — the western mountain ranges, the Great Basin, and the Great Plains — have, of course, the fewest residents, fewest birders, and the least bird¬ ing coverage. These Square States (or Hon¬ orary Square States, such as Nevada) in the continents interior are positioned north of Mexico, and it is these states, along with the country-sized state of Texas, that are most likely to be the first recipients of birds pio¬ neering northward from the Mexican moun¬ tains. We have, predictably and reasonably, sought Mexican birds on junkets to the Rio Grande Valley and southeastern Arizona over past decades, following what are pre¬ dictable and usually productive routes laid out in bird-finding guides. But recent years have shown us, to our common alacrity, that Madrean wanderers and their ilk are not lim¬ ited to these border areas: they are turning up across Texas, in southern California, the Great Plains, the Great Basin, the central Rockies, and even the Midwest. Despite their thin birding coverage (away from southeastern Arizona, yes), the Square States are turning in records that have cap¬ tured the attention of birders in the “rest” of the continent. Although the Greater Pewee, Red-faced Warbler, Painted Redstarts (two pairs), and Hepatic Tanager in the mountains of San Diego County, California were all re¬ markable “Madrean” records for the 2005 nesting season, as Guy McCaskie and Kim¬ ball Garrett point out, the flagship species this summer were surely White-eared Hum¬ mingbird, Short-tailed Hawk, and Tropical Parula. In order to make this point, I'll have to borrow a few autumn-season reports, with apologies to authors of the next Changing Seasons essay (who will probably find them¬ selves sorting through the complex devasta¬ tions and displacements of Katrina and Rita in any case). White-eared Hummingbird is a species for which most U.S. birders must make a pil¬ grimage, hoping it will be a “good year” in Miller Canyon or similar areas in the Huachuca Mountains and neighboring ranges. In some years, the species is quite scarce in the United States. Arizona was awash in White-eareds this season: at least 17 were reported, including one at Columbine, Graham County in the Pinaleno Mountains. Western Texas, where White-eared is always considered rare, had nearly as many as Ari¬ zona: 15 between Big Bend and the Davis Mountains! Another one in Texas was in Lubbock, just into the Panhandle, where the species is utterly unexpected. In New Mexi¬ co, a White-eared was near Cloudcroft 29-30 June, a first for the Sacramento Mountains and for southeastern New Mexico, and an¬ other was in Catron County 15 June. Farther north, in Colorado, single fe¬ males were found 40 km apart in the Durango area: one was dis¬ covered 19 June (and remained through 7 August), the other 20 July, which stayed through 21 August. These represented first records for Colorado. To see a Short-tailed Hawk in the United States once meant a trip to southern Florida. The species has begun to turn up of¬ ten enough, though still rarely, in Arizona and Texas (and now once in Alabama) that New Mexico birders have been on the lookout for it. A light-morph adult Short-tailed seen in late May in the Animas Mountains of New Mexico was photographed 28 June, a first confirmed state record. Arizona had reports of the species at Barfoot Park, in Carr Canyon, and also well to the north, in the Pinal Mountains near Globe in mid-June. The distribution of Tropical Parula in the United States has never been in doubt: southernmost Texas, a premier place of pil¬ grimage for so many species. Extra-Texas vagrants have reached southwestern Louisiana and southeastern Arizona on rare occasions. So when a male Tropical Parula, devoid of even a whiff of hybrid derivation, turned up on 18 June at Grandview Ceme¬ tery in Fort Collins, Colorado (where it sang through Independence Day), birders were stunned: the species had been found no closer than the Panhandle of Texas (almost a Square State in itself, if you will). Less her¬ alded but just as significant was the Tropical Parula seen for one day, 30 April, in the Gila Bird Area of southern New Mexico — also a state first. Near Austin, Texas, a pair of Trop¬ ical Parulas at Hamilton Pool, Travis Coun¬ ty tantalized birders through early June but were not reported thereafter (a Rufous- capped Warbler tarried in the same county). Though hardly an exclusively Madrean species, Tropical Parula is found up through 2000 m elevation in its range and occupies a wide variety of habitats, including pine-oak forest in some areas. Figure 2. On 17 June 2005, Camas National Wildlife Refuge employees Sid Brown and Farrel Downs spotted a small heron and called refuge manager Rob Larranaga, who identified it as a Least Bittern — a first record for Idaho. The bird was present through 19 June. Photograph by Dave Lawrence. 554 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS One could argue that these three species are just the tip of the iceberg, small patterns that fit fairly well with a host of southern species we have become more accustomed to seeing reported away from the Gulf Coast, Southwest, or South Texas: Cave Swallow (records from Colorado, Okla¬ homa, Arkansas, and Kansas this summer); Neotropic Cormorant (Kansas, Ontario, Colorado); Roseate Spoonbill (one in New Mexico; the fifth for the Texas Panhandle; five in Tennessee; 70+ from North Carolina to Georgia); Mottled Duck (Kansas; nesting in Arkansas); Black-bellied Whistling-Duck (Iowa’s eleventh and twelfth; Indiana’s second; one in Kansas). What Sandy Williams in the New Mexico re¬ gional report calls the “contin¬ ued northward expansion by warm-country species” would seem to be spilling out into the Not-At-All-Square states as well, with outlandish vagrants by any standards: an adult male Varied Bunting at Siesta Key, Florida 1 June; an adult male Broad-billed Flummingbird on the Outer Banks of North Car¬ olina 15 July; a Neotropic Cor¬ morant crossing state borders between Maryland and Virginia on the Potomac River between August and November. And, as if to underscore the pattern to those who might have overlooked it in June and July: an August White-eared Hummingbird and a November Short- tailed Hawk in Michigan. That’s Michigan. In November. As Johnny Carson was fond of saying: “That’s wild. This is some crazy stuff.” We are accustomed to the birds of conti¬ nent’s center appearing on both coasts. The Square States’ signature species make head¬ lines mostly when they turn up far out of range, often but not always coastally: this season’s Scissor-tailed Flycatchers in the Yukon Territory, New Brunswick (three!), Montana, Maine, Ohio (two), and Colorado; or Sage Thrashers at Cabot Head, Ontario and Churchill, Manitoba; or Western King¬ bird in the Northwest Territories, Pennsyl¬ vania, and Churchill; or White-winged Dove everywhere: Tennessee’s third, Min¬ nesota’s and British Columbia’s eighth, Ore¬ gon’s ninth, plus two birds in Michigan, five in Nebraska, and a possible nesting in Mis¬ souri and Arkansas. Likewise, we are com¬ fortable with Tamaulipan birds tip-toeing across the Rio Grande into Brownsville (which this summer had the first docu¬ mented U.S. nesting of Gray-crowned Yel- lowthroat since 1894) or nearly so (con¬ firmed nesting of Stygian Owl in Tamaulipas represented the first state record of the species; Texas currently has two records). But we are arguably ill-prepared — both as field folks who are looking and listening for particular species and as people who experi¬ ence a rush of adrenaline when something unusual appears in our field of view — for White-eared Hummingbird or Short-tailed Hawk in Michigan, much less on that state’s Upper Peninsula, a stone’s throw from Canada, and much less in November. (One has to wonder where the Tropical Parula was hiding in Michigan in 2005.) It may seem a trivial activity to reflect on our pre¬ paredness for extralimital birds, whether in¬ tellectual or emotional. But in fact, many identifications of birds are based on expec¬ tations, and many unusual birds are discov¬ ered by people who are prepared to look for and to document birds that others would not expect and thus often also overlook even when they see them. This essay is in part an exercise in expanding our expecta¬ tions such that all of us are able to refine our field birding: over the years, we pay careful attention to the changes in bird distribution and so look carefully at each frigatebird, each female teal, each flycatcher in order to rule out species that to less-prepared birders would seem far-fetched. In doing so, we try to explain how an unusual bird might find its way out of range — creating maps of “va¬ grancy shadows” to account for a Dark¬ sided Flycatcher on Bermuda; or showing the path of a hurricane inland; or plotting the autumn movements of Cave Swallows against weather maps. But the wandering Madrean birds of 2005 seemed both simple, in following the mountains northward, yet terribly unpredictable, in finishing the year so very far from home. Were the Michigan birds exceptional “reverse migrants,” as we like to call them, birds whose faulty orienta¬ tion took them northeastward rather than southwestward in autumn? The greater context for the surprising birds of summer 2005 is a familiar one in this journal: global climate change. “It’s simple physics,” as one climatologist, Dr. David Viner of the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, U.K., was quoted by BBC news this summer: “more greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, emis¬ sions growing on a global basis, and conse¬ quently increasing temperatures.” This Madrean season could, indeed, be consid¬ ered a pedestrian set of observations, as something neatly predicted by ornitholo¬ gists studying global climate change, after all — hardly sur¬ prising. But for those of us who have watched birds for decades, disbelief at the changes we are witnessing in bird distribution is something we experience nearly every time we log on to the computer and surf the web. The larger picture within the United States and Canada may not be as splashy as mangos and violet-ears (recorded this June in Texas) or other hum¬ mingbirds found in preposter¬ ous places, but it’s pretty splashy: Least Bittern setting up camp in Idaho (Figure 2) and Boulder County, Colorado, nesting pairs in southern Neva¬ da and eastern California, “healthy” numbers across Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, and 60 calling males in the Quebec portion of the Lake Cham¬ plain watershed; Blue Grosbeak and Sum¬ mer Tanager creeping northward in the Midwest, Pennsylvania, and southern New England; Blue-gray Gnatcatchers cutting a path northward through the continent’s center; and subtle, steady northward move¬ ments through wide areas of the West by Western Scrub-Jay, Lesser Goldfinch, Bushtit, and Bewick’s Wren. The signs of our own montane, if not Madrean, changes may already be all around us. In closing, we should take note that not all vagrants to the Square States are coming from the south: the American Three-toed Woodpecker in Morton County, Kansas 3-9 July was a first for the state. If there is a moral to this summer’s story: Some of the conti¬ nent’s most outlandish birding surely hap¬ pens on its fringes, but the heart of the con¬ tinent should never be underestimated. A Three-toed may not be an Ivory-billed, but, you know: I would have been delighted to find this little bird, busily scaling bark at a busy campground over the Independence Day holiday. And, yes, it was critically and patriotically identified as an American Three¬ toed. Pass the barbeque and the freedom fries, please. Figure 3. This Audubon's Shearwater was deposited on Kentucky Lake, Livingston and Marshall Counties, Kentucky by the remnants of Hurricane Dennis on 12 July 2005; it represents the first confirmed record of the species for interior North America. Image from videotape by David Roemer. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 555 Seabirds, hither and yon Die-off in the Atlantic Beginning about 9 June and continuing through early August 2005, over 900 seabirds — mostly shearwaters — turned up dead or dying on Atlantic beaches between Florida and Massachusetts. The bulk of the birds came from the Southeast, but signifi¬ cant numbers (78 shearwaters) came from as far north as Maryland/Virginia. Observers on populated barrier islands in the Southern At¬ lantic Bight (such as Hilton Head, South Car¬ olina) were the first to notice the phenome¬ non, which peaked from late June through the 4 July holiday period. Most of the afflict¬ ed birds (about two-thirds) were Greater Shearwaters, a species prone to periodic die¬ offs when prey items are scarce, but Sooty, Manx, Audubon’s, and Greater Shearwaters were also recorded, as well as a Northern Fulmar and a few Wilson’s Storm-Petrels. Just under half of the birds recorded came from Florida, especially Volusia and Brevard Counties, where the peak count was of 150 shearwaters in a single day in late June, and a tally of 291 Greaters came from Volusia beaches 21-27 June; Kiawah Island, South Carolina had up to 50 in one day, 13 June. In the course of scouring beaches for birds, vol¬ unteers found dozens of Northern Gannets, a Brown Booby (South Carolina), and many Common Loons but not in unusually high numbers for those species. Hundreds of these birds were admitted to wildlife rehabilitation or veterinary hospitals. As far as is known, all birds perished, even those in rehabilitation. Necropsies performed on several dozen carcasses submitted to the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, the USGS’s National Wildlife Health Center, and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Adminis¬ tration revealed that almost all birds were emaciated, but some had a fair amount of fat on the body, suggesting that starvation was not necessarily the cause of death for all in¬ dividuals, and indeed it is not unusual for Greater Shearwaters to be rather lean on ar¬ rival in U.S. waters in spring. Tests (still in progress) have ruled out Newcastle disease, West Nile virus, avian influenza, as well as poisoning by organochlorines, heavy metals, and algal biotoxins (such as those found in red tide), as culprits. (Some of the gannets tested showed signs of neurological impair¬ ment, and histopathology revealed unusual lesions on some birds’ brains.) Studies of this phenomenon are ongoing (tests for viral, bacterial, and fungal infec¬ tions in particular), and no clear cause has been determined for this die-off, which is comparable to similar events from 1969 and 1975. It is certainly true that changes in one or more ecologic parameters (seawater tem¬ perature, food resources, prevailing wind di¬ rection, etc.) can have disastrous effects on long-distance migrants such as Greater Shearwater, which cross the food-poor, wind-poor tropical Atlantic doldrums en route from Tristan da Cunha and Gough Is¬ lands to nonbreeding grounds in the north¬ ern North Atlantic. If the shearwaters arrive in the Southern Atlantic Bight to find little food and northerly winds that prevent them from continuing northward in search of food, the unfortunate result would likely be starvation. What was missed, again, in this mortality event was an opportunity to obtain a good set of specimens for further study. Necrop- sied birds are usually not suitable for prepa¬ rations as study skins, and because many of the birds found were long dead or water¬ logged, their skins were typically incinerated (for fear of contagion) or otherwise de¬ stroyed if tissue samples could not be ob¬ tained. Several hundred shearwater carcasses went unidentified to species, though a com¬ petent birder probably could have identified many of these; and the Cory’s Shearwaters found went unidentified to subspecies, a job for an ornithologist but a subject of particu¬ lar interest, given the pending A.O.U. split of Cape Verde Shearwater ( Calonectris edward- sii) from Cory’s, as well as the need for re¬ solving the distribution in our waters of both the nominate subspecies and borealis, the latter apparently the more numerous. Al¬ though status and distribution of seabirds should not be based on tideline corpses, as¬ sessing subspecies of Cory’s Shearwater specimens is a good example of a potentially interesting field project that does not rely on collecting live birds at sea. North of most of the season’s tubenose news, Wayne Petersen reports that New England’s summer saw another paucity of procellariids in inshore waters, apparently because small baitfish were again in short supply. “Based upon the modest totals of shearwaters on Stellwagen Bank and in the waters east of Chatham, Massachusetts in earlyjune, one gets the impression that soon after their arrival from the Southern Hemi¬ sphere, austral-breeding seabirds found little to eat,” Petersen writes, and that after an ear¬ ly (11 June) tally of hundreds of shearwa¬ ters, these birds went “essentially unreport¬ ed for the rest of the period, suggesting that [they] may have quickly dispersed after¬ ward.” Arctic and Common Terns, some 3500, also failed to raise any young to fledg¬ ing at Machias Seal Island, apparently for want of prey. Not all seabird sightings along the Atlantic coast were of dead or dying birds, but it was clear that many species were recorded in in¬ shore waters in much higher-than-normal numbers. At Cape May, New Jersey, sea- watchers were rewarded with frequent stud¬ ies of Sooty, Greater, and Manx Shearwa¬ ters — and even an Audubon’s Shearwater on 26 July — among the gull flocks near shore. Some 200 large shearwaters (at least 60 Cory’s) off John Lloyd State Park in Florida 24 June and at least 250 Cory’s off Long Is¬ land’s Robert Moses State Park 24 July must have been extraordinary sights; two Manx Shearwaters were seen at the latter site five days later, and three were off Jones Beach, Long Island 7 July. Two Manx off Norwalk, Connecticut 10 July represented just a sec¬ ond report of the species for the state; two visible from Rye, New York 15 June were also on Long Island Sound and were probably dif¬ ferent individuals. Inshore counts of Wilson’s Storm-Petrels were high from New Hamp¬ shire coast (1000+ on 9 July) to Long Island Sound (100+ in early July) to Chesapeake Bay (hundreds in July). In the North At¬ lantic, where South Polar Skuas are scarce, it is easy to forget that this species depends heavily on the shearwater flocks for its liveli¬ hood; singles seen just off the beach in North Carolina in June and July were probably fol¬ lowing the shearwaters inshore. Die-off in the Pacific Along the U.S. Pacific coast, from spring through early July, there was a lack of up- welling winds, very high sea surface temper¬ atures, a dearth of phytoplankton, and thus a scarcity of krill and other marine life. Among birds, the results of this food-chain collapse looked very like those in extreme El Nino events. There was especially high mor¬ tality among piscivores, reflected by ex¬ tremely large numbers of beached seabirds. Hundreds of Common Murres turned up emaciated and dying on beaches in July; mortality among Brandt’s Cormorants was 50-80 times the norm. In Oregon, Common Murres failed to breed, and in Washington, the few that bred did so a month late. In Cal¬ ifornia, biologists with PRBO Conservation Science documented complete breeding fail¬ ure of Cassin’s Auklets on Southeast Farallon Island, a place where seabirds have been monitored for nearly four decades and where the event was called “unprecedented.” Off¬ shore, counts of Marbled Murrelet, Cassin’s Auklet, and Rhinoceros Auklet were de¬ pressed, but Xantus’s Murrelets and Brown Boobies were noted off Washington/Oregon, as might be expected in a warm-water event, and many seabirds not expected in the Puget Trough were observed there. A remarkable tally of 49 South Polar Skuas came from nearshore waters off the Strait of Juan de Fuca over a week-long survey (5-12 June); the species is normally observed a month later, and its early arrival in such numbers was perhaps related to the scarcity of prey and of seabirds offshore. 556 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS A Bane of Hurricanes: the Summer Preamble The Square States, remote from salt water, rarely experience the breezes of a hurricane and thus almost never record species dis¬ placed from Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic wa¬ ters. But landlocked states east of the Missis¬ sippi River have, until recently, also had little familiarity with these storms and the birds they drive inland. As of the early twenty-first century, their shelter from the storms would seem to be ended. The autumn-season essay will review the record-breaking tropical storm season in detail, including some very unusual bird records. Although this summer’s storms supplied some areas with needed rain¬ fall, they damaged a great variety of habitats important to nesting, migrat¬ ing, and wintering birds. The storms’ history will ever be overshadowed by the monster hurricanes that followed them, but the summer storms were notable in their own right — never in recorded history (since 1886) had sev¬ en tropical storms formed before Au¬ gust. The debate continues about the connection of increasingly frequent (and stronger) Atlantic and probably also Pacific tropical cyclones with ris¬ ing sea surface temperatures, but one scientist, Kerry Emanuel (2005), finds that such storms have increased in in¬ tensity and duration by about 50 per cent since the 1970s, corresponding to increases in the average tempera¬ tures of the ocean surface and to in¬ creases in average global atmospheric temperatures in the same period Some scientists, notably Christopher Landsea (2005) with NOAA, dispute the findings because of Emanuel’s treatment of mid-century storms, for which data are incomplete. Other sci¬ entists, using computer models, sug¬ gest that increases in hurricane inten¬ sity and duration will not be noticeable until about 2050. In 2005, that was a hard argument to sell. Tropical Storm Arlene , which went ashore on the Florida panhandle on 11 June, was the first of the six tropical storms that came ashore in June and July, two of which, Den¬ nis and Emily, were major hurricanes — the largest number of major (Category 3+) hur¬ ricanes ever recorded in July. Hurricane Cindy, which hit southeastern Louisiana on 5 July, was a Category 1 storm. Few storm- displaced birds were reported as a result of the weaker storms. A Band-rumped Storm- Petrel and 45 Sooty Terns were noted in San¬ ta Rosa County, Florida as the remains of Cindy passed 6 July; a Cory’s and two Audubon’s Shearwaters on Texas beaches and a Brown Noddy at Padre Island Nation¬ al Seashore 21 July were the only reports from Emily. The big bird storm of the sum¬ mer was Hurricane Dennis, which hit less than a week after Cindy. Dennis was an im¬ portant storm from a historical perspective: it represented the earliest formation of a fourth tropical cyclone as well as the strongest hurricane ever to form before the month of August. After striking Cuba twice as a Category 4 storm (with winds just un¬ der Category 5 strength), its track took it to beaches wrecked by Ivan less than a year earlier, along the Alabama-Florida line, where it made landfall as a Category 3 storm on lOJuly. From there, it moved up through Alabama, into western Tennessee and Ken¬ Table 1. Sooty Terns recorded inland in the United States as a result of Hurricane Dennis, 10-24 July 2005. Noddies along various 2 Newnan's L., Alachua, FL lOJul 17 Henry, AL 11 Jul 1 Lee, AL 11 Jul 4 Chickamauga Dam, Hamilton, IN 11 Jul 1 Tallahassee, Leon, FL 11 Jul 14 Pickwick L., Hardin, TN 11 Jul 26 L. Seminole, GA 11 Jul 17 L. Walter F. George, GA 11 Jul 5 Colbert, AL 12 Jul 4 Tishomingo, MS 12 Jul 1 Gibson, TN 12 Jul 1 J. Percy Priest L., Davidson, TN 12 Jul 1* Putnam, TN 12 Jul 6+ Kentucky L„ KY 12-15 Jul 1 Green Turtle Bay, KY 12 Jul 2-3 Smithland Dam, KY 13 Jul 1 near New Richmond, Campbell, KY 12 Jul 12 West Point L., GA 12 Jul 5 Lauderdale/Lawrence, AL 13 Jul 4 L. Oliver, near Columbus, GA 13 Jul r near Nashville, Washington, IL 13 Jul (second state record) i Eastfork Lake S.P., Clermont, OH 13-19 Jul 2* Franklin, FL 14 Jul i Carlyle L., IL 17-25 Jul (third state record) i Conejohela Flats, Lancaster, PA 24 Jul Asterisks indicate dead birds. tucky 1 1 July, and the next day into south¬ ern Illinois, where the tropical depression stalled for a bit before moving eastward. It was the first taste of a hurricane to transit Ohio in 50 years. If for no other reason, Dennis will be re¬ membered for its rarest waif, a beautifully documented Audubon’s Shearwater on Ken¬ tucky Lake, Kentucky 12 July (Figure 3). To put this in perspective: the species has never even been reported inland, much less pho¬ tographed; and: the only other tubenose as¬ sociated with this storm inland was an unidentified storm-petrel at West Point Lake, Georgia 11 July. Landfalling Gulf hur¬ ricanes, if not notable for entraining tubenoses, are every bit as tern-rich as At¬ lantic hurricanes. In addition to 144 Sooty Terns, 127 Bridled Terns, and nine Brown Gulf and Atlantic coast sites in Florida, there were reports from nine states of 130 displaced Sooty Terns (Table 1), probably just a small proportion of the Sooty Terns actually driven inland. As is typical, Sooties appeared for a shorter stay in areas near the point of landfall and lingered a bit longer (or were found later) in the states farthest from landfall: Illinois, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Two reports of inland Bri¬ dled Terns were far more unusual: one at Pickwick Lake, Tennessee 1 1 July and two at Mermet Lake, Illinois 12 July — both poten¬ tially first state records. This skewed Sooty:Bridled ratio is expected; Bridled Terns seem not to be displaced as far inland (or as often far inland) as Sooties, though the species is usually abundant in the Gulf of Mexico and Gulf Stream, at least in late summer and fall. (The Bridled Tern visiting a Bird Island, Massachu¬ setts ternery in June was a true rarity — and had no association with a tropical storm.) Also far rarer than Sooty far in¬ land, at least in the context of these hurricanes, single Royal Terns were noted 1 1 July on Pickwick Lake, Ten¬ nessee; in Wilcox County, Alabama; at Lake Walter L George, Georgia; and in Henry County, Alabama; four more were present that day at Lake Semi¬ nole, Georgia. As usual, a scattering of several dozen Laughing Gulls and var¬ ious other terns (inland Common in Mississippi, two Leasts inland in Geor¬ gia) were probably connected to the storm’s passage. Single Parasitic Jaegers inland — on Pickwick Lake, Tennessee 1 1 July, on Seminole Lake, Georgia the same day, and at Presque Isle State Park, Pennsylvania (and Conneaut Harbor, Ohio) 17 July — were probably best explained as storm waifs: mid¬ summer jaegers in these parts are rare and essentially never Parasitics. Inland Willets in Alabama 11 July and Geor¬ gia 10-11 July were not identified to sub¬ species; they may have been displaced nom¬ inate birds from the coast or perhaps just as easily storm-grounded migrants of the prairie race, inomatus. Pelecaniforms and other problems Gut-wrenching as these hurricanes may be, for birds and people alike, we birders are at minimum able to understand, if only crude¬ ly, one relationship between bird movements and weather, something that eludes us in so many other cases of bird distribution. How¬ ever, not all seabirds’ movements can be ac¬ counted for by studying weather charts. Ex- tralimital appearances of frigatebirds, pelicans, and sulids are often more difficult to connect with tropical storm activity than are those of shearwaters or Sooty Terns, in VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 557 SEASONS part because they wander widely outside the context of such storms, in part because they often linger and wander for long periods af¬ ter being so displaced; the same is true of Laughing Gulls, Wood Storks, Roseate Spoonbills, herons and egrets, and, more rarely, flamingos. Hurricane Dennis was clearly responsible for the two-dozen Mag¬ nificent Frigatebirds recorded in Florida’s in¬ terior 10 July, as well as the 50 or more seen coastally around Alligator Point, Florida the next day. Adjacent Georgia had 13 frigate- birds inland 9-11 July. But the species also turned up well out of range outside the con¬ text of tropical storms: three along the North Carolina coast (5-23 June), singles offshore in South Carolina and Georgia (15 and 23 July, respectively), one at the east end of Long Island, New York (28 July-early Au¬ gust), two at Cape May (19-30 July), and one at South Beach, Massachusetts (22 July). Were some of these later July birds drifters displaced by Dennis ? Brown Pelicans in the continents interior have been making headlines for several years now. Single juveniles at Chickamauga Dam, Tennessee 11 July (and later) and at Lake Allatoona, Georgia 12 July were said to be connected to Dennis, but one at Lake Monroe, Indiana 29 July and one that trad¬ ed between Minnesota (its first) and Iowa (its tenth) on Spirit Lake 14-27 July (a bird that turned up at months end at Saylorville, Iowa) were not mentioned in connection with that storm. Once again this summer. Brown Pelicans from the Gulf of California began to wander: at least 65 were found in Arizona (north to Roosevelt Lake), hun¬ dreds were in southern California at the Salton Sea (and dozens scattered through desert and even mountain lakes to the north), and over 60 in the Mexicali Valley of the Baja California Peninsula. Three single juvenile Brown Pelicans that showed up far¬ ther east — 17 June in Clark County, Nevada; mid-July in El Paso, Texas; 10-18 June in Weld and Larimer Counties, Colorado — were almost certainly not storm-driven and probably came from the Gulf of California, though distinguishing juvenile califomicus from carolinensis (or even the small nomi¬ nate subspecies) is not possible in the field, at least on current knowledge, as Chris Wood, Tony Leukering, and Bill Schmoker note. Juvenile Brown Pelicans at Lake Liv¬ ingston in eastern Texas 9 July and the El Paso bird (1190 km away at the state’s other end) were possibly of different taxa. A juve¬ nile Brown Pelican 9 July in Carter County, Oklahoma was, well, a toss-up. Pelecaniforms almost never seen inland or from mainland in the United States, trop- iebirds made news in two places. Two White¬ tailed Tropicbirds at Florida’s Boynton Inlet 9 July were clearly moved inshore by Dennis, but the Red-billed Tropicbird seen 9-11 July in the Gulf of Maine — flying among breeding Common Murres — could not be tied to any storm. More bizarre still were two first state reports for Northern Gannet: in western Arkansas at Bull Shoals Lake 25 July and in eastern Oklahoma at Broken Bow Lake four days later. These locations are near enough to one another (about 300 km) that the same bird could be involved. But who thinks of gannets in Arkansas or Oklahoma? (And what a hat-trick for the square-state-lister: “Yeah, I saw the Three-toed in Kansas, the gannet in Oklahoma, and the Ivory-billed in Arkansas. It was wild. Some crazy stuff.”) Projects aplenty Speaking of state lists, 2005 was a good year for Big Years, an undertaking that rarely gets much notice in these pages but one that is responsible for many of the field-hours that produce the publishable records in these pages. In Michigan, it was a good year to do a Big Year, and regional editor Adam Byrne topped his own (and the state’s) highest mark by seeing, and documenting, 328 species there. Ricky Davis, regional editor for fourteen years in the Southern Atlantic region, closed the year with 348 species in North Carolina, highest ever for that or any surrounding state. Birders who take on am¬ bitious year-long projects such as these are often underappreciated by scientists who study birds, or even dismissed as “hobby¬ ists.” But these amateurs — whose knowl¬ edge of bird distribution at the state level is encyclopedic, whose instincts about when and where and under what weather condi¬ tions to look for migrants and vagrants are honed through years of experience and study — are often the first to discover a new aspect of bird distribution, one that can sometimes then be studied by ornitholo¬ gists. This is just as true offshore as onshore, just as true in the heart of the continent as on its periphery. To be sure, ornithologists in the field make exciting, serendipitous dis¬ coveries that expand our knowledge of bird distribution as well — quite often of birds that do not form the subject of their field study. Flammulated Owl, known only as a migrant in Wyoming until recently, was the subject of a search by Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory team this summer, which found 10 territorial birds in the Battle Creek drainage of that state. Biologists with the U.S. Geological Survey counted 410 Kit- tlitz’s Murrelets off Unalaska Island, Alaska in June — a fine tally for this declining seabird. Biologists conducting a long-term study of seabirds on the Coronado Islands off Baja California found a Cory’s Shearwa¬ ter returning to an apparent nest site be¬ tween March and October 2005 — a long way from home. Was it originally displaced to the Pacific Ocean by a hurricane that crossed the Central American isthmus? For most of us, Big Years and long-term research projects are beyond the realm of possibility; our birding takes place in mo¬ ments stolen from a life full of other activi¬ ties and demands. But the possibility of fas¬ cinating discoveries is not only for the hard-core. The Important Bird Areas pro¬ gram of National Audubon Society has many volunteer projects on the state level that have turned up some marvelous birds and generated a wealth of new information about scarce nesting species. Among the re¬ sults of such projects published in this issue are raptor nest searches in Iowa and a Gold¬ en-winged Warbler search in western Vir¬ ginia. Breeding Bird Surveys (and Atlasses) are superb ways to maximize field time in a way that challenges the senses and invari¬ ably produce surprising birds. This sum¬ mer, the ongoing Ontario Breeding Bird At¬ las project added a new breeding species to the provincial list — Ross’s Goose, of which two nests were found near Cape Henrietta Maria. This year also marked publication of the Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas, an incredi¬ ble resource for people curious about the avifauna of that handsome state. The 2005 nesting season was the final one for the New York State atlas and the first year for the Ohio atlas. As Victor Fazio writes of the latter project: “The initiation of the second Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas project in 2006 comes at a time well suited to documenting in detail whether these sporadic reports [of extralimital southern birds] represent real range expansions in the wake of what has amounted to a fifteen-year heat wave in the Region.” Whether you’re in Ohio or any¬ where else, jump feet-first into an atlas proj¬ ect or a B.B.S. route: you won’t believe what’s out there. Acknowledgments I thank Becky Harris (Tufts University), Di¬ ane Duncan (Ecological Services Office in Charleston, South Carolina), and Emi Kate Saito (U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wiscon¬ sin) for their assistance with the seabird sec¬ tion of the essay. Literature cited Emanuel, K. 2005. Increasing destructive¬ ness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years. Nature 436: 686-688 (4 August 2005). Landsea, C. W. 2005. Meteorology: hurri¬ canes and global warming. Nature 438: E22-E12 (22 December 2005). Leukering, T., and B. Gibbons. 2005. The Changing Seasons: Spring 2005 — early and late. North American Birds 59: 386- 394. © 558 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS in emuTiiis The ABA's online birder resource to travel companies and destinations, as well as birding products and equipment. For rates and information, go to the ABA website at www.americanbirding.org/ netconnections American Birding" ASSOCIATION Looking for a Birding AdventureP Go offshore with SCcll)ir(liil^ For more information contact Brian Patteson Seabirding P.O. Box 772 Hatteras NC 27943 (252) 986-1363 http://www.seabirding.com Pelagic trips since 1986 Departures from Virginia Beach, VA Oregon Inlet, NC Hatteras, NC aboard the best & fastest boats available Friendly knowledgeable leaders with extensive offshore experience Chum for bringing the birds close Winter trips for Great Skua and alcids Spring & summer trips for Gulf Stream specialties including rare Pterodromas and tropicbirds Late summer trips for White-faced Storm-Petrel Scoot on over to the VIREO web site ■ . R^b'R / tj I itsja L / / -1-1 30,000 photos on line r f ' §%-. ...R. - V - ? ■ Lecture Slides and JPEG’s — - r,.. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 559 EDITORS Notebook Our editorial family has lost one of its most energetic and enthusias¬ tic members, Jim Granlund, who passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in 2005. He was one of Michigan’s most re¬ spected birders and naturalists, and we will miss his many excellent contributions here. Please read Jack Reinoehl’s memorial piece in this issue. Adam Byrne, a lifelong Michi¬ gan birder and Chair of that state’s records committee, will join Peder Svingen in edit¬ ing the Western Great Lakes regional re¬ ports. Adam has worked as the Michigan subregional editor for several years, and we welcome him on board! A series of setbacks have caused us to miss the recent spring report from Ontario as well as the winter and spring reports from Idaho & Western Montana. We thank Margaret J. C. Bain, Matthew Holder, and David Trochlell for stepping in to get us caught up on these reports, which are in¬ cluded in the present issue. Margaret Bain will now be in charge of two of Ontario’s re¬ ports, spring and fall, while Maris Apse (apsemaris@hotmail.com), an avid Ontario birder and Board member of the Ontario Field Ornithologists, will take over the winter season editorial desk from Hugh Currie, who has worked in that capacity since 2001. Our deepest thanks to Hugh for these years of service! Corrigenda An image caption — included by the editor rather than the author — that begins: “Al¬ though no living bird artist has seen a live Ivory-billed Woodpecker...” ( N.A.B . 59: 213) met with a correction from reader Gail Mackiernan: “The cover of the spring 1999 Cotinga has a cover illustration by Pedro Regalado, who saw an Ivory-billed Wood¬ pecker in Cuba in the mid-1980s. It is my understanding that this image was based in part on personal experience.” A happy thing to be corrected on! Another editorial insertion, in the last line of the “Changing Seasons” essay (N.A.B. 59: 394), implied that Canada had no accepted records of Eurasian Tree Sparrow. To the contrary, not¬ ed Alan Wormington, Canada has at least four such records. The editor here is the one who dines on crow; the essay’s authors, Tony Leukering and Brian Gibbons, were not the source of the sparrow gaffe. For the record, the approved records are: 1) St. Francois, Manitoba, 2 November 1986 through 22 January 1991 (a male that mat¬ ed with House Sparrows; DNA extracted from the youngsters indicated probable provenance of the father from the Missouri population of Eurasian Tree Sparrows; Birds of Manitoba [2003]); 2) Edenhurst, Ontario 16-18 February 1994; 3) Sturgeon Creek, Ontario, 20 May 1999; and 4) Leamington, Ontario, 24 August 2003 (possibly the same individual as the Sturgeon Creek bird). The latter three records will be pub¬ lished in The Rare Birds of Ontario: A Cata¬ logue of Distributional Records, on which Alan Wormington is hard at work. Thanks to Alan for keeping his eye on the spar¬ row — and for reading the Changing Sea¬ sons to its very last word! This volume has also had a few misla¬ beled images. We apologize to Earl Horn, whose excellent image of the Dusky- capped Flycatcher in the Texas Photo Sa¬ lon (N.A.B. 59: 368) was miscredited. In recent Pictorial Highlights, the juvenal- plumaged Clay-colored Sparrow (N.A.B. 59: 192) was not a first for the Bahamas as stated but rather apparently a first in this plumage for the Bahamas. A New Jersey Western Tanager (N.A.B. 59: 413) was not the Garret Mountain bird, as captioned, but rather a long-staying bird that win¬ tered (into April) at a feeding station in Absecon, near Atlantic City; the photo¬ graph was taken 31 January 2005. We also apologize to Michael A. Savino, whose photograph of the Fork-tailed Flycatcher (N.A.B. 59: 371) was miscredited. Finally, the caption for the Cave Swallow (N.A.B. 59: 51) should have referenced Monroe County, not “Hamlin County” in New York (Hamlin is a town in northwestern Monroe County). © STANDARD ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS USED IN THE REGIONAL REPORTS * specimen collected + bird(s) seen through end of period t written details on file A.F.B. Air Force Base acc. accepted by records committee A.R.C. Avian Records Committee b. banded B.B.S. Breeding Bird Survey B.O. Bird Observatory B.R.C. Bird Records Committee C.A. Conservation Area C.B.C. Christmas Bird Count C.P. County Park cm centimeter(s) Cr. Creek Ft. Fort G.C. Golf Course G.P. Game Preserve Hwy. Highway 1. (Is.) Island(s), lsle(s) imm. (imms.) immature(s) Jet. Junction juv. (juvs.) juvenal [plumage]; juvenile(s) km kilometer(s) L. Lake mm millimeter(s) m.ob. many (or multiple) observers Mt. (Mts.) Mount/Mountain (Mountains) N.A. Nature Area, Natural Area N.F. National Forest N.M. National Monument N.P. National Park N.S. National Seashore N.W.R. National Wildlife Refuge p.a. pending acceptance P.P. Provincial Park Pen. Peninsula ph. photographed (by + initials) Pt. Point (not Port) R. River R.A. Recreation(al) Area R.B.A. Rare Bird Alert R.P. Regional Park R.S. Regional Shoreline Res. Reservoir Rte. Route S.B. State Beach S.F. State Forest S.G.A. State Game Area S.P. State Park S.R.A. State Recreation Area S.R. State Reserve S.W.A. State Wildlife Area S.T.P. Sewage Treatment Plant/Pond subad. (subads.) subadult(s) Twp. Township v.r. voice recording (by + initials) vt. videotape (by 4 initials) W.A. Wildlife Area W.M.A. Wildlife Management Area W.T.P. (Waste)water Treatment Plant/Pond 560 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS One of the rarest, most beautiful, and most mysterious birds in the world, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker has reappeared in the deep swamp forests of Arkansas. Feared extinct for decades, the species may also persist elsewhere within its former range, as significant remnants (if the great southern forests are being protected and nurtured back to their former glory. The magnificent Ivory-billed Woodpecker speaks to us about our past, and about hopes for our future. This was a bird of the ancient forests. When we clear-cut the old growth southern forests, humans virtually eliminated the special haunts of this magnificent species. By securing and restoring large expanses of forest across the southern U.S. and allowing these places to grow old in their natural condition, we can hope that one day Ivory-billed Woodpeckers will again grace the treetops of our great southern forests. Your purchase of this coffee directly aids the Big Woods Conservation Partnership in the securing and restoration of the Ivory-bill habitat. Money raised from sales of the Ivory-bill blend is shared by the ABA and the BWCP. This shade grown, organic and fair trade coffee from Nicaragua, grown as the understory of the forest, also maintains winter feed¬ ing habitat for our neotropical migrants and provides the farmers of the cooperative with a living wage from growing coffee in a healthy and sustain¬ able environment. Ivory-billed Woodpecker $9.50 Available in a light or dark roast and decaf OTHER FLAVORS OF SONGBIRD COFFEE AVAILABLE AT ABA SALES: Item # 13688, Costa Rican $9.50 Item# 13686, Item # 13687, Hazelnut $9.50 Guatemalan $9.50 Item# 13689, French Roast $9.50 Item# 13690, Nicaraguan $9.50 ,HADtC*OWI Item # 13691, Panama $9.50 American Birding' ASSOCIA TION ABA SALES 800-634-7736 • www.americanbirding.org Item# 14686, Decaf $10.50 James Garrett Granlund 5 February 1957-20 September 2005 On 20 September 2005, Jim Granlund, Editor for the West¬ ern Great Lakes Region of this journal since 1992, taught his usual classes at Comstock High School, east of the town of Kalamazoo, Michigan. That evening, he went to a health club to exercise, as he often did. As he com¬ pleted exercising, his heart failed, he collapsed and could not be revived. Jim was 48 years old. It falls on me, in memorializing Jim, to introduce him to readers who never had the opportunity to know him. Ones first impression upon meeting Jim was that this is a friendly guy, a big friendly guy, into whose hand ones own hand disappeared. On closer acquaintance, other qualities came to the fore, chief among them an uncommon generosity. Once you knew Jim, things that be¬ longed to him also belonged to you. I can remember on numerous occasions having to just about force him to accept my share of money for gasoline after a day in the field. This generosity extend¬ ed to giving of time, and his many con¬ tributions to Michigan birding and or¬ nithology were a result of the depth of his generosity. Too, Jim’s general compe¬ tence in the small and big things of life inspired confidence in all who knew him. From changing a tire in the rain on a Big Day to producing a professional quality portfolio of butterfly photo¬ graphs in 2005 to nursing his injured Newfoundland dog back to health, Jims versatility was ever apparent. His mar¬ velous argumentativeness was another feature of his personality. We defer to the comments of Jim’s good friend and predecessor as editor Dave Powell: “Never ones to avoid an argument, Jim and I would often take differing view¬ points, but moments after the end of even the most heated discussions, Jim was there with a laugh and a smile. I don’t think I have ever known a person to hold so few grudges.” Jim could ar¬ gue contrary positions in rather quick IN MEMORIAM 562 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS succession — an expression both of his great spirit and his love of debate. Jim grew up in Gaylord in the north¬ ern Lower Peninsula of Michigan, where his love of the north country was born. He attended college at Northern Michigan University, studying chem¬ istry and biology. After graduation, he moved to Kalamazoo in 1980, complet¬ ing his education at Western Michigan University and beginning a career of teaching high school. The birding com¬ munity in Kalamazoo was vigorous at that time, centered at the Kalamazoo Nature Center, where Ray Adams would soon be initiating the Michigan Breed¬ ing Bird Atlas project. Another Kalama¬ zoo resident, Dave Powell, was among the state’s most active birders. As Jim became absorbed in birding, it was his nature to seek and accept responsibility and to exert every effort to see that things were done correctly. A measure of the extent of Jim’s in¬ volvement on the Michigan scene can be gleaned from his biographical sketch in the 1991 Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Michigan , which lists the following activ¬ ities: compiler of the Michigan Bird Sur¬ vey since 1987, secretary of the Michigan Bird Records Committee, Chairperson of the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory Re¬ search Committee, and Curator of the Kalamazoo Nature Center avian collec¬ tion. To these can be added his work on the Atlas itself, to which he contributed much field work and several species ac¬ counts, and on the book The Birds of Michigan , published in 1994, which was taking shape at that time and of which he was to be the principal author. Of these various efforts, the closest to his heart was his involvement with the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory (WPBO). In addition to many years of service on the WPBO Board, on which he supervised employee record-keeping, Jim was editor and frequent writer for the WPBO newsletter for many years, volunteer raptor and waterbird counter on many occasions, and compiler of the WPBO Christmas Bird Count. To raise money for the Observatory, he participat¬ ed in birdathons and led some of WPBO’s winter tours. Many people saw their first Great Gray and Northern Hawk Owls on these tours, and a few lucky people once got to see a Boreal Owl on a tour Jim led. In a less official capacity, he was a regu¬ lar visitor in chases of the startling rari¬ ties that frequently show up at the Point. His wife Cheryl has been the long-time manager of the WPBO gift shop. Few can match Jim’s length of service to WPBO, and no one comes close to the depth of his contributions to the organization. During the decade of the 1990s, Jim’s level of institutional activities dimin¬ ished somewhat with the addition of two daughters to his family. He traded his post as one of the compilers of the Michigan bird survey for that of Region¬ al Editor for American Birds in 1992, when Dave Powell moved to California. He, Dave, and myself formed the nucle¬ us of groups that went on three overseas birding trips during the decade, to Ecuador, Malaysia, and Africa, journeys that were immensely enjoyable and eye¬ opening. Jim greatly looked forward to the arrival of each new volume of the Handbook of the Birds of the World. In spite of the attraction of exotic regions, Jim’s favorite style of birding was proba¬ bly the lakewatch, most often at WPBO. Few surpassed him in the ability to identify the distant loons and ducks mi¬ grating past the point — often at great distance and in bad light — and few more enjoyed disputing the identifica¬ tion of those distant specks. Also in the 1990s, along with myself, Jim developed an interest in butterflies. He realized that just as wandering bird species regularly find their way to Whitefish Point, the site also had the po¬ tential to host vagrant butterflies. On 18 August 2001, he photographed a Fune¬ real Duskywing at that location, an addi¬ tion to the Michigan state butterfly list. In 2003, Jim accepted another impor¬ tant responsibility that earned the ap¬ preciation his birding peers. The journal Michigan Birds and Natural History had fallen behind in its publishing schedule, and vigorous intervention was needed to keep it going. Though perhaps feel¬ ing some reluctance at accepting this difficult task, Jim applied great energy to the job, writing some articles and en¬ couraging others to contribute. At the same time, he skillfully dealt with such issues as financing the journal, choos¬ ing an appropriate printing company, and locating good photography and art¬ work for the journal. The passing of this big rugged man has been an especially terrible shock for his family and his friends. So long a fix¬ ture of Michigan birding, Jim seemed in¬ destructible, tireless, larger than life. In June of 2002, he was in a head-on auto¬ mobile collision and broke many of the large bones in his body. Visiting him in the hospital, I saw that his cheerfulness had not failed him even there. 1 remem¬ ber the first time after the accident that 1 saw him on an outing, walking with a cane and enjoying an unprecedented birding event for Michigan: a Swallow¬ tailed Kite and two Mississippi Kites for¬ aging over an orchard near his home. A year later, his recovery was essentially complete. Jim, we are in equal measure deeply grateful to have known you and deeply saddened at your passing. — Jack Reinoehl Contributions to a memorial fund hon¬ oring the memory of Jim Granlund may be sent to Whitefish Point Bird Observa¬ tory, 16914 North Whitefish Point Road, Paradise, Michigan 49768. Checks should be made payable to WPBO/MAS, with “Granlund Memorial” in the memo space. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 563 . . . . . . . c . c f St. Pierre et Miquelon >Killinek I K v, LABRADOR r h ATorngat Mtns. N. P. ) u . SEA *Hebron LABRADOR A_ i Cape Harrison Nain / * , Hopedale V Cartwright Schefferville (PQ) Esker* J V . /OAea!^ Z Gannet Island Ecological Reserve Smallwood Mtns. Res. • ■ N. P. * _ Goose Bay •Churchill Falls Labrador City \ Wabush y^uifof Anticosti I. St. Lawrence Port-aux- Basques • Strait of Belle Isle UAnse-aux-Meadows St. Anthony Gander NEWFOUNDLAND V • i *Bonavista Terr# Nova \ St. John’s N.P f ‘ T Avalon \ ik \ Peninsula J *\*\Cape Saint-Pierre ^ Race 'Gros ■ Morne N. P. "Corner Brook Charlotte- Cabot Strait et Miquelon town ~ East MCape Breton Highlands N.P. Pt. *■#, Sydney • Cape Breton I . Moncton- - a •Canso coin* ?B r NOVA SCOTIA -Dartmouth Cape St. Mary’s Sable I. Cape Sable I. Lettered Nova Scotia Sites: A Pictou B Amherst C Truro D Wolfville E Digby Bruce Mactavish 37 Waterford Bridge Road St. John's, Newfoundland A1E 1C5 (bruce.mactavish1@nf.sympatico.ca) he paucity of reports makes this summer report unusually thin but JL hardly paltry. Two new species for Canada were found — a Red-billed Trop- icbird in New Brunswick and a Western Reef-Heron in Newfoundland. Two Little Egrets and a Bar-tailed Godwit were in New¬ foundland, and New Brunswick had three Scissor-tailed Flycatchers and a Western Tanager. Abbreviation: G.M.I. (Grand Manan I., NS) LOONS THROUGH CRANES The eventual occurrence of a Red-billed Tropicbird in the Region has been anticipat¬ ed (particularly in light of recent reports from New England and an August 1876 re¬ port from the Newfoundland Banks [R E. Freke]), but the circumstances and location of the actual first record were a little surpris¬ ing. The Region’s first Red-billed Tropicbird was an ad. observed by a boatload of tourists and the lighthouse keeper Ralph Eldridge at Machais Seal I., NB 11 Jul (Andy Patterson et ah). Identifiable photographs of the trop¬ icbird flying among breeding-plumaged Common Murres confirm the identification and location. A Great Egret was far n. at Eel River Bar, NB 13 Jun (Mike Lushington). A Tricolored Heron was at Three Fathom Har¬ bour, NS 18-19 Jun (Anna Kozlowski). Crit¬ ically identified ad. Little Blue Herons in Newfoundland were singles at Cape Freels 3 Jul (Diane Burton) and Frenchman’s Cove, Burin Pen. 7-14 (fide PL). Single Snowy Egrets were at the Isthmus of Miquelon 28 Jul (fide RE), at Apple River, Cumberland, NS 1 Jun (Blaine Spicer), and on Brier I., NS 2 Jun (EM); 2 were at Lawrencetown, NS 7 Jul (Don MacNeill). A Black Vulture was with Common Ravens in a field near Canard, Kings, NS 12 Jun (EM), and another was reported from Naufrage, PEI 29Jul (Gerald MacDonald). A pair of Brant was thought to have attempted nesting in Jun in a raspberry patch on Sheep I., NB, in the Bay of Fundy (fide BD). The Tundra Swan that showed up in the Codroy Valley, NL moved to Cape Freels for the summer. Four male Eurasian Wigeons were found in Jun: one at Central Hampstead, Queens, NB 9 Jun (ST); one at Cap Brule, NB 11 Jun (Norm Belliveau); one at Tracadie, NB 12 Jun (Jocelyne Godin); and one at Mount Stewart, PEI 8 Jun (DS). If these are post-breeding drakes, then where did they nest? Every year, there are Jun sightings of male Eurasian Wigeons in the Region, but no evidence of breeding and no hybrid wigeons have been reported. An unseasonal and rare sighting of Redhead was at Brier I., NS 1 Jun (EM). The 3 male and 2 female Ruddy Ducks at the Memramcook, NB sewage ponds 1 1 Jun were at least partly re¬ sponsible for the mixed flock of 20 ads. and young found there later in summer (Marc LeBlanc). A pair of Rough-legged Hawks was seen 15 Jul at Colombier I., St. Pierre et Miquelon, where nesting is nearly annual (RE). No details were received on a pair present all summer and suspected of nesting at Black Brook, Victoria, NB. Mid-summer Sandhill Cranes are annual in the Region, raising suspicion that nesting must be oc¬ curring somewhere locally. This year, there were individuals at Juniper, Carleton, NB 12 Jun (Yvon Beaulieu) and Yarmouth, NS all summer ( fide BD). Stephenville Crossing, in sw. Newfoundland, was put on the North American birding map with a long-staying Western Reef-Heron and a Little Egret this season. The Little Egret arrived first, found on 30 May (Monique Vassallo et al.). The Western Reef-Heron ar¬ rived 14 Jun. It was first identified as a Little Blue Heron but was properly identified two weeks later by Paul Line- gar when photos were published on the Internet. The birds kept dose company and were observed nearly dai¬ ly into Sep by numerous out-of-province birders. The birds were on occasion observed displaying, including passing a stick back and forth, but there was no sugges¬ tion of actual nesting. This is the 2nd record of Western Reef-Heron in North America. The first was on Nantucket I., MA Apr-Sep 1983. The Newfoundland bird has been identified as the nominate race (gularis) from w. Africa, based on bluish-gray lores, grayish bill lacking yellow, all-dark legs with yellow feet, and fairly uniform dark body. Another Little Egret was present at Cape Freels in late May (m.ob.). These represent the 6th and 7th sight¬ ings of Little Egret in Newfoundland. 564 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS SHOREBIRDS THROUGH TERNS Four nests of Piping Plover at Miquelon in Jun is encouraging from the e. limit of the breeding range (RE, LJ). In Prince Edward Island, a province-wide survey detected 80 ad. Piping Plovers, down from 112 in 2001 ( fide BD). A lone American Oystercatcher continued to wander among the outer is¬ lands of the Grand Manan Archipelago, NB for another summer (fide BD). The usual two pairs nested at Cape Sable I., NS (MN). At least one of two pairs of Willets at Stephenville Crossing, NL hatched young in Jul (BMt). This is only the 2nd known nest¬ ing location for Newfoundland. An estimat¬ ed two dozen Upland Sandpipers at Penn- field Barrens, Charlotte, NB in early Jul is an extraordinary number for the Region (fide BD). The first Whimbrel report of the season was from the Isthmus, St. Pierre et Miquelon, a typical location, with 5 on 28 Jun (LJ). There was an impressive count of 225 Whimbrel at Hart I., Guysborough , NS (Tom Kavanaugh). Eighty- three Hudsonian Godwits at Maisonette Dune, NB was a nice concentration (Marcel David). Newfound¬ land’s 3rd Bar-tailed Godwit at Stephenville Crossing 12-31 Jul was found by heron watchers (EM et al.). It was identified as baueri (the Alaskan breeding subspecies), I based on heavily barred underwing coverts and a dark lower back. A new high of 10 pairs of Laughing Gulls nested at Machias Seal I., NB, the only known breeding site in the Region, though there was a rumor of a pair nesting on Sable I., NS (fide BD). A first-summer Little Gull was at Portugal Cove South, NF 6-10 Jul (Dave Shepherd et ah). Nesting Black-head¬ ed Gulls fared well at the oldest breeding site _ in North America: the Stephenville Cross¬ ing, NF location had 28 barely fledged birds on 13 Jul (BMt). An ad. Black-headed Gull x Ring-billed Gull hybrid was observed bring¬ ing food into the mixed colony. The downy young looked close to a Black-headed Gull, but the other parent was not observed (BMt). A new Black-legged Kittiwake colony was discovered at the s. end of the breeding range at Pearl I., Mahone Bay, NS, where five nests were noted 1 1 Jul (BMy). For the 2nd year in a row, the mixed Arc¬ tic/Common Tern colony of some 3500 pairs on Machais Seal h, NB failed to fledge any young because of the total lack of small her¬ ring close to the island (fide BD). Also on on Machais Seal I., 2 unmated female Black Terns laid clutches of eggs, which did not hatch. Seventy-five Atlantic Puffins nesting on Mud I., Yarmouth , NS was a new breeding site (fide MN). OWLS THROUGH ORIOLES Three Snowy Owls lingered into summer: one all summer at Cape Sable I., NS (MN et al.), one at Balmoral, NB for the first week of Jun (Irene Doyle), and another found in a moribund state at Belldune, Gloucester , NB 15 Jun (Luc DeRoche). An ad. Northern Hawk Owl feeding a fledged chick at Nictau, Victoria, NB in late Jun was a rare breeding record for the province (Marc-Andre Vil- lard). Two Boreal Owl nests found in bird boxes at St. Pierre were the first breeding ev¬ idence of this elusive owl for the French is¬ lands (RE et al.). It virtually rained Scissor-tailed Flycatch¬ ers in New Brunswick during the five-day period of 8-12 Jun: one was at St. George 8- 11 Jun (Ken Macintosh), one was at Dorch¬ ester 11-12 Jun (Marc LeBlanc et al.), and another was at Ste.-Anne-de-Madawask 12 Jun (Denys Bourque et al.). A Loggerhead Shrike at Jemseg, NB 7-10 Jun was the first summer record for the Region in many years (JW et al.). A late spring Yellow-throated Vireo was singing in a city park in Saint John, NB 15 Jun (RB). A report of a Fish Crow observed and heard calling at St. Stephen, NB 26 Jul was plausible but lacked full details. Ad. Carolina Wrens feeding just- fledged young at Fredericton constituted the 2nd breeding record for the province and the Region (Don Gibson). Always rare in the Region, a subad. West¬ ern Tanager at Seal Cove, G.M.I. 13 Jun was one of the very few recorded in Jun (Durian Ingersoll). An Eastern Towhee was singing in Saint John, NB 15 Jun (RB). Most inter¬ esting was a Grasshopper Sparrow singing in suitable breeding habitat at Pennfield Bar¬ rens, NB 2 Jul (Bev Schneider). The species has not previously been suspected of breed¬ ing in the Region. An agitated Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow in suitable breeding habitat at Stephenville Crossing 13 Jul af¬ forded only the 7th provincial record; the species could be breeding at this site (BMt et al.). A singing Clay-colored Sparrow was Neguac, Northhumberland, NB 26 Jun (Ivy Austin). An Orchard Oriole at Mount Stew¬ art, PEI 17 Jun furnished one of the few provincial records (Dave Seeler). Contributors (subregional editors in bold¬ face): Roger Burrows, Brian Dalzell, Roger Etcheberry, Laurent Jackman, Paul Linegar, Bruce Mactavish (BMt), Blake Maybank (BMy), Eric Mills, Murray Newell, Stuart Tingley, Jim Wilson. the Gift of North American Subscriptions to North American Birds are available for $32 for US or $37 for Canandian. embers receive a discounted subscription $30 for US or $35 for Canadian. any queries about your subscription, please co 850-2473, fax (719) 578-1480, email mem : NAB Subscriptions, 4945 N.30th Street, S Colorado Springs, Colorado 80919-3151. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 565 _ _ _ _ _ - - - - - - — Ungava Peninsula Hr\ A • Inukjuak X -V' Ungava Bay > ' 4 Kuujjuaq Hudson Bay James Bay • Radisson •Eastmain • Matagami Caniapiscau < FermonH A Blanc- Sablon Chibou- * gamau Baie- Comeau Sept- lies* Natash- Havre- nusn St.-Pierre qua-n- he-d' Anticosti Rouyn Amos L. Saint- Jean ■ /?V* Matane Tadoussac^r Cap-Tourmente « °°%- Quebec City»yr r&- •Gaspe Gu^°t Lawrence Jerce Ville- • Marie Mont- • Laurier Berthierville. Montreal* * #Victoriavitle Gatineau* t •Shej*rooke L. Chaste TVgaie-du-Febvre lles-de-ia Madeleine % f Hendersonville Goldsboro* Manteo — L. Malta- t Pea muskeel ' u} ®/s. NWR • Dalton ■ Brasstown Bald Spartanburg .CIemsonGreenville L. Hartwell L. Lanier \ L. Murray Kennesaw Mtn • Charlotte Florence Croatan Natl. Forest ^Wilmington. , ,w, . . . . \Clark S ® » Poll imhi?i ■ Natl. Battlefield Park HJillL. congareem c , Myrtle Atlanta* M mu Santee Beach« Augusta* Swamp NM iAiken l NWR ■ West \ Point L. \ \ • Columbus ■ L. Juliette > Macon L. Marion I L. Moultrie I Francis Marion NF i Fear Ft- Fisher SRA Cape Hatteras Cape fore^ Lookout "S‘ NORTH CAROLINA 1 Huntington Beach SP Georgetown Beaufort < Tape Romain NWR ■'Charleston * Eufaula NWR mL. Walter F. George •Albany Statesboro* Savannah SOUTH CAROLINA Harris Neck NWR- Valdosta « Okefenokee SwariTpT Hilton Head Is. Savannah NWR & Savannah Spoil Site (SC) Tybee I. St. Catherines I. Sapelo I. St. Simons I. Jekyll I. Cumberland I. GEORGIA Ricky Davis 608 Smallwood Drive Rocky Mount, North Carolina 27804 (RJDNC@aol.com) This summers weather began with a somewhat cooler and wetter June but ended with July being about av¬ erage in temperature and precipitation. There was an early-season storm, Hurricane Dennis, which affected the western parts of Georgia 11-13 July. This storm produced some interesting waterbird sightings in that portion of the Region. Nesting season suc¬ cess was apparently about average, with no major disruptions other than the usual nest- predation and cowbird parasitism. Continu¬ ing from the May period, gadfly petrels gen¬ erated excitement offshore, while onshore, North Carolina had its first documented nesting of Wood Stork. Abbreviations: E.L.H. (E.L. Huie Land Ap¬ plication Facility, Clayton, GA); H.B.S.P. (Huntington Beach S.R, Georgetown, SC); Hoop. (Hooper Lane, Henderson, NC); Ken¬ nesaw Mt. (Kennesaw Mt. National Battle¬ field Park, Cobb, GA); Pea 1. (Pea Island N.W.R., Dare, NC); S.S.S. (Savannah Spoil Site, Jasper, SC). LOONS THROUGH STORKS Common Loons are regular lingerers in the Region each summer. This year’s more no¬ table sightings involved an impressive count of 40+ in the Oregon Inlet, NC area 5 Jun (RD), one with a broken wing in Georgetown, SC 24 Jun (JG), and one on L. Blue Ridge, Fannin, GA 19 Jul (fide TS). An¬ other lingerer was the Horned Grebe in al¬ ternate plumage at L. Juliette, GA 12 Jul (MB); only a handful of summer reports ex¬ ists for that state. Pelagic trips produced a Fea’s and 2 Her¬ ald Petrels off Hatteras, NC 11 Jun, 2 dark- morph Herald and 3 Fea’s Petrels off Hat¬ teras 19 Jun (BP), and a Bermuda Petrel off Hatteras 3 Jul (BP et al.). The latter bird was most unusual in that it exhibited a white nape, thus looking much more like a Black- capped; this is the first record of such a plumage according to D. B. Wingate. Other tubenose reports of note involved an excel¬ lent count of 237 Greater Shearwaters off Charleston, SC 10 Jun (ND), single Manx Shearwaters on a handful of trips off Hat¬ teras, NC in Jun (BP), and single Band- rumped Storm-Petrels off Charleston, SC 10 Jun and 15 Jul (ND et al.). A storm-petrel at West Point L., GA 1 1 Jul (fide LW) after Hur¬ ricane Dennis was not seen well enough to identify. Tropicbird sightings were about av¬ erage, with single White-taileds off Manteo, NC 24 Jul and off Hatteras, NC 25 Jul (BP) and single Red-billeds off Hatteras, NC 12 Jun (BP), 16 Jul (SS, fide BP), and 30 Jul (BP); as usual, charter boat captains report¬ ed others, not identified to species. The imm. Brown Booby reported from the Ore¬ gon Inlet, NC area in late spring was possi¬ bly the same bird seen off Hatteras, NC 5 Jun (BP) and again onshore at Coquina Beach 3 Jul (SD) and 7-8 Jul at Nags Head Pier (MO, LZ). In South Carolina, an imm. Brown Boo¬ by washed up on Isle of Palms 8 Jun (MS). American White Pelicans continue to reside in the Region in good numbers, as evidenced by the 95 at Andrews I., GA 23 Jul (BZ). Very rare inland pelicans included 4 Ameri¬ can Whites on a small lake in Transylvania, NC 11 Jun (fide WF), 3 Whites on L. Mur¬ ray, SC 8 Jun (fide RC), and a Brown at L. Al- latoona, GA 12 Jul (SP), the latter no doubt brought in by Hurricane Dennis. That storm also transported several Magnificent Frigate- birds into Georgia: 5 at Colquitt, Miller 9 Jul (fide MBl), 2 at L. Walter F George 11 Jul, and 6 at L. Seminole 11 Jul (MB, EB). Coastal reports from North Carolina includ¬ ed singles near Cape Lookout 5 Jun (fide NB), at Ft. Macon 23 Jun (fide TP), and over Pea 1. 14 Jun (S&MA). This species was also found offshore, where rarely observed, with one off Charleston, SC 15 Jul (ND et al.) and one off Savannah, GA 23 Jul (RW et al.). There were the usual Reddish Egret re¬ ports this summer, with the best count be¬ ing 10 on Little St. Simons I., GA during the period (BN). One along the Pamlico Sound shore near Hatteras, NC 9 Jul (BP) was the farthest north. Interesting inland reports in¬ cluded a Cattle Egret in the mts. at Hoop. 2 Jun (WF) and a Plegadis ibis flying over 1-75 in Fulton, GA 22 Jul (EB). Roseate Spoon¬ bills made an impressive showing this sum¬ mer: excellent counts were 35 on Little St. Simons I., GA 25 Jul (BN), 24 at Andrews L, Brunswick, GA 2Jul (GK), and 10 in the Sa¬ vannah N.W.R., GA area late Jun-early Jul (fide DCh). Reports in North Carolina in¬ volved one in the Ocean Isle Beach area in mid-Jul (LS) and another or the same at Twin Lakes, Sunset Beach 31 Jul (E&CDe). Wood Storks made news this season, espe¬ cially in North Carolina, where nesting took place at a lake on private property in ex¬ treme s. Columbus. First noted at the site during the spring season, 32 nests were counted during an aerial survey 1 Jun (MM, Greater Shearwaters came through in better-than-average numbers this summer and unfortunately were involved in one of the biggest mortality events of the species seen in the Region in decades. Dead or dying Greaters were found along the entire Regional coastline in Jun, part of a phenomenon observed along much of the Atlantic coast. Several large counts of dead birds included 50+ shearwaters at Kiawah I., SC 13 Jun (CW) and 15+ on little St. Simons I., GA in Jun (BN). - — NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 582 — DA). While the species has been increasing in the area for some years, this constituted the first known breeding of storks in North Carolina; given this species’ precarious sta¬ tus in the United States, it is a welcome ad¬ dition to our breeding avifauna. Other in¬ teresting Wood Stork reports included sin¬ gles out of their normal range at McDonough, Henry, GA 12 Jul ( fide CL) and at Oxbow Meadows, Columbus, GA 1 1 Jul (WC). WATERFOWL THROUGH CRANES Lingering geese included a Snow Goose in Sumter, GA 16 Jun (PH), a Ross’s Goose near Troy, Montgomery, NC 3 Jun (SCb), and a Cackling Goose at L. Junaluska, Haywood, NC 3-5 Jul (BO,JM), which may have been the same bird that wintered there. Black-bel¬ lied Whistling-Ducks were once again found in the Region, and a few were outside the usual south-coastal South Carolina areas. Three were at Shaw A.EB., Sumter, SC 1 Jun ( fide LM), 2 were at the Savannah, GA Air¬ port ponds 4 Jun (DB et al.), and 2 were s. of Quitman, Brooks, GA 27 Jul (fide JS). Inter¬ esting ducks for the summer season in¬ volved a Redhead in a canal at Cedar Island N.W.R., NC 31 Jul (JV, fide JF), multiple Ring-necked Ducks from Georgia and North Carolina, a Lesser Scaup at Goose Creek, Pamlico, NC 8 Jun (CD), up to 2 Surf Scot¬ ers at Oregon Inlet, NC 8 Ju1-h (JL), and sin¬ gle Red-breasted Mergansers at Jekyll I., GA 2 Jun (LT) and Little Tybee I., GA 3 Jun (RH). Nesting waterfowl of note included a female Hooded Merganser with 3 young near Alpharetta, GA 9 Jun ( fide TM) and a female Ruddy Duck with 8 young at the S.S.S. 17 Jul (SC). Ruddy Shelducks of un¬ known provenance were a surprise at the E.L.H., with one 27 Jun and 2 noted 7-10 Jul (MD, CL). In the mid-Atlantic states, the great majority of reports of this highly no¬ madic species come from summer, as is also true in mainland w. Europe, the British Isles, Iceland, Greenland, and Nunavut. Noteworthy summer raptor reports in¬ volved a late Swallow-tailed Kite e. of the North R., Carteret, NC 15 Jun (fide JF), a rare-in-summer Sharp-shinned Hawk in Durham, NC 9 Jul (MT), an ad. and 2 juv. Cooper’s Hawks in Chapel Hill, NC 19 Jul (RG), and an ad. Golden Eagle over Craggy Gardens, Buncombe, NC in the first week of Jun (Helmut Mueller). The only Black Rails reported came from the usual n. Greene, GA site, where 2 were calling 17 Jul (PWS). For the 2nd year in a row, several Common Moorhens nested at the E.L.H.; young were observed in early Jul (CL). American Coots are locally rare-but-regular summer resi¬ dents, and this year 2 spent the entire period at Buckhorn Res., Wilson, NC (RD). Also unusual was the Sandhill Crane from the spring lingering into Jun along Audubon Rd„ Dekalb, GA (RT). PLOVERS THROUGH TERNS Observers at Hoop. 2-3 Jun noted an im¬ pressive group of shorebirds: a Black-bellied Plover, 16 Semipalmated Plovers, 30 Semi- palmated Sandpipers, 2 Western Sandpipers, and 5 White-rumped Sandpipers (DS, RS, WF). These birds were obviously late spring migrants and provided a most unusual re¬ port for that locality; Western Sandpipers are rather rare after mid-May. Other inland shorebirds of note this summer involved an American Avocet near Redbone, Lamar, GA 16 Jul (JO), a Willet at Hoop. 14-15 Jul (MW), a Sanderling at Carrboro, NC 2 Jun (GT), and 3 Short-billed Dowitchers at Hoop. 13 Jul (JLi, WF). Hurricane Dennis was most likely responsible for the single Willets (subspecies not reported) at West Point L. 10 Jul (BF et al.) and Oxbow Mead¬ ows 11 Jul (WC). An Upland Sandpiper was somewhat early at the Orangeburg, SC Sod Farm 10 Jul (TK), but the Whimbrel at Jekyll L, GA 16 Jun (LT) was either a very late spring or a very early fall transient. Long-billed Curlews returned to several of their usual locations somewhat early; 3 were on Little St. Simons I., GA by earlyjul (BN), and 3 were at C. Romain N.W.R., SC 21 Jul (fide ND). Other inland shorebirds of note came from a new rice-farming operation in the fields just sw. of Roper, Washington, NC. Constant checking produced 3 Hudsonian Godwits 22 Jul, 3 Marbled Godwits 29 Jul, and 3 Short-billed Dowitchers 28 Jul (DR). Both godwits are very rare and unexpected away from the coast in the Region. In the lingering shorebird department, a Purple Sandpiper was extremely tardy at the H.B.S.R jetty 12 Jun (ST). There were only 2 Curlew Sandpipers reported this summer, with singles at Little St. Simons I., GA 12 Jul (BW, fide BN) and at the S.S.S. 17 Jul (SC). These reports, if accepted by the respective state B.R.C.s, would represent South Caroli¬ na’s 3rd or 4th and Georgias 5th. American Woodcock is a very localized uncommon summer resident: reports included 2 at Waco, Cleveland, NC 8 Jun (STp), one on Kiawah I., SC 13 Jul (JJ), one found dead on a road in Johnston, NC in earlyjul (ET), and up to 2, including a juv. bird, at Leland, Brunswick, NC late Jun-early Jul (JE). A South Polar Skua was a surprise less than 2 km off Shackleford Banks, Carteret, NC 6 Jul (RWh, fide JF), while another was seen about 5 km off the beach during a fishing trip out of Hatteras, NC 6 Jun (fide BP). These birds clearly followed the shearwater flocks inshore this season. A Parasitic Jaeger was found inland at L. Seminole, GA 1 1 Jul (EB, MB) after Hurricane Dennis. Other jaeger re¬ ports included a Pomarine off Charleston, SC 10 Jun (ND), a good count of 3 Long-taileds off Hatteras, NC 12 Jun (BP), and a Long¬ tailed near Cape Pt. , Dare lOJun (BP). Hurri¬ cane Dennis brought numbers of gulls and terns to w. Georgia. On 11 Jul, there were 10 Laughing Gulls at L. Walter F George, 4 Roy¬ al Terns at L. Seminole, a Royal at L. Walter F George, 2 Least Terns at L. Seminole, 26 Sooty Terns at L. Seminole, and 17 Sooties at L. Walter F George (EB, MB). Sooty Terns were also at other lakes: 12 at West Point L., GA 12 Jul (EH) and 4 at L. Oliver near Columbus, GA 13 Jul (WC). Other notewor¬ thy inland tern reports involved 5 Caspians late at Sweetwater Creek S.P., GA 1 Jun (CLo) and 2 Leasts at the E.L.H. 19 Jun (T&PM). Only one Arctic Tern was noted, that being This Greater Shearwater at Avon, Dare County, North Carolina was photographed in the surfline 20 July 2005, clearly an ailing bird. Hundreds of this species turned up dead and dying along the East Coast in June and July 2005. Photograph by Brian Taber. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 583 SOUTHERN ATLANTIC off Hatteras, NC 5Jun (BP). Peak offshore to¬ tals for tropical terns were the 13 Bridleds off Charleston, SC 10 Jun (ND) and 67 Sooties off Hatteras, NC 30 Jul (BP). Inland Black Tern counts were uneventful; 8 at L. Walter E George, GA 11 Jul (EB, MB) after Dennis and 8 at Lookout Shoals L., Catawba, NC 16 Jul (LMa) made the maxima. DOVES THROUGH WAXWING Eurasian Collared-Doves were reported from yet another new locality in the w. portion of North Carolina at Hazelwood, Haywood 3-5 Jul (2 birds; BB, BO). White-winged Doves continued to be reported, with singles at H.B.S.R 27 Jul (PT), in e. Chatham, NC 27 Jul ( fide CF), and in the village of Ocracoke, NC 28 Jul (SW). Easily one of the most un¬ expected birds of the summer was the ad. male Broad-billed Hummingbird pho¬ tographed at a feeder in Colington, Dare, NC 15-16 Jul (MP, MSc, SM, JL). This bird pro¬ vided the 2nd record for the state, the first being an imm. male present for about a week in Oct 2001 near New Bern. Several tardy flycatchers were noted this summer; an Olive-sided in n. Fairfield, SC 5 Jun (RC) on a B.B.S. route and a Willow in sw. Raleigh, NC 4Jun (JSn) were the latest of these late migrants. Gray Kingbirds made news this season: 6 were at the usual Jekyll L, GA site 24 Jul (DFr), and up to 2 were at a new site in Savannah, GA 6 Jul+ (SWa, DFr et al.). Scissor-tailed Flycatchers continued their presence in the Region, with one re¬ maining from the spring season below the L. Thurmond Dam, McCormick, SC 4 Jun (RC, CE), a pair nesting near Comer, Madison, GA late Jun-early Jul (MF et al.), one s. of Pawleys I., SC 5-8 Jul (WA, JP et al.), and the nesting pair at McDonough, GA returning for the 4th year in a row (m.ob.). A Warbling Vireo found near Morganton, Fannin, GA 10 Jun (PHo) was most unusual: it would be considered too late for a migrant, and the species has not been found nesting in that state. Common Ravens were once again found in the Raleigh-Durham, NC area, and farther e., one was observed sever¬ al times in the Greenville area in late Jun+ (VP). Cliff Swallows extended their breeding range southward: several nests were located near Seminole S.P, Seminole, GA 26 Jun (MBl). Also of interest was a huge swallow congregation in n. Greene, GA, where 385 Cliffs and 425 Barns were tallied 17 Jul (PS). American Robins were noted as being more common than usual along the immediate coast of Georgia and South Carolina, where normally scarce as nesters. A singing Swain- son’s Thrush below the High Bluff at Roan Mt., NC 26 Jun (RD) was an interesting find. This species is not known to nest in the Re¬ gion but has bred in the s. Virginia moun¬ tains. Hermit Thrush does breed in the North Carolina mts., and reports this sum¬ mer came from Roan Mt., where 5 males were on territory 26 Jun (RD), from the Bal¬ sam Mts, where 4 separate territorial birds were noted, and from Mt. Mitchell (MW). A Wood Thrush on Skidaway I., GA 21 Jun (RW) was definitely unexpected in summer for that coastal locality. Cedar Waxwings again lingered at scattered sites in the Coastal Plain, and quite a few most likely nested. The best count was an impressive 12 in Manteo, NC 21 Jul, and nesting was con¬ firmed in Tyrrell, NC for the 2nd year in a row (JL). WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES A Blue-winged Warbler in sw. Randolph, NC 4 Jul QaL) was most likely a non-breeding wanderer, but an early migrant would not be out of the question. A probable breeding warbler was the Magnolia singing on territo¬ ry at Roan Mt., NC 26 Jun (RD), at a site where summer reports have come from in the past. Also in the Roan Mt. area, Yellow- ruinped Warblers were once again found in summer. This year, a singing male remained on territory near the High Bluff trail 17 (TMc) & 26 Jun (RD), but no female was observed. Another male Yellow-rumped was at Mt. Mitchell, NC in Jun (TD, MW), again with no evidence of nesting. In the inexpli¬ cable department was the Yellow-rumped Warbler found in the Elizabethan Gardens on Roanoke L, NC 1 Jul (JL)! Other late warblers included a Blackpoll at Skyland, Buncombe, NC 2 Jun (STp) and a Northern Waterthrush along the New R., Alleghany, NC 4 Jun (RD). A female Mourning Warbler seen at the Alleghany unit of the New River S.P. 4 Jun (RD) was a surprise, apparently a migrant, as the bird was on the move. Cerulean Warbler is one of the earliest fall migrants, and this season, one was on the move as early as 4 Jul, when noted in n. Ful¬ ton, GA (EH). The peak early count at Ken- nesaw Mt. was 11 on 31 Jul (BZ). Unusual was the singing Savannah Spar¬ row at Hoop. 13 Jun (WF). This was prob¬ ably a non-breeding wanderer, as the species is not known to nest in the s. por¬ tion of the state’s mountains. Another spar¬ row pushing the limits of its normal sum¬ mer range was the Song Sparrow found in McCormick, SC 4 Jun (RC). This bird could also have been a wanderer. Obvious late mi¬ grants were a female Rose-breasted Gros¬ beak at a feeder in Chapel Hill, NC 4 Jun (JFr) and a male in n. Chatham, NC 4-5 Jun (MTr). Several Painted Buntings were found at new sites, with 2 males along the New¬ port R. estuary, Carteret, NC 12 Jun (JF) and a male se. of Sardis, Florence, SC 26 Jun (RC). Dickcissels were found in the Region in higher-than-normal numbers this sum¬ mer. The best count involved the amazing group of at least 27 at North R. Farms, Carteret, NC 11 Jun (JF, JFe). These birds remained throughout the period and nest¬ ing occurred, as a juv. was noted by early Aug (JF). Other good counts included 10+ in Oconee, GA in early Jun (fide JFl) and 10 along Crowder Rd., Newberry , SC 6 Jun (DS1). In e. North Carolina, a nest was pho¬ tographed in Pender in Jun ( fide CM), and 2 flightless young were found at Garner’s Fer¬ ry near Columbia, SC 12 Jun (JW, DS1 et al.). Also in the Garner’s Ferry area, 3 Bobolinks were quite late 3 Jun (JW et al.). The Purple Finch at a feeder in Todd, Watauga, NC 17 Jun (WCo) was absurdly late for that species anywhere in the Region. Red Crossbills were reported several times, with 5 at Mile Hi Overlook, Heintooga Rd., Great Smoky Mountains N.P., NC 4 Jun (MW et al.), up to 8 at feeders in the Such- es, Union, GA area 11 Jul (BZ), and one along Billingsley Creek Rd., Rabun, GA 11 Jun (JFl, EH). A very late or non-breeding wanderer was the Pine Siskin present at a feeder near Chapel Hill, NC 9-10 Jun (KF). Contributors: David Allen, Wendy Allen, Scott and Melanie Arnold (S&MA), Michael Bell (MBl), Eric Beohm, Michael Beohm, David Bridge, Beth Brinson, Norm Budnitz, Steve Calver, Susan Campbell (SCb), Robin Carter, Walt Chambers, Diana Churchill (DCh), Walt Conway (WCo), Mark Davis, Ricky Davis, Eric and Celia Dean (E&CDe), Nathan Dias, Sara Donovan, Tom Driscoll, Curtis Dykstra, Caroline Eastman, John En¬ nis, Jack Fennell (JFe), Kent Fiala, Barry Fleming, Wayne Forsythe, Cynthia Fox, Dot Freeman (DFr), Mark Freeman, Jill Froning (JFr), John Fussell, Jason Giovannone, Rob Gluck, Phil Hardy, Rene Heidt, Earl Horn, Pierre Howard (PHo), Jim Jordan, Tim Kalbach, Gene Keferl, Carol Lambert, Jane Lewis (JaL), Jeff Lewis, John Lindfors (JLi), Chris Loudermilk (CLo), Lori Martin (LMa), Jonathan Mays, Mary McDavit, Thomas McNeil (TMc), Lloyd Moon, Terry and Peggy Moore (T&PM), Chris Moorman, Skip Morgan, Helmut Mueller, Brandon Noel, Michael O’Brien, Bob Olthoff, Jim Ozi- er, Sandy Pangle, Veronica Pantelidis, Brian Patteson (BP; Seabirding), Jack Peachey, Margarete Peterson, Taylor Piephoff, Don Rote, Mike Sanderson, Marlene Schumm (MSc), Ron Selvey, Jeff Sewell, Lou Skrabec, Donna Slyce,John Sneeden (JSn), Spurgeon Stowe, Tom Striker, Danny Swicegood, Paul W. Sykes Jr., Erik Thomas, Stephen Thomas, Lydia Thompson, Simon Thompson (STp), Mike Tove, Ginger Travis, Melissa Troester (MTr), Randy Truntz, Phil Turner, Jon Voigt, Steve Wagner (SWa), Craig Watson, Marilyn Westphal, Ron White (RWh), Russ Wigh, James Wilson, Brad Winn, Susse Wright, Bob Zaremba, Louise Zemaitis. © 584 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS I- Florida Rainfall was well above average in June, and temperatures were well above av¬ erage in July, with numerous record temperatures set. As seems to always be the case in Florida in summer, either few ob¬ servers were out in the field, or few people sent in reports, leaving the state with spotty coverage for the season. Abbreviations/definitions: report (any obser¬ vation); record (only those reports verifiable from photograph, videotape, or specimen evi¬ dence); N.S.R.A. (North Shore Restoration Area, Orange ). LOONS THROUGH SPOONBILLS As is normal, a few single Common Loons were present: at St. Marks N.W.R., Wakulla 1 Jun (AB, DS), L. Ella, Leon 3-28 Jun (DS, RL, GM), and St. Teresa, Franklin 20 Jun (JM). Up to 10 Pied-billed Grebes were heard at Ten Thousand Islands N.W.R., Collier 7-13 Jun (TDo). Strong e. winds produced numer¬ ous observations of pelagic species along the Atlantic coast, with Bankert reporting 8 Cory’s, 40+ Greater, and 2 Audubon’s Shear¬ waters at Melbourne Beach, Brevard 23 Jun; Hope reporting a Greater and 15 Cory’s Shearwaters at Boynton Inlet, Palm Beach 24 Jun; and Berney reporting 60 Cory’s Shear¬ waters and 140+ unidentified large shearwa¬ ters off John Lloyd S.R, Broward 24 Jun. A significant die-off of shearwaters occurred along the Atlantic Coast in late Jun. In Volu¬ sia, one Sooty, 3 Cory’s, and 291 Greaters were found dead or dying on beaches 21-27 Jun (MBr), 6 Greater Shearwaters were found dead at Canaveral N.S., Brevard 26 Jun (AV), and single dead Greaters were found at Amelia L, Nassau 24 Jun (PL) and Vilano Beach, St. Johns 26 Jun (DR). Two pelagic trips conducted 25 Jun, one from Miami (RT, RU) and one from Marathon, Monroe (LaM, BM, JBo et al.), found 17 and 50+ Cory’s, one and 150+ Greater, and 33 and one Audubon’s Shearwaters, respectively. Additionally, 21 Wilson’s Storm-Petrels were seen on the Mi¬ ami pelagic (RT, RU), and single Wilson’s and Band-rumped Storm-Petrels were seen on the Marathon pelagic (LaM, BM, JBo et al.). Other storm-petrels included 2 Wilson’s and one Band-rumped 28-32 km off Hills¬ borough Inlet, Broward 19 Jun (MBe). A sin¬ gle Leach’s Storm-Petrel was reported from Melbourne Beach, Brevard 23 Jun (AB). A fishing trip 170 km off Ponce Inlet, Volusia found 40+ Cory’s, 20+ Audubon’s, and 2 Greater Shearwaters and 4 Wilson’s Storm- Petrels 29 Jul (BW). Single Masked Boobies were at Boynton Inlet 11 & 24 Jun (BHo), while 2 Brown Boobies were off Marathon 25 Jun (LaM, BM, JBo et al.). About 30 North¬ ern Gannets were at St. Marks N.W.R. 1 Jun (DS), with singles at Boynton Inlet 12 Jun (BHo), St. Teresa 19 Jun (JDo), Alligator Pt., Franklin 11 Jul (JDo, JM), and the Pasco coast 20 Jul (KT). The Polk phosphate mines usually have American White Pelicans during the summer, but 450 on 23 Jul was an impressive count (PT, CG). The peak of 663 Magnificent Frigatebirds at the ABC Is., Collier was well off last year’s high count of 1629 (TDo). Hur¬ ricane Dennis swept numerous Magnificent Frigatebirds into the interior of the peninsula 10 Jul, with 5 at Newnans L., Alachua (ReR, JBr et al.), 2 at Ocala, Marion (AL), 15 at Brooksville, Hernando (KW), and singles at Micanopy, Alachua (C&ES) and Lorida, High¬ lands (PG). This storm also brought an im¬ pressive 50+ frigatebirds to Alligator Pt. 11 Jul (JDo). Two calling Least Bitterns were heard 13 Jun at Ten Thousand Islands N.W.R. (TDo), where singles had been heard in the past two years. A maximum of 28 Least Bit¬ terns was at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 3 Jul (HR). A single Reddish Egret was inland to Gainesville, Alachua 3 Jun-11 Jul (JBr, BC), with coastal strays n. to Alligator Pt. 15 Jun (JDo) and St. Marks N.W.R. 8 Jul (TC). An ad. White-faced Ibis was at Springhill Rd. W.T.P., Leon 5 Jun (TC). Inland Roseate Spoonbills were at Homestead, M iami-Dade 1 2 Jul (RD) and the Polk mines 19Jun and 10 Jul (PT, CG). David J. Powell 10800 Brighton Bay Boulevard NE Apt. 15207 St. Petersburg, Florida 33716 (vireo@vireos.com) WATERFOWL THROUGH SKIMMER Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks continue to thrive in the center of the state, with 10 at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 5 Jun (HR), 15 in Okeechobee 5 Jun (MK, GQ, RB), 20, includ¬ ing 5 young, at Orlando Wetlands Park, Or¬ ange 12 Jun (BA, CP), and 48 at Polk mines 19 Jun (CG, PT). Fulvous Whistling-Ducks are not doing as well, with the only reports from Robinson at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A., with a maximum of 8 on 28 Jul. A Blue¬ winged Teal was at St. Marks N.W.R. 2-5 Jun (AB, DS), with 2 others at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 26 Jun (HR). A male Ring-necked Duck was a surprise at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 24 Jun (BA, AV). A lone Redhead was found at St. Marks N.W.R. 1-3 Jun (DS, AB). A fe¬ male Red-breasted Merganser was at Gullivan — VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 585 FLORIDA Hurricane Dennis moved through the Straits of Florida and into the Gulf of Mexico in mid-Jul, bringing 2 Sooty Terns 3 h and the above-mentioned frigatebirds inland to Newnans L., Alachua 10 Jul (SC, GP). Another Sooty was inland at Tallahassee, Leon 1 1 Jul (MS). Dozier and Murphy had one Bridled and 1 1 Sooty terns at Alligator Pt. 10 Jul, and 24 Sooty and 3 Bridled Terns there 1 2 Jul. Another Sooty Tern was at Honeymoon Island S.P., Pinellas 10 Jul (EK). Less obvious, but also apparently related to Dennis, was a significant influx of pelagic terns to the s. Atlantic coast 9 Jul. Hope, Berney, and others observed 120+ Bridled Terns, 100+ Sooty Terns, and 2 Brown Noddies at Boynton Inlet, while 2 Sooty Terns were off Crandon Beach (RD) and 6 Brown Noddies at Boot Key, Monroe (AW). In addition to the terns, one or 2 White-tailed Tropicbirds were at Boynton Inlet 9 Jul (BHo, MBe et al.). The effects of the storm were short-lived, as Diaz found only 2 Bridled and 5-6 Sooty Terns at Boynton Inlet 10 Jul, along with one Brown Noddy at Lloyd S.P. The last report from this event was a Bridled Tern at Jupiter Inlet Colony, Palm Beach 1 1 Jul (J&LH). Key, Ten Thousand Islands N.W.R. 14 Jun (TDo). A male Masked Duck at Sarasota, Sarasota 6-7 Jun (TE et al.) represented a very rare central peninsula report. Ospreys are common in Florida, but 102 at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 3 Jul (HR) made an es¬ pecially high count. Hundreds of Swallow¬ tailed Kites fed on abundant dragonflies at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. in Jul, with a peak of 856 on 17 Jul (HR). At the Fisheating Creek, Glades roost, 1954 were counted 30 Jul (BP, PG et al.). White-tailed Kite is a scarce species in Florida, so two reports is about normal. Snail Kites nested at Inverness Pool, Citrus (FA), the northernmost nesting in many decades. Significant reports of Mississippi Kites were one at Merritt Island N.W.R. , Bre¬ vard 1-4 Jun (TDu et al.), 5 near Green Cove Springs, Clay 15Jun-17Jul (LeM), and a pair at s. Jacksonville, Duval 7-17 Jul (JCo). Five Mississippi at Belleview, Marion 20 Jun (SB) were more expected. Coopers Hawks contin¬ ue to spread southward in the state, with many reported from the Tampa Bay area and others reported from Miami-Dade and Collier. Six reports of Short-tailed Hawk were re¬ ceived, about normal for this scarce species. The only American Kestrel report was one at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 26 Jun (HR). A Black Rail 10 Jul at Polk mines (CG, PT) was a rare inland report. Robinson had an impressive 175 King Rails at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 31 Jul. An American Coot pho¬ tographed feeding young 18 Jun established the first confirmed breeding for Pasco (KT). With the number of oversummering shore- birds in the state, the first southbound birds are often difficult to detect. A Black-bellied Plover at Little Estero Lagoon, Lee 21 Jun (CE) was likely the first “fall” migrant. A Wilson’s and 3 Semipalmated Plovers at Crandon Beach, Miami-Dade 30 Jun (RD) were also thought to be fall arrivals. Ewell had 3 ad. and 23 young American Oyster- catchers at Little Estero Lagoon 5 Jul, in¬ cluding 2 birds banded in North Carolina and one banded in Virginia. This is the 3rd consecutive year that banded oystercatchers have turned up at this location. An apparent¬ ly oversummering American Avocet was at Snake Bight, Everglades N.P., Monroe 13 Jun (AB, EE), while 32 others were at Polk mines 23 Jul (PT, CG). The first reported Greater Yellowlegs for the fall was at Springhill Rd. W.T.P. 5 Jul (GM), while the first Lesser Yel¬ lowlegs was in mid-Pinellas 9 Jul (JF). An¬ other migrant Lesser was 111 km off Ponce Inlet 29 Jul (BW). The only Solitary Sand¬ piper reported was one at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 23 Jul (HR). The first southbound Spotted Sandpipers were 6 at Springhill Rd. W.T.P 21 Jul (GM). An apparent late north¬ ward migrant Whimbrel was found at Play- alinda Beach, Brevard 3 Jun (AV). At Little Estero Lagoon, 7 Marbled Godwits 14 Jul and an alternate-plumaged Red Knot among 150 oversummering basic-plumaged knots 5 Jul were thought to be fall migrants (CE). Leary observed 120 Red Knots, including one banded in Argentina, at Bird I., Nassau Sound, Duval 24 Jul, and 700 there, includ¬ ing 2 banded in Chile, by the end of the month. The first southbound Semipalmated Sandpipers were at Springhill Rd. W.T.P. 11 Jul (GM), while the first fall-arrival Western Sandpipers were 3 in alternate plumage at Little Estero Lagoon 5 Jul (CE). Ewell had his highest count of oversummering peeps at Little Estero Lagoon, with 160 Western/Semipalmated Sandpipers in basic plumage 5 Jul. An impressive 8100 Least Sandpipers were at Polk mines 23 Jul (CG, PT). White-rumped Sandpipers continue to move northward into early Jun, with 5 at Fort De Soto Park, Pinellas 1 Jun (LA) and 3 there 2 Jun (JG). Berney found 80+ Pectoral Sandpipers near Belle Glade, Palm Beach 31 Jul. Lingering Dunlins were seen at Ft. De Soto Park 1 Jun (AB, DS) and St. Marks N.W.R. 4-5 Jun (DS, AB). Two Stilt Sand¬ pipers at Polk mines 23 Jul (PT, CG) were the only report. Alternate-plumaged Short-billed Dowitchers at Little Estero Lagoon 6 Jul (CE) and Crandon Beach 8 Jul (RD) were thought to be migrants. Three early Red Phalaropes were about 128 km off Ponce In¬ let 29 Jul (BW). Clark had 8000 Laughing Gulls, including many fledged young, and 2-6 Lesser Black- backed Gulls at Huguenot Memorial Park, Duval in Jul. Two imm. Lesser Black-backed and 3 imm. Great Black-backed Gulls were at Crandon Beach 4 Jul (RD). Up to 4 Gull¬ billed Terns were at Polk mines 19 Jun-23 Jul (PT, CG), with 2 others at John Lloyd S.P 11 Jun (MBe). Clark had 1100 Royal Terns at Huguenot Memorial Park during the end of Jul. Single Roseate Terns were at Lloyd S.P 1 1 Jun (MBe) and Boynton Inlet 12 Jun (BHo). A surprising 55 Common Terns were inland at Polk mines 10 Jul (CG, PT). A single Arc¬ tic Tern was at Boynton Inlet 11 Jun (BHo). For a species that does not breed in Florida, 920 Forsters Terns at Polk mines 23 Jul (CG, PT) was an impressive mid-summer count. Up to 225 Least Terns were at Key Biscayne, Miami-Dade 15-21 Jul, an unusually high number for this location (RD); at Polk mines, Leasts numbered 274 on 19 Jun (PT, CG). A fishing trip about 20 km off Hillsborough In¬ let, Broward 19 Jun found 2 Bridled Terns (MBe). A Sooty Tern was picked up alive on a Volusia beach 25 Jun (MBr). A fishing trip 170 km off Ponce Inlet found 300+ Sooty Terns, 15+ Bridled Terns, and 4 Brown Nod¬ dies 29 Jul (BW). The first southbound Black Tern was at Bald Pt., Franklin 4 Jul (JM). Large numbers of Black Skimmers were inland to Polk mines, with 412 on 19 Jun, 690 on 10 Jul, and 650 skimmers 23 Jul (CG, PT). Three hundred Black Skimmers were at Bird Is., Nassau Sound 24 Jul, where their colony was washed out by high spring tides (PL). PIGEONS THROUGH FINCHES White-crowned Pigeons are primarily birds of the Keys; 68 at Southern Glades W.M.A., Mi¬ ami-Dade 12 Jul (RD) was an unusually high number on the mainland. White-winged Doves are becoming more common in the Tampa Bay area, with 29 at Brandon, Hills¬ borough 20 Jul (DP) the highest number re¬ ported. Burrowing Owls were present throughout the season at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve S.P, Okeechobee, where 19 was the highest count 13 Jul (PM). Very local nesters, Common Nighthawks nested unsuccessfully at Fort Clinch S.P, Nassau in Jun (PL). The only report of Antillean Nighthawks was of 3 at Cudjoe Key, Monroe 24 Jun (AB, MH). At least 2 Whip-poor-wills were heard and seen at Bald Pt. 5-16 Jun (JM, JDo); there are no breeding reports for Florida. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are scarce in Florida away from the extreme north, so four reports from the mid-pen. were about normal. A Belted Kingfisher at St. Marks N.W.R. 8 Jun (JDo) may have been a summering bird. The first apparently returning Belted Kingfisher was one at Ocklawaha, Marion 30 Jun (AL). Sin¬ gle Western Kingbirds were in mid-Pinellas 2 Jun (JF) and Bald Pt. 5 Jun (JDo). Two Yel¬ low-throated Vireos heard singing at Mead Garden, Winter Park, Orange 10 Jun+ (BA et al.) were at the s. edge of their range. A Red¬ eyed Vireo at Sarasota 2 Jun (JDu, EM) was likely a late migrant; the first southbound Red-eyed was at Coconut Pt., Brevard 26 Jul 586 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS FLORIDA (AB). A Black-whiskered Vireo was n. of nor¬ mal in mid-Pinellas 6 Jun (JF). This species used to occur regularly in Pinellas but is now rare there. A “few” Purple Martins at Tavernier, Mon¬ roe 24 Jun (BM) were thought to be south¬ bound migrants. Noteworthy swallows at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. were single Tree Swal¬ lows 6, 11, & 26 Jul, one or 2 Bank Swallows on seven dates during the season, and up to 3 Cliff Swallows 23-31 Jul (HR). Barn Swal¬ lows are continuing to expand as breeders in the state, so individuals at two locations in Everglades N.P. 4 & 5 Jun (BR) were intrigu¬ ing. More expected, but still impressive, was the presence of at least 55 Barn Swallows on each of 14 dates at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A., with a maximum of 260 on 23 Jul (HR). A House Wren at Clearwater, Pinellas 26 Jun (EH) was only the 3rd reported in summer in the state. Single American Robins at Cedar Key, Levy 2 Jun and 6-11 Jul (DH) were in¬ teresting. An out-of-season Gray Catbird was at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 5-12 Jun (HR). Robinson observed the first Common Myna at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 11 Jul, further evi¬ dence of the expansion of this species in Florida. A well-described Blue-winged Warbler at Ocklawaha Prairie R.A., Mahon 21 Jul (AL) furnished only the 2nd summer report for Florida. The first southbound Yellow Warbler was at Cedar Key 25 Jul (DH). A Cerulean Warbler was at a water drip in s. Jacksonville 30 Jul (JCo). The first southbound Black-and- white Warbler was at the Seminole Environ¬ mental Center 9 Jul (AV, LoM). An American Redstart at Gainesville 9 Jun (GP) was likely a late northbound migrant, while one at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve S.P 16 Jul (PM) was the first southbound migrant. A Swain- i son’s Warbler was heard in Tallahassee 26 Jun (GM). The first southbound Louisiana Wa- terthrushes were singles at Tallahassee 5 Jul (FR), Seminole Environmental Center 9 Jul (LaM, AV), and Newnans L., Alachua 10 Jul (JH, LD). The first southbound Hooded War¬ bler was in mid-Pinellas 25 Jul (JF). Blue Grosbeaks and Indigo and Painted Buntings were present throughout the season at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A., with maximum daily counts of 25, 27, and 3, respectively (HR). A male Varied Bunting that hit a window at Siesta Key, Sarasota 1 Jun (MvD; * Archbold Biological Station) provided the first record of the species for Florida. Small numbers of Dickcissels have been present at Lake Apop¬ ka N.S.R.A. in recent summers, but this sum¬ mers number of birds is unprecedented for Florida. Robinson found Dickcissels on all 14 of his surveys this year, with a maximum of 89 on 5 Jun and counts of 40+ until 20 Jul and 4 still present at the end of the season. Breeding was confirmed when a nest with eggs was found 19 May. Out-of-season Bobolinks were at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 5 Jun (HR) and Cedar Key 18 Jun (RoR). Blackbird numbers always in¬ crease at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. in Jul, but this year’s numbers were nothing short of amazing, with counts of over 100,000 each for Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grack- les, and Boat-tailed Grackles, the maxima be¬ ing 303,000 Red-winged Blackbirds and 117,000 Common Grackles 17 Jul and 167,000 Boat-tailed Grackles 14 Jul (HR)! Numbers at the roost rapidly decrease by mid-Aug — where do these birds come from and where do they go? Shiny Cowbirds were reported in good numbers, with singles at Al¬ ligator Pt. 1-7 Jun (JDo), Bald Pt. 17 Jun (JDo), and Cedar Key 2 Jul (DH), duos at Fort De Soto 2 Jun (LA) and Flamingo, Ever¬ glades N.P. 5 Jun (BR), up to 7 at Redlands, Miami-Dade through 3 Jul (RT, MF, RD), and up to 13 at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 19 Jun-28 Jul (HR). Up to 6 Bronzed Cowbirds, not yet confirmed to breed in Florida, were at Red¬ lands, Miami-Dade through 12 Jul (RT, MF, RD). Orchard Orioles were present at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. all season, with a maximum of 24 on 1 Jul (HR). An American Goldfinch lingered at Gainesville until 1 Jun (LD). House Finches were present in good numbers in the cen. peninsula, with one in mid-Pinel¬ las in Jul (JF), up to 6 at Altamonte Springs, Seminole all season (PH), one at Lake Apopka N.S.R.A. 4 & 14 Jul (BA, HR), and up to 6, in¬ cluding a female feeding a fledgling, at Mead Garden (AV, BA,JC1). Cited contributors (area compilers in bold): Bruce Anderson, Lyn Atherton, Frank Au- mack, Andy Bankert, Mark Berney (MBe), Sam Benedetto, Robin Bjork, John Boyd (JBo), Michael Brothers (MBr), Judy Bryan (JBr), Bob Carroll, Joelyn Clifton (JCl), Julie Cocke (JCo), Steve Collins, Tom Curtis, Lloyd Davis, Robin Diaz, Terry Doyle (TDo), Jack Dozier (JDo), Jeanne Dubi (JDu), Thomas Dunkerton (TDu), Tommy Elliot, Erik En- body, Charlie Ewell, Mark Faherty, Judy Fish¬ er, Chuck Geanangel, Jill Gaetzi, Paul Gray, Jack & Liz Hailman, Mitchell Hait, Erik Haney, Bev Hansen (BHe), Dale Henderson, John Hintermister, Brian Hope (BHo), Paul Hueber, Marianne Korosy, Ed Kwater, Patrick Leary, Rob Lengacher, Angela Luzader, Lome Malo (LoM), Larry Manfredi (LaM), Lenore McCullagh (LeM), Gail Menk, Edith Miller, Paul Miller, Brennan Mulrooney, John Mur¬ phy, Geoff Parks, Cheri Pierce, David Powell, Peggy Powell, Bill Pranty, Gallus Quigley, Bryant Roberts, Harry Robinson, Diane Reed, Ron Robinson (RoR), Rex Rowan (ReR), Fran Rutkovsky, David Simpson, Matt Smith, Catherine & Eugene Stoccardo, Pete Timmer, Roberto Torres, Ken Tracey, Raul Urgelles, Michelle van Deventer, Alex Vinokur, Bob Wallace, Kristen Wood. Q Vmjttmi A Birder’s Guide to Florida by Bill Pranty, published 2005; 672 pages; paper(lay-flat) Item #175 ABA Member Price: $20.76 (List $25.95) North American birders savor Florida as the place to see species not found elsewhere in the US or Canada, such as Snail Kite, Short-tailed Hawk, Black-hooded Parakeet, Mangrove Cuckoo, Black- whiskered Vireo, or Florida Scrub-Jay. These are but a few of the Florida spe¬ cialties that make a trip to the Sunshine State such an exciting adventure for birders. More than 330 hireling sites are described, and more than 400 species accounts are now included. A Birder’s Guide to Michigan by Allen Chartier and Jerry Ziarno, published 2004; A Birder's Guide to Southeastern Arizona 672 pages; paper(lay-flat) Item #288 ABA Member Price: $23.1 6 (List $28.95) by Richard Cachor Taylor, revised 2005; 384 pages; paper (lay-flat) Item #102 ABA Member Price: $19.96 (List $24.95) £ Call to Order AtlOCIATIOfc ^ 800/634-7736 — VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 587 Ontario • Kenora Atikokan Thunder • Bay L. Superior L. Michigan Marathon •Wawa North Bay* Algonquin PP Cornwall Ottawa Sault ,Ste. Marie # Sudbury ^ftouhn , ' '■ Parry Sound * , *■ c Kingston/ L. ‘ - _TV u • u * ' Ontario »"H Peterborough • \ Toronto* rresqu tie rr Kettle Pt. . Hamilton* ^Niagara Falls . ■ Long Pt. Bird Observatory Rondeau PP Sarnia i Saint Clair IYaJ* i MPt. Pelee NP L. Erie' David H. Elder Box 252 23 Birch Road Atikokan, Ontario POT ICO (mdelder@nwconx.net) The Ontario summer of 2005 will be long remembered. The central and southern parts of the province suf¬ fered through seemingly endless days of high temperatures, high humidity, and, un¬ fortunately, very poor air quality. The com¬ bination may not have affected birds, but it did have an effect on birders: birding was a chore. Rainfall was scarce. In the north¬ western part of the province, however, just the opposite conditions prevailed: June was one of the wettest and coolest on record. It was not until the second week of July that warmer and drier weather arrived. This was the final work season of the five-year Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas project. Con¬ ducted throughout the province, the Atlas project gave adventuresome birders the op¬ portunity to bird in the far-northern reach¬ es of the province, a vast area that is remote and accessible only by air travel. Upon completion of record compilation, the proj¬ ect will add much new information on the status of bird species populations and dis¬ tributions in the huge frontier area west of Hudson Bay and the rest of the province. Abbreviations: G.T.A. (Greater Toronto Area), K.EN. (Kingston Field Naturalists), O.B.B.A. (Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas), O.B.R.C. (Ontario B.R.C.), O.EO (Ontario Field Ornithologists), P.P.B.A (Point Pelee Birding Area). Place names in italics refer to districts and regional municipalities as well as to counties. LOONS THROUGH VULTURES Common Loons had a poor breeding season in most of the n. part of the province. The very high water levels of the spring likely flooded many early nests, and many late sec¬ ond attempts were noted (DHE). A similar situation prevailed in Algonquin P.P., where production was well below normal, with in¬ cubating birds noted on nests well into Jul (RT). Red-necked Grebes, unusual in sum¬ mer in the Ottawa area, were noted on the Ottawa R. above and below the Remic Rapids 22Jun and 15 Jul (possibly the same bird; BS, AR). The now-annual breeding group of Red-necked Grebes in Bronte Har¬ bour had three active nests by late Jun, but only a single chick hatched successfully at end of Jul (GE). A Red-necked Grebe pres¬ ent at Presqu’ile PR 19 Jun-16 Jul furnished only the 2nd summer record for the park. American White Pelicans continue to do well at the main Ontario nesting colony at Lake of the Woods. Non-breeding individu¬ als and flocks were reported frequently all summer throughout nw. Ontario, well away from the colony, including 12 noted on French L. in Quetico PR 7 Jul (SFP). Much farther away, a single was present 4 Jun-16 Jul at Holiday Beach and was joined by 2 others 17-19 Jun (DW et al.). American White Pelicans were also found near Kingston, with 2 at Wolfe I. 1 Jun (GB) and one at West Brothers I. 3 Jul (DVW). A Great Egret nest on Barrier I. in Geor¬ gian Bay off the e. coast of the Bruce Pen. 28 Jun was a significant find (JJ). Great Egrets are rare in the Ottawa area. Reports of one at the Britannia C.A. 5 Jun (BL, RC, JS), 2 at Shirleys Bay 15-16 Jul (BB, CL, TB, JS), and 3 also at Shirleys Bay 23 Jul (BB, CL) included no hums., which sug¬ gests that breeding has yet to occur in the area. In the G.T.A. , single Great Egrets were found at High Park 3 Jun and 2 &r 10 Jul (SMF); a pair was noted 18 Jun on the Leslie Street Spit, where breeding has oc¬ curred in the past (BK). A Snowy Egret at Holiday Beach C.A. 4-6 Jun was a nice find (DW et al), as was a one-year-old imm. Tri¬ colored Heron at Hillman Marsh P.RB.A. 13-16 Jun (DW et al.). A Cattle Egret at Stromness 19 Jun (RZD) was joined by an¬ other 27 Jun (BC), and a single was found 7 Jun along the North Dike Road P.RB.A. (MKM et al.). With very few confirmed re¬ cent nestings of Green Herons in the G.T.A., a nest with an ad. feeding a young bird at Riverdale Farms was a significant discovery (SG, fide GC). WATERFOWL THROUGH SHOREBIRDS Several Snow Geese lingered in the Ottawa area, with 5 ads. on the Ottawa R. near Bate I. 4 Jun (YL) and a single there 8 Jun (DB). Birders participating in the O.B.B.A. project in the far n. of the province discovered two nests of Ross’s Goose 15 Jun near Cape Henrietta Maria, the first ever found in On¬ tario (GC, MR DSu, CJ, JB). A Tundra Swan was present all of Jun at the Grand Bend S.T.P. (AR). In the nw. of the province, Trumpeter Swans were again noted during the breeding season, with 3 ads. at Atikokan 10 Jun (DHE). A pair at Little Sachigo L. in late Jun furnished one of the most northerly recent records (PH et al.). Several other swans were reported in the Region, and although they were not identi¬ fied, it is likely they were Trumpeters. As previously noted, the nw. Ontario birds ap¬ pear to have originated from introductions in Wisconsin and Minnesota. 588 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS A pair of Wood Ducks at North Spirit L. in mid-Jun was well n. of the species’ nor¬ mal range (PR). The Amherstview S.T.P hosted 2 male Eurasian Wigeons 3 1 May-2 Jun (K.EN.). A huge flock of 1 130 Mallards 5 Jul at Hillman Marsh P.P.B.A., largely post-breeding males, provided an excep¬ tional summer count for the area (AW, DW). A female Northern Pintail with 7 young at Cootes Paradise in Hamilton 9 Jul afforded a rare breeding record for the area (ES). Canvasbacks continue to nest on the Leslie Street Spit, G.T.A., where a hen and 9 young were seen in mid-Jun (DD, fide GC). Redhead, a rare breeder in the Ottawa area, was noted 5 Jun at Ball’s Corners (BL, RC) — a male that was joined a week later by a female (BB, CL) — and 29 Jun at the Alfred S.T.P, a hen with 9 downy young (JBo). A Black Scoter 6 Jun at Cobourg marked the 2nd summer record for the area (W&LW), and a female Bufflehead first noted 6 Jul (RZD) summered in the Win¬ dermere Basin at Hamilton. An ad. Red-shouldered Hawk was seen near Rainy River 5 Jul in suitable breeding habitat (GC). The species nests sparingly just to the w. in se. Manitoba. An imm. Northern Goshawk found 21 Jun on Mid¬ dle I., Essex constituted a bizarre summer occurrence (AW). A Merlin pair fledged 4 young in late Jul in Wiarton QJ), and two pairs nested successfully in Port Hope (CG, fide RF), with another 10 pairs found by at- lassers in the surrounding area. This indi¬ cates an encouraging increase in the area population since the 1980s. Several pairs also nested in Ottawa suburbs (m.ob.), a continuing success story for a species that was considered rare in the area until 1997. Peregrine Falcons are doing very well along the n. shore of Lake Superior (BR). Forty- three occupied territories were identified during the summer, and 47 young were banded. Another pair had a nest on a Nia¬ gara Escarpment cliff near Purple Valley, and a scolding ad. was attending a large young bird there 25 Jul (JJ). Yet another pair was observed chasing Tree Swallows over Atikokan 15 Jun (CM). After several years of relative scarcity, Yellow Rails were actually abundant in the Rainy River area. Heavy and continuous spring rains resulted in very wet hay fields and meadows that apparently created per¬ fect rail habitat. Participants in the O.LO. area tour counted at least 20 calling rails along a single km of road sided by exten¬ sive wet meadows 3 Jun (DHE, m.ob.). One persistent birder drove the area roads the entire night of 6-7 Jul and was never out of the sound of clicking Yellow Rails, indicating several hundred birds in the area at minimum (GC). The same observer found a Yellow Rail nest 9 Jul while walk¬ ing through a wet meadow. A silent King Rail was noted at Hillman Marsh PP.B.A. 14 Jun (DW). Ad. Virginia Rails have been found with young in Algonquin P.P in the past, but a nest with six eggs found 6 Jun was a first for the park (DT). A calling Vir¬ ginia Rail in a sedge marsh along the Winisk R. in late Jun was very far n. of typ¬ ical breeding range (PR). Common Moorhens failed to nest and in fact could not even be found at Grafton, where they nested last year (CG). More encouraging was a nest with seven eggs found 10 Jul at Hillman Marsh PP.B.A. with 5 hatched young noted 26-31 Jul (DW), the first nesting in the area for many years. A flock of 7 Sandhill Cranes (including 2 juvs.) over Rock Point P.P 8 Jul was an indication of local breeding success (RZD). Piping Plovers were again absent from the se. corner of the Lake of the Woods, the last consistent nesting location in the province (DHE). A pair attempted to nest at Wasaga Beach on Georgian Bay, where the species has not bred since 1938 (no fur¬ ther details). A single Piping Plover lin¬ gered on the beach at Presqu’ile P.P 1-8 Jun (m.ob.). Color leg bands indicated the bird had been banded in Michigan. An Ameri¬ can Avocet was found 19 Jul at the St. David’s S.T.P. (KR, BA), 2 ads. were at Hill¬ man Marsh P.PB.A. 14 Jul (AW et al.), and a single was at Big Creek 16 Jul (DW). A Willet at the Grimsby S.T.P. 29-31 Jul was a nice find (BC), and another at Presqu’ile P.P. 15 Jul was a unique record for the month (FH). An injured Lesser Yellowlegs at Hillman Marsh P.PB.A. 1-23 Jun provid¬ ed the first summer record for the area (AW, HTO). A record-early southbound Solitary Sandpiper was at Hillman Marsh P.PB.A. 27 Jun-2 Jul (AW et al.) and was followed by a record-high count of 62 at the same location 14 Jul (AW). The Hill¬ man Marsh also hosted a record-early fall Semipalmated Sandpiper 6-7 Jul (DW et al.) and a record-early Western Sandpiper 31 Jul (DW et ah). Farther e., a Western Sandpiper was found at Shirleys Bay near Ottawa 17 Jul (TH, BL). Hillman Marsh was quite productive this season: an excel¬ lent count of 210 Least Sandpipers was made 5 Jul (AW et ah); on 18 Jul, the marsh attracted a one-year-old Curlew Sandpiper (4th record for the PP.B.A.); a female Ruff was there 28-30 Jun (AW, DW); a record- high fall count of 370 Short-billed Dow- itchers was tallied there 14 Jul (AW); and a pair of Wilson’s Phalaropes made the first- ever nesting attempt for the P.PB.A., unfor¬ tunately an unsuccessful attempt, as the birds were last seen 19 Jun (AW). GULLS THROUGH CROWS Two first-summer Laughing Gulls were ONTARIO seen off the Tip of Point Pelee N.P. 6 Jun (AW). A juv. Franklin’s Gull in the Onion fields P.PB.A. 27 Jul was an unusual plumage for Ontario e. of the Lake of the Woods (AW). A California Gull was found near Rainy River 9 Jul associating with a large flock of Franklin’s Gulls and Ring¬ billed Gulls resting in a field (GC), a first record for the area. To the s., a third-sum¬ mer California Gull was found 19 Jun at Fish Pt. on Pelee 1. (DW). A Thayer’s Gull at Fifty Point C.A. 5 Jun was quite unex¬ pected (KAM), as was a Glaucous Gull at Cobourg Harbour 1 Jun, a 3rd area record (CG). A total of 19 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (with some duplication possible) was observed in the P.PB.A. 12 Jun-28 Jul (AW, DW). A second-summer Lesser Black- backed Gull was found 4 Jul at the Des Ch- enes Rapids on the Ottawa R. (BB, CL). Caspian Terns remain rare in the Ottawa area; thus, singles seen 15 Jun on the Ot¬ tawa R. at Rernic Rapids (DB), at Andrew Haydon Park 20 & 26 Jul (TH, TB), and at the Des Chenes Rapids 27 Jul (BD) are sig¬ nificant. An Arctic Tern at Presqu’ile P.P. 2 Jun (MRo) and 3 below the Des Chenes Rapids on the Ottawa R. 28 Jun (TB) are in¬ teresting observations. Two ad. Black Terns over the Big Trout L. marsh in Algonquin P.P. 3 Jun were the first seen in the park since 1989 (DS, GW et al.). The birds were not found during a follow-up visit to the marsh 16 Jun. Yellow-billed Cuckoos appear to be do¬ ing well in the PP.B.A., with an estimated 75-90 pairs present during the breeding season (AW). An ad. seen and heard 26 Jun at Shirleys Bay was a rare find for the Ot¬ tawa area (BL, BM). Black-billed Cuckoos were seen frequently during the summer in Algonquin RP, where the species is consid¬ ered very uncommon (RT). Two Short¬ eared Owls at the Old Airfield in Algo¬ nquin RP. 23 Jun provided the 2nd summer record for the park (RB). Toronto birders were pleasantly surprised to find 2 juv. Northern Saw-whet Owls in virtually the center of the city 19 Jun (RS, GC). There are only two previous breeding records for the species anywhere in the G.T.A. A Red-headed Woodpecker was a rare find at T.C.B.O. 1 Jun (NE). A pair nested at Constance Bay near Ottawa and raised young for the 3rd consecutive year (m.ob.), and an ad. was noted near Pakenham 24 Jul (LN). Red-bellied Woodpeckers bred near Rainy River, where ads. attended a nest 8 Jul (GC); this constitutes the northernmost breeding record in the province. A remark¬ able American Three-toed Woodpecker was found at Frontenac RP. 4 Jun (OW, HB). Five pairs of Eastern Phoebes nested in the P.PB.A. during the summer (AW). The species was largely absent from the VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 589 area during the 1980s and 1990s. A West¬ ern Kingbird was found circling over the Tip of Point Pelee N.P 4 Jun (AW, JER). A pair of Philadelphia Vireos nesting in the Ganaraska Forest furnished the 3rd sum¬ mer record for the area (CG). A rare post¬ breeding concentration of 1300 Tree Swal¬ lows at roost in the Pelee Marsh PP.B.A. was observed 8 Jul (AW). Barn Swallows continue to decline in Algonquin PR for unknown reasons (RT). In 1995, 10 active nests were found at the park’s East Gate; only one was found 8 Jul. GNATCATCHER THROUGH FINCHES A single Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was found 3 Jul at the Constance Creek wetland, a rare find for the Ottawa area (JSk). A male Northern Wheatear sang persistently 8-15 Jul at Burnt Pt. on Hudson Bay (GC et ah), but no nest could be found by O.B.B.A birders working the area. An agitated pair of Veeries in Point Pelee N.P. 17 Jun pro¬ vided the first nesting for the species in the park (AW). An intriguing report of a Sage Thrasher at Cabot Head on the Bruce Pen. 5 Jul (JJ, MC et al.) will hope¬ fully be reviewed by the O.B.R.C. A singing male Prairie Warbler at Presqu’ile PR 20 Jun marked just the 2nd summer record for the area (BE). In Point Pelee N.P, a singing male Hooded Warbler was found 28 Jun at the Black Willows Picnic Area (AW, DL); the species has never nest¬ ed in the park. Also found in the park was a first-year male Summer Tanager 6 Jun (AW). A Dark-eyed Junco at Canborough 1 Jul was well s. of normal breeding range (L&AT). A Clay-colored Sparrow defended a territory (and possibly mated with a Chipping Sparrow) 20 Jun-8 Jul in Algo¬ nquin P.P., where the species is very rare (KC et al.). A remarkable find of a female McCown’s Longspur at the Weagomow S.T.P. in n. Ontario 21 Jun (PR) awaits re¬ view by the O.B.R.C.; if accepted, it would be a first for the province. A territorial male Dickcissel was found in Bronte Creek PR 8 Jun (JL, DS) and was later joined by a fe¬ male 16 Jun (m. ob.). Nesting was later confirmed (MP). Western Meadowlarks appeared to have made some recovery in the Rainy River area after several years of decline. Singing birds were well reported throughout the area during the summer (DHE). Corrigenda: In N.A.B. 58: 520, the sen¬ tence after that on Tufted Titmouse should be corrected to read: A Sedge Wren nest with six eggs found 6 Jun near Hobo L. in Algonquin P.P. constituted the first con¬ firmed breeding record of the species for the park (DT). The reference to Wilson’s Phalaropes includes the statement: “...an early southbound early migrant was found near Peter’s Corners 18 Jul (RZD)”. This record actually refers to a Whimbrel. Under Cited Observers in that report, “Ron Z. Do- bos” should be corrected to read “Rob Z. Dobos”. Cited observers (subregional contributors in boldface): Brian Ahara, Tony Beck, Jerry Binsfield, Jacques Bouvier, Bob Bracken, H. Bridger, David Britton, Ron Brooks, G. Bryant, M. Carlson, Barry Cherriere, K. Clute, Glenn Coady, Ron Curtis, Dan Der¬ byshire, Bruce DiLibio, Rob Z. Dobos, Gavin Edmonstone, B. Edmunds, David H. Elder, Nick Escott, R. Frost, Steve Gillis, Clive Goodwin, Tom Hanrahan, E Hellein- er, Pat Hodgson, Joe Johnson, Colin Jones, Bob Kortwright, Bernie Ladouceur, Yvan Larche, Joyce LeChasseur, Denis Lepage, Chris Lewis, Chris Martin, Michael K. Matheson, Bev McBride, Kevin A. McLaughlin, Larry Neilly, H. T. O’Neill, Mark Peck, Shirley Peruniak, Brian Ratcliff, Pete Read, Jon E. Rickert, Alf Rider, Ron Ridout, Maureen Riggs, Melissa Rose, Art Ross, Kayo Roy, Erica Scott, Donna Shep¬ pard, Bruce Simpson, Jeff Skevington, Jan Slumkoski, Roy Smith, Dan Strickland, Don Sutherland, Al Thrower, Linda Throw¬ er, Doug Tozer, Ron Tozer, Dean Ware, Ron Weir, O. Weir, W. & L. Wensley, D. V. We- seloh, Glenn White, Alan Wormington. THE SPRING MIGRATION 2005 Matthew L. Holder Jacques Whitford Limited 7271 Warden Avenue Markham, Ontario L3R 5X5 (matt.holder@jacqueswhitford.com) Spring migration in Ontario was con¬ sidered by many to be unremarkable. Cold weather at the beginning of the spring was interrupted by unseasonably warm weather in April, followed by cooler and wetter weather in May. Migration of many birds was either delayed or was over¬ looked by birders due to the inclement conditions. Highlights included a Neotropic Cor¬ morant, a Slaty-backed Gull, a Black- throated Gray Warbler, and a Painted Bunting. Abbreviations: N.RH. (Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch); Pt. Pelee (Point Pelee N.P. . and environs, Essex); T.C.B.O. (Thunder Cape B.O.). Place names in italics refer to districts and regional municipalities as well as to counties. LOONS THROUGH WATERFOWL The 580 Horned Grebes counted at Pt. Pelee 25 Mar made a record high count (AW). Single Eared Grebes were noted at Bronte Harbour, Halton 11 Mar-9 Apr (BY, MWJ), Hillman Marsh, Essex 6-14 Apr (AW et al.), and Neibauer’s Marsh, Welling¬ ton 16 Apr (KE); a pair of Eared Grebes was at Emo S.T.P, Rainy River 29 May (DHE, MCE). Hillman Marsh, Essex hosted a Re¬ gionally record high count of 8 American White Pelicans 12-15 May (DJW et al.). The ad. Neotropic Cormorant at Wheatley Harbour 3-6 May was well watched and photographed by visiting birders (DJM, RGT et al.). Double-crested Cormorants exhibiting white crests, almost certainly in¬ dicative of a western taxon, were seen at the Tip of Point Pelee N.P. 26 Apr (AW) and at Hillman Marsh 3 May (AW). Little Blue Heron was widely reported: an ad. was at Holiday Harbour, Essex 20-25 Apr and another at Wheatley P.P. 27 Apr-4 May (JMG, jnf et al.), an imm. was at Toronto I. 11-12 May (DB), and another ad. was seen at the Tip of Pt. Pelee N.P 22 May (STP, AW et al.). A Cattle Egret was at Hurkett, Thunder Bay 15 May (AB,JB), and another was at Hillman Marsh 28 May (BMC, MLC), which also had an imm. Yel¬ low-crowned Night-Heron 11-14 May (MBo, PB et al.) and an ad. Glossy Ibis 13-16 May (MN, RPH et al.). The 5130 Turkey Vultures counted at Beamer C.A., Niagara this spring was a new record high count (N.P.W.). Single Greater White-fronted Geese were at Hillman Marsh 9-11 Mar (MBl, MDF et al.), at Pendleton, Prescott-Russell 6 Apr (BDL), and at Richmond, Ottawa 8 Apr (PW). A Brant se. of Carlsbad Springs, Ot¬ tawa 7 Apr was record early for the Region (TB), while a Cackling Goose at Hillman Marsh 29 Apr was record late (RGT, PT, RJC et al.). The first Trumpeter Swan for Atikokan, Rainy River appeared on 12 May (RB) and was likely a wanderer from intro¬ ductions in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Sin¬ gle Eurasian Wigeons were at Presqu’ile P.P., Northumberland 28 Mar-9 Apr (BP, AP) and at Grimsby, Niagara 20-22 May (BC). Two were together at Hillman Marsh 17-18 Mar, with singles seen 19 (AW) & 26 Mar (DJW) and 14 May (DJW et al.). A record- high count of 1140 Green- winged Teal was seen there 24 Mar (AW). At least one King Eider was observed off Toronto this spring, with sightings on 19 Mar (GC) and 4 Apr (DD), while the maximum count off Stoney Creek, Hamilton was 18 on 22 Mar - - - - - - 590 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS (JO); a female King Eider was at the Tip of Pt. Pelee 16 Apr (AW). A male Harlequin Duck spent the spring off Humber Bay, Toronto (m.ob.), and another was off Bronte, Halton through 16 Apr (m.ob.); 2 were at the Tip of Pt. Pelee 8 (NB, SL) & 18 May (HC et al.). The 600 Surf Scoters at the Tip of Pt. Pelee 6 Apr was a record-high number (AW). The 2 male Barrow’s Gold¬ eneyes that wintered at Rernic Rapids, Ot¬ tawa lingered until 26 Mar (m.ob.); anoth¬ er was at Bronte Habour, Halton 27 Mar (PB). Thunder Bay hosted a female Ruddy Duck 31 Mar (BM). RAPTORS THROUGH SHOREBIRDS A Mississippi Kite was at Arner, Essex 24 May (DJW). N.P.H. had a record count of 70 Bald Eagles for the spring. An imm. Swainson’s Hawk was photographed at Grassie, Niagara 10 Apr (BC), and a Richardsons Merlin was noted at Pelee I., Essex 25 Apr (DJW, AC). At Pt. Pelee, a juv. Gyrfalcon of the white morph frequented Hillman Marsh 7-13 Mar (AW), the 5th record for the area. A Sandhill Crane at Minto L., Nipissing 27 Mar was record ear¬ ly for Algonquin P.P (JD). The total of 3100 Black-bellied Plovers from North Dike to Wheatley Harbour, Es¬ sex 21 May was a record high count for Pt. Pelee (RHC, GS1). Up to 4 Piping Plovers were noted in Ontario on s. Great Lakes this spring: a single bird at Pinery P.P, Lambton 29-30 Apr ( fide AR), a banded bird at Toronto I. 1-3 May (NM), an un¬ handed bird at Wheatley Harbour 4 May (KAM), and one at Presqu’ile PR, Northum¬ berland 21-24 & 28 May (MR; DS), which had colored leg bands that indicated it had been banded in Michigan. A total of 12 American Avocets was at Wheatley Har¬ bour 28 Apr (RGT, PT), increasing to 14 on 1 May (JMT). A flock of 15 at Van Wagners Beach, Hamilton on the same date (SG) in¬ creased to 25 birds 2 May (BC et al.). Three were at Hillman Marsh 10 May (m.ob.). On 27 Apr, 2 Willets were at Colonel Samuel Smith Park, Toronto (BY), 10 were at Cobourg Harbour, Northumberland (CEG), and 13 were at LaSalle Marina, Hamilton (RZD); 13 Willets also joined the American Avocets at Van Wagners Beach, Hamilton 2 May (CE et al.). A total of 41 Willets was recorded at Pt. Pelee late Apr-mid-May. A Baird’s Sandpiper at Hillman Marsh 20 May represented only the 3rd Pt. Pelee area record for spring (GTH et al.). GULLS THROUGH WOODPECKERS Single Laughing Gulls were at Pt. Pelee 7 (DE), 12 (AW), & 30 May (MB). An ad. Franklin’s Gull was at Hillman Marsh 10 May OHS, RS et al.). A rarely reported mi¬ grant in the Atikokan area in Rainy River, the Bonaparte’s Gull found 26 Apr was the first seen there since 1996 (DHE). An ad. Mew Gull was at Malden Centre, Essex 13 May (DJW). The ad. California Gull re¬ ported from the Quebec side of the Ottawa R. 30-31 Mar at Rernic Rapids (GS, CR) was possibly the same bird reported s. of Bell’s Corners, Ottawa 15-16 Apr (DSa). An ad. Slaty-backed Gull photographed at Sarnia, Lambton 13-20 Mar was a signifi¬ cant find (AR, CB, TS et al.). Rare in the n., a Great Black-backed Gull was on the ice in Marathon, Thunder Bay 30 Mar (KW). Pt. Pelee’s 2nd White-winged Dove was seen at Sturgeon Creek 7 May (PDP et al.). Short-eared Owls are very rare in Algo¬ nquin P.P., Nipissing, so the individual seen at Spruce Bog Boardwalk 1 Apr was signif¬ icant (DSh, DT). Rare in the n., a Red-bel¬ lied Woodpecker was seen at T.C.B.O. in May ( fide NGE), one was at Red Rock, Thunder Bay 10 May (JS), and another was elsewhere in Thunder Bay, at Schreiber 21 May (DW, MW). SHRIKES THROUGH FINCHES Considering the well-documented decline of Loggerhead Shrikes in Ontario, the indi¬ vidual at Wicklow, Northumberland 3 Apr (MBa) was a welcome sight at a location where they used to breed in numbers. The Townsend’s Solitaire seen at Hungry Hol¬ low, Lambton in Feb was still present through 18 Mar (PC). Rare in Thunder Bay , a Wood Thrush was observed 17 May at Fort William (JC). A Varied Thrush visited a feeder in Dryden, Thunder Bay 1-2 Apr (NC, CE). An exceptionally early Black-throated Blue Warbler was observed at Snake T, Toronto 16 Apr (NM). Pt. Pelee’s 3rd Black- throated Gray Warbler, and the first ever in spring, was a female at the Tip of Pt. Pelee N.P 18-30 Apr (AW). Single Yellow- throated Warblers were at Pt. Pelee N.P 6-7 (DP, CS) & 7 May (GTH et al.), and another was seen by many birders at Presqu’ile P.P, Northumberland 18 May (DPa, RC), the park’s first record and the 5th for the county. Pt. Pelee had 2 Kirt- land’s Warblers: one 9-14 May (DF) and one 11-14 May (JA). A female Prothono- tary Warbler was n. to Rattray Marsh, Peel 16 May (WR); another was seen on the same date in e. Middlesex (RS). A Worm¬ eating Warbler was at Fifty Point C.A., Hamilton 7-10 May (BS, JH, BJ), and a Louisiana Waterthrush was noted at Colonel Samuel Smith Park, Toronto 26 May (WR). T.C.B.O.’s 3rd Kentucky War¬ bler was banded 13 May and not relocated after release (JW). Rare in Thunder Bay, a female Hooded Warbler appeared at a feed¬ er in Geraldton 22 Apr (BA). While hiking to T.C.B.O. in late Apr prior to opening up the station for the spring season, J. Wood¬ cock found a Yellow-breasted Chat dead on the trail. An imm. male Summer Tanager was carefully observed at Moore Park Ravine, Toronto 13 May (MH, DH), and one was at Port Hope, Northumberland 16 May (KH); up to 9 were observed at Pt. Pelee 27 Apr-30 May (m.ob.). A feeder on Dog Lake Rd., Thunder Bay hosted a Lark Sparrow 20-23 Apr (DC); another was at Pt. Pelee N.P. 16 May (GTH et al.). A male Lark Bunting was banded at T.C.B.O. 23 May (AG et al.). Pt. Pelee’s wintering Harris’s Sparrow was last seen in early Mar (RAH, AJH et al.). A female Blue Grosbeak was at Pt. Pelee N.P. 25 May (MBR), and the imm. male at Port Hope 26-28 May (RF) was Northum¬ berland's 5th record. Pt. Pelee’s 3rd Painted Bunting was seen 26 May (DKS, RM). A Dickcissel was at Mission I., Thunder Bay 23 May (NK, LK), and at least 6 were seen at Pt. Pelee in Apr-May (m.ob.). In Rainy River, Atikokan’s first Bobolink since 1996 was noted 22 May (DHE). The House Finch observed on 5 Apr was the first seen in Al¬ gonquin PR, Nipissing since 2002 (JD). Cited observers (subregional contributors in boldface): B. Atkinson, J. Atkinson, M. J. C. Bain (MBa), M. Baker, A. Baxter, J. Bax¬ ter, D. Beadle, T. Beck, M. Blagdurn, M. Booker (MBo), P. Booker, B. Bracken, N. Britt, R. Brown, C. Buck, A. Campbell, H. Caswell, R. J. Cermak, P. Chapman, B. Cherriere, B. M. Chomyshyn, M. L. Chomyshyn, D. Christenson, J. Clark, G. Coady, R. Cole, N. Collins, R. H. Curry, D. Derbyshire, B. DiLabio, R. Z. Dobos, J. Dombroskie, C. Eady, C. Edgecombe, K. Egressey, D. H. Elder, M .C. Elder, N. G. Escott, D. Euler, M. D. Fitzpatrick, J. N. Flynn, D. Friedman, R. Frost, S. Germana, A. Gilbert, C. E. Goodwin, J. M. Gordon, A. J. Hall, R. A. Hall, D. Hasley, M. Hasley, J. Heslop, G. T. Hince, M. L. Holder, K. Horner, R. P. Horvath, M. W. Jennings, J. Johnson, B. Jones, Kingston Field Natural¬ ists, L. Krupa, N. Krupa, S.Lee, C. Lewis, R. Mackintosh, K .A. McLaughlin, D. J. Milsom, B. Moore, N. Murr, Niagara Penin¬ sula Hawkwatch, M. Nurnberg,J. Olmsted, D. Panko, A. Parker, B. Parker, S. T. Pike, R D. Pratt, D. Prectice, P A. Read, M. B. Reid, W. Renaud, A. Rider, M. Riggs (MRi), C. Rimmer, M. Rose, D. Sangster (DSa), D. K. Sealy, G. Seutin, D. Shanahan, D. Sheepway (DSh),J. H. Skevington, R. Skevington, G. Slessor (GS1), R. B. H. Smith, R. Snider, T. Snieder, C. Staddon, B. Stamp, J. Swanson, D. Tannahill,J. M. Tate, R Tozer, R. G. Toz- er, K. Wade, D. J. Ware, R. D. Weir, D.Wel- bourne, M. Welbourne, J. Woodcock, A. Wormington, P. Wright, B. Yukich. C VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 591 Eastern Highlands f Upper Ohio River Valley ■■■■■■Mi LAKE ERIE Presque Isle SPm Conneautj Toledo Oak ■-,'W - _ Openings Ottawa Lorain NWR Cleveland 1 1l_ Warren# ■ Allegheny Res. i Erie NWR Pymatuhing Res. m Cook Forest SP OHIO Buck Creek SPm •Dayton jifincinnati Phi, • Columbus Mosquito L~ Youngstown 1 Wheeling • f A L. Wallen paupack Wilkes- • Barre E. Stroudsburg Hocking i Hills ■ Shenango Res. m Bald Eagle SP ■ / a rth ur _ • State Yellow Creek SP Colle9e HawkMtm L. Ontelauneem •Pittsburgh Harrisburg* Philadelphia, • Powdermill York* ■•Lancaster f- Morgantown* Cranesville Bog er/v -' Parkersburg Miami-Whitewater Wetland Hunting- ton M Conejohela Flats Cheat • Charleston Mtns. Spruce V Pipestem State Resort Knob WEST VIRGINIA Victor W. Fazio, III 18722 Newell Street, Floor 2 Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122 (dromaius@bright.net) Rick Wiltraut Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center 835 Jacobsburg Road Wind Gap, Pennsylvania 18091 (rwiltraut@state.pa.us) he western portion of the Region ex¬ perienced its fourth warmest summer on record; from the Allegheny Moun¬ tains eastward, however, temperatures were only slightly above average. Southern passer¬ ines continue to be noted with greater fre¬ quency north of range, particularly Blue Gros¬ beak and Summer Tanager. The initiation of the second Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas in 2006 comes at a time well-suited to documenting in detail whether these sporadic reports repre¬ sent real range expansions in the wake of what has amounted to a fifteen-year heat wave in the Region. With the summer heat came a July dry spell. Inland reservoirs that normally do not see mud exposure until well into the fall season were low enough in July to be attractive to shorebirds and birders alike. The first hurricane in 50 years to have a track through the state of Ohio (others have skirted along the Ohio- Pennsylvania line) produced a new state record in the form of a Sooty Tern. It is with sadness that we report the passing of a fine fellow birder from Bucks County, Pennsylvania: Steve Far- botnik died this season at the age of 82. His humor, his enthusiasm, his knowl¬ edge of the natural world, and his con¬ tributions to this journal will be sorely missed. Abbreviations: Conneaut (Conneaut Harbor, Ashtabula, OH); C.S. (Coalbed Swamp, Wyoming, PA); C.F (Conejo¬ hela Flats, Lancaster, PA); O.N.W.R. (Ottawa N.W.R., Lucas/Ottawa, OH); P.W.T. (Penn-Warner Tract, Bucks, PA); PV.P (Peace Valley Park, Bucks, PA); P.l.S.P (Presque Isle S. P., Erie, PA); PL. (Pymatuning L., Crawford, PA). LOONS THROUGH IBIS Only one summering Common Loon was re¬ ported, through mid-Jul at PV.P (AM), al¬ though one lingered until 21 Jun at Alum Creek Res., Delaware, OH (R. Schroeder), and one in breeding plumage at RW.T. 31 Jul was unexpected (DF). A pair of Pied-billed Grebes with 2 chicks at Imperial, Allegheny, PA 17 Jun marked the first confirmed breed¬ ing for that county (MV); the count of 11 ads. and 5 juvs. at Glen Morgan L., Berks, PA was encouraging (K. Lebo). American White Pelicans are increasingly found summering in the Western Basin of L. Erie in Ohio. This season, sightings from Lorain 3 Jun (JP) to nearby Vermilion, Erie and farther w. to the Cedar Point Chausee, Erie 23-24 Jun (C. Coffman) may have involved only a single individual. Yet, by season’s end, 2 were in res¬ idence at Medusa Marsh, Erie (m.ob.). Not surprisingly, another wandered into the Eastern Basin at RI.S.P 13 Jul (JM). Mid¬ summer records of White Pelicans away from L. Erie remain very rare. In Ohio, these included 2 at Mogadore Res., Portage 25-28 Jun (GB), one in Mahoning 15 Jul (B. Jones), and a first county record for Seneca, at the Garlo Nature Preserve 19 Jul (D. Mason, TB). In Pennsylvania, 2 were at P.L. 3-11 Jun and one was at the same location 23-25 Jul (MV, RCL, RFL, J. Christman, M. Fi- alkovich). A pair of Double-crested Cor¬ morants was seen at a nest at P.V.P 30 Jul (AM), but the nest failed. Wandering imm. Little Blue Herons were recorded at Caesar Creek S.P., Warren, OH 22 Jul (SE) and at Black Swamp Nature Center 29 Jul (D. & M. Dunakin), a first county record for Paulding. Another wayward imm. Little Blue Heron appeared at Greenbottom This Yellow-crowned Night-Heron at Kiwanis Park, York County, Pennsylvania could be one of the last nesters in the state; Kiwanis Park is Pennsylvania's last known location for this always uncommon but formerly regular bird. Photograph by Geoff Malosh. ' " " . '''' NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 592 STERN HIGHLANDS & UPPER OHIO RIVER VA W.M.A., Cabell, WV 27-28 Jul (WA, JB et al.). The rare but annual Tricolored Heron was documented by visiting Swedish birders at Conneaut (ph. AA et al.). The only ex- tralimital Snowy Egret report came from En¬ glewood Reserve, Montgomery, OH 13 Jun (E&BN). Post¬ breeding Great Egrets were es¬ pecially numerous well away from nest sites on L. Erie, as evidenced by a flock of 9 at Greenbottom W.M.A., Cabell, WV 28 Jul (JB, rn.ob.). Nesting Yellow-crowned Night-Herons in Columbus, OH were once again successful ( fide BW). This remains the only active breeding locale in Ohio this decade. A juv. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron was unexpected in Berkeley, WV 16-18 Jul (B. Dean, M. Orsie). An ad. Black- crowned Night-Heron 21 Jun in Chilicothe, Ross, OH (D. Hess) was unexpected. The isolated colony in Cincinnati numbered seven nests 23 Jun (E Renfrow). In the wake of two unverified reports of White Ibis flocks in the w. portion of the Region (possibly involving up to 30 birds) in May were four documented records in Ohio for that state’s 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th records. All imms., these birds were noted 9 Jul in C.VN.R (ph. K. Rado), 19 Jul along Little Walnut Creek ( fide BW) 24 Jul along Big Darby Cr., Franklin (ph. A. Sas- son), and 26 Jul at Cemex Reserve, Green (C. Barnett et al.). An adequate report of an imm. White Ibis at Beech Fork camp¬ ground, WV 11 Jul (RT) fits within the pat¬ tern of this summer’s incursion. None of these birds were detected after their initial observation. A flock of 22 Glossy Ibis at Lan- denburg, Chester 14 Jul was an excellent count for Pennsylvania (A. Leidig), and one at Green Pond, Northampton, PA 1-4 Jul (DD, RW et al.) was unusual for that locale. Three at O.N.W.R. 5 Jun were holdovers from the spring flight (AA et al.). WATERFOWL THROUGH CRANES Although summer records are known from the Eastern Basin of L. Erie, a Snow Goose at Conneaut 11-25 Jun (MV) and one sum¬ mering in Lucas are only Ohio’s 2nd and 3rd. In Pennsylvania, one was at P.W.T. 31 Jul (DF). There was little commentary regard¬ ing waterfowl this season. A male Gadwall lingered at P.L. 8 Jun-7 Jul (MV, RFL). The last known nesting in the state was in Craw¬ ford in 1964. Up to 6 Blue-winged Teal at S. Eaton, Luzerne in Jul were the only ones re¬ ported in Pennsylvania (WR). An ad. male Canvasback was found 18 Jun off Kelleys I., Erie, OH (TB), where casual in summer. Late Ring-necked Ducks in Pennsylvania includ¬ ed one at Harvey’s L., Luzerne 24 Jun (E. Johnson), one through Jul at Tinicum Twp., Bucks (M. Muth), and 2 through Jul in Find¬ lay Twp., Allegheny (MV). A Ring-necked This apparent second-summer Parasitic Jaeger was a complete surprise at Gull Point, State Park, Erie, Pennsylvania 17 July 2005. This is a plumage not often seen inland in Photograph by Jerry McWilliams. Duck apparently summered at Miami White- water Wetlands near Cincinnati (J. Lehman, m.ob.). Lingering scaup in Pennsylvania in¬ cluded a Greater at P.I.S.P 17 Jul (BC) and a Lesser at Wild Creek Res., Carbon 26 Jun-1 1 Jul (S. Boyce et al.). A Bufflehead was pres¬ ent at Conneaut 11-25 Jun (MV). Common Mergansers reportedly nested in Columbiana, OH ( fide BW). A hen Common Merganser with 9 young on the Schuykill R., Berks, PA 15 Jun provided a first breeding record for that county (M. Wlasniewski). A Mississippi Kite was at Gilbertsville on the Berks/Montgomery, PA line 13 Jun (RK). A total of 13 Bald Eagles fledged in w. Craw¬ ford (Pennsylvania Game Commission). With the establishment of breeding Ospreys throughout the Region, individuals may ap¬ pear anywhere mid-season, e.g., one at Blue- stone L., Summers, WV 1 Jul (J&rJP). A pair of Sharp-shinned Hawks nesting in a mature Norway Spruce plantation in Berks was rare for the piedmont region of Pennsylvania (RK). A Northern Goshawk was seen taking an American Black Duck duckling in Clin- in Presque Isle North America. Fish Crows returned to the colony discovered last year at Forest Hills, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania (here 26 June 2005). Photograph by Geoff Malosh. ton, PA 1 Jul (NB). The Peregrine Falcons at the Martins Creek PPL. Power Plant, Northampton, PA successfully fledged 2 young, the first successful nesting in the county since the 1950s (J. Hahn, J. DePal- ma). Three ad. and 12 juv. Common Moorhens at New Beaver, Lawrence, PA 9 Jul was a nice count (MV), and 2 through 31 Jul+ in Blair, PA were unusual there (R. & H. Boyle, S. Kotala). Ohio King Rails were noted at German¬ town Metropark, Montgomery 7-23 Jul (SE, N. Cade, J. Habig) and at Pickerel Creek W.A., Sandusky in Jun (a pair; ph. S. Zadar), and a returning pair was at Pickaway through the summer (m.ob.). The three pairs censused at O.N.W.R. in Jun were the first there since 1986 (ph. S. Cummings). A Sandhill Crane at Shady Water Campground, Mason, WV 17 Jun-8Jul (WA, RT, m.ob.) was extraordinary in midsummer in West Virginia. SH0REBIRDS THROUGH TERNS American Avocets arrived 17 Jul, with 10 at Conneaut (JP), and 29 Jul, with a flock of 6 at Hoover Res., Franklin (BW, m.ob.). One at West Branch Res., Portage (GB) 19 Jul was lo¬ cally rare. The corresponding flight in Penn¬ sylvania included one at P.I.S.P 17 & 19 Jul and 3 there 27 Jul (JM, BC). One was also re¬ ported at C.E 21 Jul (DH). A rare concentra¬ tion of shorebirds in Hardin, OH, the conse¬ quence of a new wetland construction, in¬ cluded 600 Killdeer and 4 Willets 27 Jul (R. Counts). Summer Willets, once casual in Ohio, were found at Headlands Beach S.R, Lake 13 Jul (K. MetcalD and at Conneaut 18 Jul (8 birds; L. Hays), where the species was first noted 24-25 Jun (BC, MV), an excep¬ tionally early record for a southbound mi¬ grant. Typical fall migrants were one at PI.S.P 23-24 Jul and 3 there 26 Jul (JM, BC), plus one on the C.E 28 Jul (DH). Four Whimbrels were at PI.S.P. 14 Jul and 2 there 27 Jul (JM, BC). A Marbled Godwit at P.I.S.P. 5 Jun was the first Jun record ever for that locale (MV); one at Conneaut 24 Jun provided a very rare Jun record in the Central Basin. Although considered spring records, these Jun observa¬ tions, quite distinct from the normal late Apr/early May passage of the Canadian prairie population, could represent the very small population of Marbled Godwits breed¬ ing on the shores of James Bay, Ontario (Bob Russell, U.S.E&W.S., pers. comm.). A typical fall migrant was at PI.S.P. 18 Jul (BC). A Hud- sonian Godwit was rare at O.N.W.R. 14-16 Jun (P. Rodewald); a Dunlin and 7 Semi- V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 593 EASTERN HIGHLANDS & UPPER OHIO RIVER VALLEY palmated Sandpipers also lingered there on that date. An 11 Jun count of 18 Semipalmat- ed Sandpipers at Conneaut (MV) was greater than expected. The spring Right of White- rurnped Sandpipers peaked with Rocks of 9 at St. Marys Fish Hatchery, Auglaize , OH 5 Jun (D. Dister) and a Rock of 8 at Caesar Creek S.P, Warren , OH 3 Jun (L. Gara). An excellent count of 26 White-rumped Sandpipers came from Little Blue L., Beaver, PA 5 Jun (MV). A Bairds Sandpiper reported there the same day furnished a rare Jun record (MV). The ad. Baird's Sandpiper fall Right is rarely detected in the Region, so 3 at Miami Whitewater wet¬ lands, Hamilton, OH 24 Jul were notable (J. Stenger). A Rock of 26 Short-billed Dowitch- ers at P.L. 16 Jul was the best count reported (MV). The Ohio Right was equally weak, with no more than a Rock of 40 reported on L. Erie at Conneaut 16 Jul (PL). Inland, a Rock of 20 was noted at Englewood Reserve, Montgomery 14 Jul (E&BN). Red Knots bracketed the season with a single bird 6 Jun at O.N.W.R. (K. Kaufman) and a returning migrant at Conneaut 17 Jul (JP). An early Red-necked Phalarope was detected 13 Jul at West Branch S.P, Portage, OH (GB). Two juv. Wilsons Phalaropes 29 Jul at O.N.W.R. were seen in an area of past breeding attempts (BW); a migrant was found at Sandy Ridge, Lorain, OH 31 Jul (PL). Any summer jaeger on L. Erie is extraordi¬ nary. Past reports suggest that the fall migra¬ tion of Parasitic Jaeger may see birds within the Region by late Jul. Almost certainly a con¬ sequence of Hurricane Dennis, a second-sum¬ mer Parasitic Jaeger was found at PI. S.P 17 Jul (ph. JM). This bird, or possibly another, was reported at nearby Conneaut the same day (JP). These represent the 3rd summer record for Pennsylvania and the 2nd summer report for Ohio, respectively. Four Laughing Gulls were reported from Ohio, all from L. Erie. Three imms. at Conneaut included 2 (one dead) in late Jun (MV). The only West¬ ern Basin report came from the islands 27 Jul (DHo). The only Franklin’s Gull reported was one at PI.S.P 14 Jun (JM). Gathering Bona¬ parte’s Gulls numbered 2200 at O.N.W.R. 29 Jul (BW et al.). A pair of Herring Gulls at a nest on the Allegheny R. at Freeport, Arm¬ strong was a new locale for this species in Pennsylvania (MM), and 14 Lesser Black- backed Gulls were still present at P.VR 4 Jun (AM). Two rare terns were found in Pennsyl¬ vania during the season. A bird identified as a first-year Arctic Tern was studied at PVR 4 Jun (AM, H. Eskin, C. & E. Crunkleton). Hurricane Dennis deposited 2 Sooty Terns in the Region. An ad. Sooty Tern discovered by E. Witmer at C.F 24 Jul represented the 4th record for that location. Ohio’s first Sooty Tern was discovered by D. Morse, Jr. at East- fork Lake S.P., Clermont 13 Jul and generated much excitement through 19 Jul (TB). Two ad. and a possible juv. Black Tern were seen sporadically at PI.S.P 18 Jun-4 Jul (MV, B. Gula). In the vicinity of the Western Basin marshes in Ohio, up to four breeding pairs barely hang on. A late spring migrant was de¬ tected 12 Jun at Englewood Reserve, Mont¬ gomery, OH (R. Asamoto). Two Caspian Blue Grosbeak is a scarce breeder in the southern corners of Pennsylvania. This female was discovered feeding young in Peace Valley Park, Bucks County on 29 June 2005. Photograph by Howard B. Eskin. Terns on Kelleys I., Erie, OH 18 Jun were like¬ ly non-breeding residents (TB). CUCKOOS THROUGH WARBLERS Both species of cuckoos were reported to be common during the season in w. Pennsylva¬ nia, despite no noticeable outbreak of tent caterpillars (PH, JF, JM). Eleven Northern Saw-whet Owls heard on a “toot route” in McKean, PA 5 Jun was an excellent count (JF). A Long-eared Owl was discovered 20 Jun in Concord Twp., Lake, OH (JP). Five Common Nighthawks were found, some displaying, in a barren wasteland created by a zinc smelting operation along the Ap¬ palachian Trail in Carbon/Northampton, PA 18 Jul (RW). A Chuck-will’s-widow returned to Centre, PA, remaining through its 2nd summer (D. Thomson, m.ob.). A Selaspho- nis hummingbird that spent the winter in Lebanon, PA was last seen 14 Apr (E. Blauch, m.ob.). Scissor-tailed Flycatchers made yet another summer appearance within the Re¬ gion, with 2 in Ohio. Both one-day wonders, one was discovered in Crawford 20 Jun (fide J. Little) and one near Amity, Knox 25 Jun (J. Nisley). A very late Olive-sided Flycatcher was seen along the Delaware R. below East¬ on, Northampton, PA 19 Jun (DD). Yellow- bellied Flycatchers were recorded during Jun in McKean, PA (JF) and C.S. (DG). A Western Kingbird near McIntyre, Indiana, PA 28-29 Jul provided only the 2nd summer record for Pennsylvania (MH, RH, m.ob.). Loggerhead Shrike is reported from only three counties within the entire Region on a consistent basis. This summer’s single report came from Greenbrier, WV 13 Jul (J&JP). A pair of Bell’s Vireos returned to Gilmore Ponds, Butler, OH (MB), whereas the Buck Creek S.P, Clark, OH pair was not found; a pair has been present there for the past 20 years (D. Overacker). One Bell’s at Twin Creek Metropark, Montgomery, OH 23 Jul was unexpected (N. Cade). A total of 251 Red-eyed Vireos tallied on a B.B.S. route in Mifflin, Centre, and Huntingdon, PA was a record-high count (GG, NB). A Bank Swal¬ low colony consisting of an estimated 400 burrows was in Beaver, PA during Jun (C. Rutt). Singing Sedge Wrens in Pennsylvania included one at Rasselas, Elk 30-31 Jul (JF) and in Philadelphia 30 Jun (fide AH). A bird present on Middle I., Pleasants, WV 27-28 Jul (J. Benedetti, B. Bond) was noteworthy. A Bicknell’s Thrush was photographed and audio-recorded near Little Conestoga Creek, Lancaster, PA 21 May (D. Lane). There are very few documented records for the state. Swainson’s Thrush was found in C.S. during Jun (DG), and eight territories of Hermit Thrush on the Kittatinny Ridge in Berks were at the s. edge of the species’ breeding range in e. Pennsylvania (KG). A Bohemian Waxwing was seen near Millard Run, McK¬ ean, PA 5 Mar (JF) A singing male Golden-winged Warbler in the Oak Openings, Lucas 2 Jun (G. Cottier) was the only report from Ohio. Either an ear¬ ly migrant or a post-breeding wanderer, a Nashville Warbler in Chillicothe, Ross, OH 20 Jul was unexpected (D. Hess). A hybrid dubbed a “Parulean Warbler” — apparently a Northern Parula x Cerulean Warbler hy¬ brid — returned for a 4th year along the Lehigh R., Northampton, PA in Jun (RW). The bird looks like a Northern Parula but has white underparts and a dark breast band like a Cerulean, and lacks the olive wash on the back typical of Northern Parula. The bird sings a song reminiscent of both species. A very similar bird returned to the Oak Open¬ ings, Lucas, OH (R. Nirschl, m.ob.). A clearcut area on the Kittatinny Ridge in Berks, PA held 40 territories of Chestnut¬ sided Warblers, 80 of Common Yel- lowthroats, and 8 Yellow-breasted Chats (KG). Scioto, OH, long an isolated outpost for Chestnut-sided Warbler, held 2 singing males 5 Jun (B. Sparks). A Black-throated Green Warbler in the Shawnee S.F, Scioto 3 Jul was pushing the range limits for the species in Ohio (J. McCormac). One in Columbus 18 Jun (J. Grabmeier) was likely a late migrant, but local nest failure of this ear¬ ly breeder could also account for mid-Jun records away from breeding sites. A pair of Yellow-rumped Warblers at a nest in Prince Gallitzin S.P. 18 Jun was apparently a first for 594 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS EASTERN HIGHLANDS & UPPER OHIO RIVER VALLEY Cambria, PA (]. Salvetti). Blackpoll Warblers were found again in Jun at C.S. (DG), while a 14 Jun bird in Cuyahoga, OH was a very late migrant (SZ). Cerulean Warblers were reported as “numerous” along 3-5 km of the Allegheny Front in Clinton, PA 7 Jun (GG). A Blackburnian Warbler in the C.V.N.P. 20 Jun was a good find (E Losi). Two Prothonotary Warblers present in Jun along Maiden Cr., Berks, PA were unusual for that location (fide RK), and they fledged young for the 2nd year in row near Minsi L., Northampton, PA (J. Mohlmann). Reid found singing Mourning Warblers during Jul in Bradford and Wyoming, PA, where he found none 20 years ago; they were also present in Pike (RW), their s. breeding limit in e. Pennsylvania. Kentucky Warblers continue to push into nw. Ohio, but none was more unexpected than a bird on Kelleys I., Erie 17 Jul (TB). One near Trunkeyville, Forest PA 10 Jul was unusual for the locale (M. Grishaver, T. Ash- baugh); none were found in that county dur¬ ing the first Breeding Bird Atlas. The B.B.S. route in Mifflin/Centre/Huntingdon, PA tallied 41 Hooded Warblers, well above the 14-year average of 22 (NB, GG), and the species was common in Jun along the Delaware R. in Monroe and Pike, PA (RW). SPARROWS THROUGH FINCHES A Clay-colored Sparrow near McGregor, Armstrong 9 Jun (C. Guba, MH) and 2-3 singing near Renovo, Clinton 9 Jun (L. Grove) were new locales for this species in Pennsylvania. Up to 2-3 were also present at their usual area in Clarion, PA 21 Jun ( fide AH). One was singing in Williams, OH in mid-Jun (R. Nirschl), and one near East Brady, Clarion 5 Jul was at a new locale for that county (C. Willenpart). Hess reports that Vesper Sparrow “appears to be the most seriously declining grassland sparrow in sw. Pennsylvania.” For a 2nd year, Henslow’s Sparrows were found at Mehoopany, Luzerne, PA (R. Koval, J. DeMarco). Although com¬ mon in reclaimed strip mines in w. Pennsyl¬ vania, they are still considered rare breeders in the e. part of the state. Surprising was an ad. White-crowned Sparrow at Cambridge Springs, Crawford 30 Jun-4 Jul (FZ,/ideJM), the first mid-summer record for Pennsylva¬ nia. A White-throated Sparrow in Flocking, OH 13 Jun (DHo) was at a location where one was heard in song last summer. This adds to the growing number of Jun reports from s. Ohio. An extralimital Lark Sparrow was present near Hopetown, Ross, OH 31 May-1 Jun (B. BossticJ. MacMahon). An ad. Harris’s Sparrow was present near Willow Bay, McKean, PA 16-19 May (A. Rutter, ph.) Single Blue Grosbeaks were unusual in Mercer, PA 25 Jul (MH, L. Wagner) and Rothrock S.E, Centre, PA 16 Jul (C. Shelly). A pair was confirmed breeding in Northamp¬ ton 27 Jul (D. Welch), the n. limit of their breeding range in e. Pennsylvania. The species drew comment from across the low¬ er third of counties in Ohio. Dickcissels re¬ main fairly widespread in Ohio, with 14 at Crown City W.A., Lawrence/Gallia in Jun (D. Patick), indicative of their density at the edge of Appalachia. A Dickcissel in Eaton Twp., Luzerne, PA provided an unusual sum¬ mer record for that locale (WR). A female Yellow-headed Blackbird was unexpected at Gratz, Dauphin, PA 27 Jul (WR), the 5th summer record for the state. Pine Siskin re¬ ports in Pennsylvania were numerous; they were confirmed breeding in Clinton (W. Laubscher) and Elk (JF). A pair was present 12 Jun at Promised Land S.R, Pike (RW). A single bird was in Crawford 4 Jul (FZ), and a surprising juv. was near Easton, Northamp¬ ton 6-7 Jul (A. Koch). One to 3 daily were feeder visitors in Athens, OH throughout Jun (J. Duerr), as were several birds at feeders near Pipestem S.P., Summers, WV through¬ out the period (J&JP). Addenda: Investigation of recent White Ibis reports uncovered a photographic record from autumn 1988 near Fremont, Sandusky, OH (chronologically that state’s 2nd); details will be published elsewhere. A female Yel¬ low-headed Blackbird 3 May was in Brown, OH (ph. P Fragassi), a possible first county record. Ohio’s 2nd record of Pink-sided Jun- co was captured and banded 26 Mar at Springville Marsh State Nature Preserve, Seneca (ph. S. & L. Roberts). Ohio’s first state record came 16 Apr 2000 at Magee Marsh W.A., Lucas (ph. M. Kohn). Two po¬ tential Ohio state records from this past spring, Dusky Flycatcher and Red-naped Sapsucker, are pending review. Observers (subregional compilers in bold¬ face): OHIO: A. Aronsson (AA), Tom Bartlett (TB), Gregory Bennett (GB), Mike Busam, Shane Egleston (SE), Dave Horn (DHo), Paula Lozano (PL), Ed & Bev Neubauer (E&BN), John Pogacnik (JP), Bill Whan (BW), Sean Zadar (SZ) PENNSYLVANIA: Nick Bolgiano (NB), Ben Coulter (BC), Dave DeReanrus (DD), Deuane Hoffman (DH), Devich Farbotnik (DF), John Fedak (JF), Kerry Grim (KG), Doug Gross (DG), Greg Grove (GG), Paul Hess (PH), Margaret Hig- bee (MH), Roger Higbee (RH), Armas Hill [Philadelphia Birdline] (AH), Rudy Keller (RK), Robert C. Leberman (RCL), Ronald E Leberman (RFL), Mark McConaughy [Cen¬ tral Pennsylvania Birdline] (MM), Jerry McWilliams (JM), August Mirabella (AM), William Reid (WR), Mark Vass (MV), Rick Wiltraut (RW), Frank Zalik (FZ). WEST VIRGINIA: Wendell Argabrite (WA), Joe Browning (JB), Jeanette Esker, Jim & Judy Phillips (J&JP), Rennie Talbert (RT). <& CATS INDOORS! The Campaign for Safer Birds & Cats WHAT DO INDOOR CATS MISS? ★ Killing Birds ★ Getting Lost ★ Getting Stolen ★ Getting Hit ByA Car ★ Fatal Feline Diseases ★ Dog Attacks ★ Abcesses ★ Worms ★ Fleas ★ Ticks Protect cats, birds, and other wildlife by keeping cats indoors! For more information, contact: AMERICAN BIRD CONSERVANCY Cats Indoors! TheCampaign for SaferBirdsand Cats 1 834 Jefferson Place, NW Washington, DC 20036 Phone: 202-452-1535; Fax:202-452-1534; E-mail: abc@abcbirds. or g; Web: www.abcbirds.org American Bird Conservancy VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 595 _ _ _ — Illinois & Indiana ISMHHHi Illinois Rockford • ■ Fermilab i Lowden- MillerSF Rice Lake I Chautauqua NWRi i Siloam Springs SP Beach SP Mo, Jackson Park ■ Lake Calumet Goose Lake Prairie ■ ■ Midewin Natl. J Tallgrass Prairie Willow Slough WMA i Sand Ridge SF ClintonW Lake INDIANA LAKEFRONT: A = Hammond Lakefront Sanctuary B = Miller Beach C = Dunes SP & Beverly Shores D = Mich. City Harbor Lake Springfield Forest Glen ■ Preserve ■ Lake Shelbyville AB cD ■ Pigeon Kingsbury WMA ft. WMA m Grand Kankakee Marsh r j m a Fox Is. u^Jasper-Pulaski WMA ■ Park \ ■ Salamonie TNC Kankakee Sands Res Pine Creek WMA Eagle ■ Creek Lake Park 1 Waveland Geist l Res. I Summit Lake Brookville Res. I Lake Lemon Horseshoe i Lake Carlyle Lake Rend L. I ILLIN() Union Co. WMA Crab Orchard NWR e Mermet INDIANA James D. Hengeveld 6354 Southshore Drive Unionville, Indiana 47468 (jhengeve@indiana.edu) Keith A. McMullen 1405 DeSoto O'Fallon, Illinois 62269 (warbler@intertek.net) Geoffrey A. Williamson 4046 North Clark Street, Unit K Chicago, Illinois 60613 (geoffrey.williamson@comcast.net) It was the driest June for the Region since 1992 and the warmest since 1991. July was a little warmer than average, with precipitation levels closer to but still below normal. Illinois received less than half its normal precipitation in June, which was also the states warmest since 1971, with temperatures nearly 4° F above average across the state. In Chicago, June was 6.2° F above normal, and Peoria’s June tempera¬ tures were 5.1° F above normal. The amount of rainfall in the Chicago area during the pe¬ riod 20 May-6 July was the lowest in 135 years of weather observations, and the first shower all summer in Springfield occurred on 12 July. What was left of Hurricane Dennis reached southern Illinois on 12 July after the storm made landfall in the panhandle of Florida and crossed Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky. The storm brought a number of unusual birds to the Region. Abbreviations: Bee. M. (Beehunter Marsh, Greene, IN); Cane Rg. (Cane Ridge Wet¬ lands, Gibson, IN); Carl. L. (Carlyle L., s. Illi¬ nois); Chau. (Chautauqua N.W.R.); Decatur D.P. (Decatur Dredge Ponds, Macon, IL); Hennepin (Hennepin-Hopper Lake Restora¬ tion Area, Putnam, IL); L. Cal. (Lake Calumet, Chicago); Mich. City (Michigan City Harbor, La Porte, IN); Miller (Miller Beach, Lake, IN); Montrose (Montrose Point, Lincoln Park, Chicago). LOONS THROUGH VULTURES A Pacific Loon at East Fork L., Richland, IL 29 Jun (tLH, ph. BS) may have been the same individual seen there in May. As is typ¬ ical, several Common Loons lingered in the Region, with 3 noted in Illinois and 2 in In¬ diana. Counts of 100 Pied-billed Grebes at Horseshoe L., Madison, IL 3 Jul (KAM) and 68 at Hennepin 28 Jul (DFS) were impres¬ sive. Large numbers of American White Pel¬ icans were again reported, the high count being 2006 at Chau. 20 Jul (R&SB). An un¬ precedented 226 Double-crested Cormorant nests were logged at the Inland Steel rookery in East Chicago, IN (JSC), and an impressive total of 6000 was noted 18 Jun at Carl. L. (DMK). A single Brown Pelican, a review species in Indiana, was reported on L. Mon¬ roe, Monroe 29 Jul (tJM, tSC). American Bitterns were reported from four locations in Indiana and two in Illinois. It was a good summer for Least Bitterns in the Region. Of the 25+ reported from Illi¬ nois, 6 in Perry 14 Jul (DMK) and 6 at Mer¬ met L. 11 Jun (AFS) were highlights. In In¬ diana, Least Bitterns were reported from six locations, including Bee. M., where 2 ads. and 3 juvs. were reported 22 Jul (LS, DH). Impressive counts of 1301 Great Blue Herons and 1475 Great Egrets were noted at Chau. 22 & 29 Jul, respectively (R&SB). The Indiana lakefront total of 179 Great Egrets was three times the 20-year average for the species there. At the Alorton, IL rookery, numbers of heron nests were lower than in recent years. Nest counts there 22 Jun included 200 for Great Egret, 25 for Snowy Egret, 200 for Little Blue Heron, 300 for Cattle Egret, and 200 for Black-crowned Night-Heron (VK). Low water levels that fa¬ cilitated mammalian predation led to nest¬ ing failure in the Black-crowned Night- Heron colony at L. Cal. (WJM). At the In¬ land Steel rookery in East Chicago, there were 145 Black-crowned Night-Heron nests, up from the 90 counted in 2002 (JSC). Re¬ ports of Yellow-crowned Night-Herons in the Region totaled only 9, all in Illinois. Ibises continued to make the news in Illi¬ nois. Two White Ibis were reported: an imm. 6-16 Jul at Carl. L. (DMK, KAM, ph. BS, m.ob.) and another 30-31 Jul at Homer L., IL (EC, AFS, m.ob.). An ad. Glossy Ibis was in Cook, IL 4-5 Jun (ph. RDH). The peak Black Vulture tallies for the season were 20 in Massac, IL in Jun and Jul (FB) and 14 in Orange, IN 21 Jul (JSC). 596 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS WATERFOWL THROUGH CRANES Among waterfowl, the highlight of the sea¬ son, coinciding with the passage of Hurri¬ cane Dennis , was the appearance of 6 Black- bellied Whistling-Ducks 14 Jul in Gibson , IN (DG et ah). This record is the 2nd of the species for Indiana. An impressive 620 Wood Ducks were at Hennepin 28 Jul (DFS). Ten Gadwall were scattered across Illinois, but no breeding was noted. Nesting Blue-winged Teal were noted at Hennepin (DFS) and Decatur D.P. (TAM) in Illinois and at Bee. M. and in Vermillion (LS) in Indiana. Summer reports of dabblers normally assumed to be migrants in the Region included a male Northern Shoveler at Decatur D.P. 26Jun (TAM); 3 Green¬ winged Teal at Chau. 3 Jun (R&SB), 3 at Decatur D.P 1 1 Jun (TAM), and 3 in Lake, IN 2 Jul (KJB et al.); and a male Northern Pintail at Cane Rg. 13— 14 Jul (DG). Summering diving ducks in¬ cluded a male Redhead at Bee. M. 7 Jul (LS), male Ring-necked Ducks at Horseshoe L., Madison, 1L 3 Jun (DMK) and Cane Rg. 13 Jul (DG), and a noteworthy female Red-breasted Mer¬ ganser at Illinois Beach S.P. 9 Jul (DTW). Hooded Mergansers fared well in n. Indiana, as successful breeding was noted in Lake (B&MB et al.) and at three different sites in ne. Indiana (JAH). Breeding Ruddy Ducks were noted at three Illinois locations, with 70 at Hennepin 28 Jul (DFS) providing the largest concentration. In 10 of 11 active nests in nine different counties in Indiana, Ospreys were suc¬ cessful in producing 23 young (JSC). In Illinois, three successful nests fledged 7 Ospreys. Of 62 active Bald Eagle nests in Indiana, 47 were suc¬ cessful, producing 87 young (JSC). Seven Bald Eagle nests were reported throughout Illinois. The peak Missis¬ sippi Kite count was 24 in Alexander, 1L 20 Jun (KAM). Northern Harriers were noted from eight Illinois loca¬ tions, but only one was noted in Indi¬ ana. The only Swainson’s Hawks re¬ ported from the ne. Illinois colony were one in Hampshire 1 Jul (DFS) and 2 in Huntley 18 Jun (AFS). Large¬ ly as the result of reintroduction ef¬ forts by the Indiana D.N.R., Peregrine Falcons experienced unprecedented success, as 29 young were reared in nine successful nests among 12 noted in seven different counties (JSC). The only Illinois Peregrine Falcon report away from the Chicago area consisted of one at E. St. Louis, St. Clair 28 Jun (KAM). Single King Rails were reported at Goose Pond, Greene, IN 2 Jun (LS, JCo), at Bever¬ ly Shores, Porter, IN 6 Jun (JC), and at Bee. M. 13 Jul (LS). Two Illinois reports consist¬ ed of singles seen 18 Jun (AFS) and 30 Jul (DFS) at Goose Lake Prairie S.P The only reported evidence of nesting Virginia Rails included young birds seen 6 & 1 6 Jul at two different L. Cal. area locations (WJM) and 2 ads. with 2 young near Palos, Cook, IL (WSS). A total of 4 Soras was reported from Illinois, and in Indiana, nesting was con¬ firmed at Lebanon Business Park, Boone 1 1 Jul (RLH), when 5 juvs. were seen. The Pur¬ ple Gallinule present during May in Cham¬ paign, IL was last seen 6 Jun (EC). Breeding Common Moorhens were noted at Hen¬ nepin 28 Jul (DFS) and at Horseshoe L., Madison, IL 27 Jul (KAM). Though 8 Com¬ mon Moorhens were at L. Cal. 18 Jun (WJM), no broods were observed at this usual breeding location, likely a conse¬ quence of the dry conditions. At Chase Street Wetland, Lake, IN, 2 ad. and 9 half- grown moorhens were seen 7 Jul (JCK, KJB). American Coots fared well in Illinois: 85 ads. and 124 young were tallied 26 Jun at Decatur D.P (TAM), and 160 were at Hen¬ nepin 28 Jul (DFS). Ten pairs of Sandhill Cranes were thought to have nested in Win¬ nebago, IL (DTW), and a family group of 4 was observed in Kane, IL 26 Jun (DFS). Of note was a single imm. Sandhill Crane with a wing injury that was captured in Washing¬ ton, IN 16 Jul (JSC). It had apparently been in the area for several weeks. SHOREBiRDS THROUGH TERNS Two unhanded Piping Plovers were at Miller 12 Jul (MT, KJB), and 3 individuals (2 banded) were present there 14 Jul (MT). A single bird was present 16 Jul at Rend L. (LH, BS). An impressive concentration of Killdeer again oc¬ curred at Carl. L., with 5000 there 8 Jul (DMK). Black-necked Stilts with young were observed 20 Jun in Pulas¬ ki, IL (KAM). Other Illinois Black¬ necked Stilt reports consisted of 6 ads. at East Cape Girardeau 17 Jun (VK) and a pair at Prairie Ridge S.N.A. 24 Jun (LH, ph. BS). The 4th confirmed nesting of Black-necked Stilts in Indi¬ ana occurred at Cane Rg., where 3 chicks were seen 23 Jul (SJD). A single stilt was in Bartholomew, IN 6-7 Jun (DAt, DK et al.), and 2 were at Grand Kankakee Marsh, Lake, IN 1 1 Jun (MT et al.). Five southbound American Avocets were noted at Falls of the Ohio S.P, Clark, IN 28 Jul (TB), and 2 were seen 19 Jul at Montrose (GAW). A peak count of 62 Greater Yellowlegs oc¬ curred 12 Jul at Prairie Ridge S.N.A. (BS), and a high count of 544 Lesser Yellowlegs was made 29 Jul at Clear L., Mason, IL (R&SB). It was a record-breaking year for Willets in Indiana: an amazing 448 were tal¬ lied at Mich. City (BJG, JJM), dwarfing the previous one-day tally of 135. The season total of 462 for the Indiana lakefront was nearly nine times the 20-year mean of 54.8. Six Illinois loca¬ tions had breeding Upland Sand¬ pipers, including Prairie Ridge S.N.A., Jasper, IL, where 8 were tallied (LH, BS). A total of 14 Upland Sandpipers in Vermillion, IN 4 Jul (MRB) was the highest in recent years. Indiana’s largest summer flight of 14 Marbled Godwits was associated with the mas¬ sive Willet flight at Mich. City 4 Jul (BJG, JJM). Singles were seen at Mich. City 25 Jun (JJM et al.) and 18 Jul (JJM). The Region’s only Hudsonian Godwits were 2 at Carl. L. 7 Jun (LH, BS). A molting ad. Red Knot at Decatur D.P, IL 26 Jul (TAM) provided a nice inland record. The peak tally of 68 Sanderlings at Miller 24 Jul (MT) was part of an above-av¬ erage flight on the lakefront. On 29 Jul at Clear L., Mason, IL (R&SB), fine totals of 1695 Semipalmated Sandpipers and 908 Pectoral Sandpipers were tallied. A Western Sandpiper 30 Jul at Rend L. (BS, LH) fur¬ nished the Region’s sole report of the Only within the past five years has Black-necked Stilt been added to the list of birds known to have nested in Indiana. This bird (not a nester) was found 6 June 2005 near Columbus, Indiana and stayed through the following day. Photograph by Dan Kaiser. Lesser Black-backed Gulls are very uncommon in the Midwest in the summer period; this third-summer bird was photographed at Miller Beach, Indiana on 27 July 2005. Photograph by Jeff Moore. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 597 species. A notable total of 50 White-rumped Sandpipers was at Carl. L. 7 Jun (LH, BS). Two Stilt Sandpipers at Chase Street Wet¬ land, Lake 4Jul (BJG, JJM) tied the early fall arrival date for Indiana. Wilson’s Phalaropes bred at Middlefork Savannah, Lake, IL, where an ad. and 2 young were seen 9 Jul (AFS). The aggregation of 34 Short-billed Dowitchers at Chase Street Wetland, Lake, IN 7 Jul (JKC, KJB) represented the highest summer count for the Dunes area since 1988. Tallies of 29 at Loblolly Marsh, Jay 5 Jul (JAH, SS) and 24 at Lebanon Business Park, Boone 16 Jul (LP) were part of the fine flight of this species through Indiana. Four Laughing Gulls in Illinois and 3 in Indiana were fairly typical for the period. Four Franklins Gulls were noted: an imm. 14 Jun and a juv. 20 Jul at Montrose (GAW), and 2 at Chau. 10 Jun (R&SB). Numbers of Ring-billed Gull nests were estimated at 10,000 at the traditional Mittal Steel site in East Chicago, IN (JSC) and at 5000 at the L. Cal. colony (WJM). The summers rarest gull was an ad. California Gull at Waukegan 17 Jun (tAFS). This would be the 4th summer record for Illinois. The Mit¬ tal Steel plant in East Chicago hosted ap¬ proximately 100 Herring Gull nests, an in¬ crease over past years. Black-backed gulls of either species are uncommon in summer; single Lesser Black-backeds at Montrose throughout the period (GAW), in Waukegan, IL 23 Jul (AFS), and at Miller 27 Jul (JM) were significant, while an imm. Great Black-backed in Lake, IL 19 Jun-9Jul (AFS) was the only one reported. On 8 Jun, a remarkable 248 Caspian Tern nests containing eggs plus about 100 fledg¬ lings were tallied at the Mittal Steel plant in East Chicago (JSC). On 6 Jul, 54 ad. and 22 young Common Terns were observed at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center breeding colony, but a family of mink accessed the colony in mid-Jul and killed all remaining chicks; only 5 chicks were thought to have fledged (DRD). At the L. Gibson/Cane Rg. colony, approximately 70 ad. Least Terns and 55 fledglings were tallied (CM, BM). At a new Least Tern colony on the Ohio R. in Spencer, IN, 20 ads. and evidence of at least six nests were found 28 Jun (DA, BPB). An impressive 94 Black Terns were counted at Carl. L. 25 Jul (DMK). Hurricane Dennis ar¬ rived 12 Jul in s. Illinois, bringing with it 2 Bridled Terns noted at Mermet L. 12 Jul (p.a., tFB), the first Illinois record; an ad. Sooty Tern 13 Jul near Nashville, Washing¬ ton, IL (*; JBk); and another ad. Sooty Tern at Carl. L. 17-25 Jul (DMK, m.ob.), the lat¬ ter constituting the 2nd and 3rd records for Illinois. Bridled Terns far inland after hurri¬ canes are, historically, exceptionally rare, but several inland reports, including one from the Great Lakes, have been documented in recent times; nonetheless, there are as yet no photographs or specimens to support interi¬ or records. DOVES THROUGH WOODPECKERS The 12 Eurasian Collared-Doves in Wal- tonville 30 Jul (BS, LH) provided the high count among a dozen reports from Illinois, and 7 in Gibson 5 Jul represented the high count in Indiana. In s. Chicago and neigh¬ boring suburbs, 64 Monk Parakeet nests were noted (JA, WJM, DFS). Several ob¬ servers commented that Yellow-billed Cuck¬ oos were numerous this season. The peak A Sooty Tern at Carlyle Lake, Clinton County, Illinois 16 July 2005 (here) remained through 25 July, a waif of Hurricane Dennis. This marks the third record of the species in Illinois. Photograph by Dan Kassebaum. count was 16 in Pulaski, IL 17 Jun (VK). Un¬ common during the summer anywhere in Illinois, 2 Black-billed Cuckoos seen 27 Jul in Adams, IL were noteworthy (AGD). The only Illinois report of Barn Owl was a single bird in Ogle 10 Jul (DFS). In Indiana, season totals were encouraging, as 12 nest¬ ing attempts and 10 additional ads. were re¬ ported in 16 different counties throughout the season (JSC). A Short-eared Owl in Lawrenceville, IL 15 Jun (RJ) provided the only report in the Region. A remarkable 10 Chuck-will’s-widows were heard in Greene- Sullivan S.F, IN 20 Jun-8 Jul (LS). These birds might represent expansion of a small, relatively northerly isolated population that has persisted virtually unnoticed for decades. Illinois’s high count of 3 Chuck- will’s-widows was tallied 25 Jun at Ferae Clyffe S.P. (KAM). In a summer survey at Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center, Martin, IN, 58 Whip-poor-wills were counted (RLH et al.). Five in Ogle 10 Jul (DFS) provided the high count for Illinois. An early first-year male or ad. female Se- lasphorus hummingbird appeared at a feeder in Lawrence, IN 26-27 Jul (ph. DJ, fide BP). Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were excep¬ tionally numerous in s. Illinois. At nine Jack- son and Union sites, Cathie Hutcheson band¬ ed 1977 hummingbirds and recaptured 322 from previous bandings. An impressive 290 of approximately 600 Ruby-throated Hum¬ mingbirds were captured during 6.5 hours of trapping at one Union feeder 5 Aug (VK, CH). Small numbers of Yellow-bellied Sap- suckers breed regularly in the Mississippi R. valley, where a juv. at Mississippi Palisades S.P. 17 Jun (AA) and an ad. at Lost Mound N.W.R. 18 Jun (AA) were noted. FLYCATCHERS THROUGH CREEPER A Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 15 Jun in Adams, IL (AGD) was the latest migrant of this species for the Region. For the 5th consecu¬ tive summer, an Alder Flycatcher was pres¬ ent at Illinois Beach S.P (AFS, DTW). On 4 Jun, 7 singing Alder Flycatchers were heard at Beverly Shores, Porter, IN, and on that same date a Dunes-area record 32 Willow Flycatchers were heard at Beverly Shores, Cowles Bog, and Flammond Lakefront Sanc¬ tuary (JKC, LSH et al.). Five territorial Least Flycatchers were found in ne. Indiana, where the species is a low-density breeder (JAH). More surprising, however, were singing birds in w.-cen. Indiana ( Warren ) 11 Jun (SRB et al.) and an even more southerly bird in Monroe 11-15 Jun (JB). Western Kingbirds bred at the traditional E. St. Louis, IL location (DMK, KAM) and also at a new site at Joppa, IL (TFB). A Western Kingbird was also noted at Louisville, IL 9 Jun (TLH), and 2 were at Granite City, IL 3 Jul (KAM). Lakewatchers on the Indiana lakefront were astonished to see a Western Kingbird flying eastward over the dunes 25 Jun (KJB et al.). The only Scissor-tailed Flycatcher reported was seen 9 Jun in DuPage, IL (AFS). Loggerhead Shrikes bred for the first time in six years in Winnebago, IL, with an ad. and 3 young at Pecatonica 7 Jul (DTW). Other Illinois reports collectively logged 33 additional Loggerhead Shrikes. In Indiana, only four reports of Loggerhead Shrikes were received, though two of those were of nesting birds in w. LaGrange in ne. Indiana, marking the first time that two nests have been recorded in the traditionally Amish area of that county. High counts of Bell’s Vireos included 15 in Wayne, IL 10 Jun (RJ) and 8 in w.-cen. Indiana 16 Jul (LS). Signifi¬ cant concentrations of swallows included 1265 Bank Swallows at Hennepin 28 Jul (DFS) and 220 Northern Rough-winged Swallows 28 Jul in Marshall, IL (DFS). Three Illinois locations reported Cliff Swallow colonies numbering 500 birds each. Summering Red-breasted Nuthatches in Illinois were noted at Lyons Woods, Lake (DFS), at River Forest (JA), and at the Mor- ton Arboretum, DuPage (DFS). Brown Creepers bred successfully at a couple of Illi¬ nois locations, including a first breeding record at Chicago’s Jackson Park (PRC, KMC). In Indiana, two now-to-be-expected nests were found by Don Gorney et al. at Tippecanoe River S.P, Pulaski. WRENS THROUGH WARBLERS Six double-digit counts of Sedge Wrens in¬ cluded a peak of 42 at Carl. L. 27 Jul (DMK), which was the highest summer Illinois total in six years. A pair of Carolina Wrens at Illi¬ nois Beach S.P 16-30 Jul represented only the 2nd summer record there in the past 20 years (AFS). The observation of 4 Golden-crowned Kinglets at Lyons Woods, Lake 25 Jun (DFS) furnished the 4th sum¬ mer report for Illinois since 1995. The peak Veery tally was again from Lowden-Miller S.E, with 22 there 1 Jul (DFS); Indi¬ ana’s high count was 10 at Pi¬ geon R., LaGrange 7 Jul (JAH, FH). A Lawrence’s Warbler, paired with a Blue-winged Warbler, was observed feeding 2 fledglings at Castle Rock S.P:, IL 10 Jul (DFS). Illinois Chestnut-sided Warbler reports consisted of a single 12 Jun from Lowden-Miller S.P. (VK et al.), 3 from Swallow Cliff EP. 13 Jun (DFS), and one in Iro¬ quois County C.A. 11 Jun (DFS). On 4 Jul, an ad. Magno¬ lia Warbler that appeared to be a molting female was seen at Cowles Bog, Porter, providing the 3rd Jul record for the Indiana lakefront and the first since 1978. Interesting were singing male Black-throated Blue Warblers in ne. Indiana at Pokagon S.P. 4 Jun (DR) and at McClue Preserve, Steuben 14 Jun (BB). At Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center, Martin, IN, 24 Cerulean Warblers were tallied during the summer period (RLH et al.). Cerulean Warblers were reported from 12 different Illinois locations. For the 3rd straight year, Blackburnian Warblers summered at Lowden-Miller S.F, IL, with 2 males there 4 (DFS) & 19 Jun (RS). For the 3rd time in the past five years, one or 2 singing Blackburnian Warblers were found well into the breeding season in Hoosier N.F, Monroe, IN, with a single there on 19 Jun (DL). Black-throated Green Warblers have been nesting at several locations in In¬ diana, notably at the lakefront and in s.-cen. Indiana, where 8 and 6 birds, respectively, were found this summer. More unexpected, however, were 4 singing birds found 18 Jun-14Jul (JAH) in ne. Indiana, where this species has been increasing as a summering and presumably a nesting bird. On the other hand, for the first time since 1992, no Black- throated Green Warblers were reported from Illinois. Black-and-white Warblers are scarce breeders in Illinois, so of note was a poten¬ tial territorial bird seen 3 Jul at Pere Mar¬ quette S.P., Jersey, IL (KAM, TK) and a pos¬ sible nesting male seen 22 Jul at Carl. L. (DMK). Counts of 43 Ovenbirds 1 Jul at Lowden-Miller S.P. (DFS) and 23 Kentucky Warblers 23 Jun in Fayette, IL (DMK) were impressive. A Mourning Warbler 12 Jun at Lowden-Miller S.F., IL (DTW) may have been a late migrant. On 4 Jul at Cowles Bog, Porter, IN, an agitated, territorial male Cana¬ da Warbler (vigorously chipping) was ac¬ companied by another bird that appeared to lack a necklace entirely (RJP). This repre¬ sents the first Jul record of the species since 1993 for the Indiana Dunes area, where there are still no confirmed breeding records. SPARROWS THROUGH FINCHES Clay-colored Sparrows were reported at four Illinois locations, with a male at Illinois Beach S.P. 23 & 30 Jul (AFS) providing a first territorial record for that site. The 65 Grasshopper Sparrows at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie 16 Jun (JH) provided the highest total from that site in recent years. A tally of 16 Vesper Sparrows was high in Liv¬ ingston, IL 7 Jun (VK), while 10 Lark Spar¬ rows in Kankakee, IL 4 Jul (DFS) represent¬ ed the high count for Illinois. Good counts of Henslow’s Sparrows included 40 at Goose Lake Prairie S.P. 11 Jul (JH), 32 at Prairie Ridge S.N.A. 29 Jun (BS, LH), and 37 in w.- cen. Indiana 16 Jul (LS). A male White- throated Sparrow observed 17 & 27 Jul at Jackson Park (PC) continued this species’ trend of summering in small numbers in the Chicago area. ILLINOIS & INDIANA Indiana Rose-breasted Grosbeaks in Mon¬ roe 19 Jun (JD) and 10 Jul (DL) and in Owen 20 Jun (SRE) were s. of their normal breed¬ ing range. Blue Grosbeaks returned to Miller, as a pair was noted 25 Jun (JJM), and a singing male was seen 2 Jul (KJB). Painted Buntings were again present at E. St. Louis, IL, with a male banded in 2003 having re¬ turned (DMK) and a territorial subad. male there 13 Jun-3 Jul (DMK, KAM, TK). A small breeding group of Bobolinks in La- Porte, IN was augmented by migrants, yield¬ ing a count of 53 on 22 Jul (SRB), an all-time high count for the Dunes area for any sea¬ son. A high count of 18 Western Mead¬ owlarks, which are occurring at more locales in Illinois, was made 17 Jun in Henry (DFS). A single Western reported 3 Jun from the Bloomington Airport, McLean (TAM) constituted the southernmost bird in Illinois, while one in Allen 25 Jun (E&CP) was e. of the stronghold in Indiana. The only Brewer’s Blackbirds reported in Illinois were 3 at Illinois Beach S.P. 25 Jun and one there 23 Jul (AFS). Single Pine Siskins lingered in Barrington, IL through 17 Jun (CW) and in Monroe, IN through 4 Jun QF). Contributors (subregional edi¬ tors in boldface): Alan Ander¬ son, David Atkinson (DAt), David Ayer, Jill Anderson, Susan R. Bagby, Tom Becker, Frank Bennett, Richard & Sigurd Bjorklund, Ken¬ neth J. Brock (Indiana), Jack Brooks (JBk), James Brown, Michael R. Brown, Brad Bum- gardner, Byron & Maggie Butler, John S. Castrale, Steve Chasteen, Elizabeth Chato, Jamie Claus, James Cole (JCo), Donald R. Dann, Alfred G. Dierkes, Stephen J. Dins- more, Jerry Downs, Scott R. Evans, Jean Fur¬ long, Don Gorney, Brendan J. Grube, Leroy Harrison, James A. Haw, Fran Headings, Roger L. Hedge, Jim Herkert, Dawn Hewitt, Lynea S. Hinchman, Robert D. Hughes, Cathie Hutcheson, Rhetta Jack, Dave Jones, Dan Kaiser, Dan M. Kassebaum, Tom Kelly, Vernon Kleen (Illinois), Dan Leach, Travis A. Mahan, Walter J. Marcisz, Bill McCoy, Jef¬ frey J. McCoy, Keith A. McMullen, Chuck Mills, Jim Mitchell, Jeff Moore, Brainard Palmer-Ball, Larry Peavler, Bob Poortinga, Ed & Cynthia Powers, Doug Rood, Sandy Schacht, Bob Shelby, Randy Shonkwiler, Lee Sterrenburg, Alan E Stokie, Douglas E Stotz, Michael Topp, Charles Westcott, Daniel T. Williams, Jr., Geoffrey A. Williamson. Many others submitted observations but could not be personally acknowledged; all have our thanks for their contributions. O Barn Owls are found most commonly in Indiana in the counties bordering the Ohio River. In summer 2005, birds were reported in sixteen different counties; this nest was photographed in Jackson County on 7 June. Photograph by Aaron Holbrook. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 599 . . - _ _ _ _ _ Western Great Lakes \ Beltrami _ ) Island S-F * m Agassiz N.W.R. \ Chippewa SuPeZ, MINNESOTA Nstl- Sax-Zim Forest, Forest Bogi Gunflint Trail Felton Prairie Rothsay{ W.M.A S' Tamarac ■ N.W.R . \ iv>’/ Mille VY %LacsL Fergus Falls Sherburne Big Stone N.W.R.m Duluth^^-^G> Superior Blue Mounds S.P. N?aul( Minneapolis •• \ %>/ / D^L ^v%,. Heron / Whitewater W.M.A. ■'"v 1 Beaver Creek f ■ v / Valiev S.P ■ ! Murphy- Hanrehan Park Preserve Wyal using S.P NicoletN.F. Crex Meadows W.M.A. IA/ISCC Peder H.Svingen 2602 East 4th Street Duluth, Minnesota 55812 (psvingen@d.umn.edu) Most of the Region experienced near-normal temperatures and be- low-nornral precipitation, al¬ though above-average rainfall and localized flooding occurred in northwestern Minneso¬ ta and at Grand Rapids, Michigan. Shorebird habitat was poor in western Minnesota and Michigan. Abbreviations: Horicon (Horicon Marsh, Dodge, WI); Murphy-Hanrehan (Murphy- Hanrehan Park Reserve, Dakota and Scott, MN); Muskegon (Muskegon Wastewater Sys¬ tem, Muskegon , MI); Pte. Mouillee (Pointe Mouillee State Game Area, Monroe, MI); Shi¬ awassee (Shiawassee N.W.R., Saginaw, MI); U.P. (Upper Peninsula of Michigan). LOONS THROUGH IBISES A Pacific Loon moved from Duluth, MN 4 Jun to Superior, WI until 1 1 Jun QhR, JiS, ph. TL). Homed Grebes lingered on Lake Superior in Ashland, WI 5 Jun (RB) and St. Louis, MN 15 & 22 Jun (fide DRB); even more unusual was one at Pte. Mouillee 12 Jun (AMB). Providing only the 2nd Michi¬ gan breeding record were two pairs of Red¬ necked Grebes in Delta (SH). More than 150 Eared Grebe nests were at East Grand Forks W.T.P., Polk, MN 19 Jul (DOL). East of its normal range was a Western Grebe in Wash¬ ington, WI 12 Jun (MK). An intermediate- type Aechmophorus paired with a Clark’s Grebe ferried 2 chicks on its back at L. Os- akis, MN 5 Jul (JE). Hoffman reported an Anhinga overhead in Dane, WI 10 Jun (p.a., RH). Snowy Egrets were in two Michigan, three Minnesota, and four Wisconsin locations, including one as Minnesota's first Brown Pelican, an immature bird, was discovered by birders at Little Spirit L., Jackson 16 Jul (p.a., ph. PHS, AXH, ET, m.ob.); the same individual had been sighted by Thelen at Spirit L. (on the Iowa side of the border) two days earlier. It lingered in the area on both sides of the border 16-27 Jul. Three days after its disappearance, a similar-looking bird was found at Saylorville Res. in cen. Iowa, fueling speculation that the same individual was involved. far n. as Ashland, WI 1 Jun (RB). An amaz¬ ing 14 Little Blue Herons congregated in Kenosha 28 Jul+ (JD, AS, MBo, TP); Wis¬ consin’s only other Little Blue visited Win¬ nebago 25 Jun (DTe). In Minnesota, single Little Blue Herons graced Wilkin 10 Jun (JPS) and Sherburne N.W.R. 28 Jul (ASc). Michigan reported an imm. Little Blue in Monroe 27 Jul; it was joined by another on the 30th (LW). A cooperative Tricolored Heron lingered in Brown, WI 25 Jun-5 Jul (T&rIB et al.). Disappointing after an excel¬ lent spring showing were Cattle Egrets in only three Minnesota counties. For the 3rd consecutive summer, 2 ad. Yellow-crowned Night-Herons vacationed in Jackson, MI (C&SB, AMB, SJ). In Minnesota, 2 ad. Yel- low-crowneds in Dakota 30 Jun (RPR) were unrelated to 2 juvs. in Lac qui Parle 31 Jul+ (PCC). The Region’s only Plegadis were 2 Glossy Ibis at Pte. Mouillee 1-2 Jul (p.a., JJ, AMB, SJ). WATERFOWL THROUGH CRANES Lingering from spring was an ad. Ross’s Goose in Duluth, MN 4 Jun (ph. PHS). Un- seasonal were 2 Cackling Geese at Pte. Mouillee 12 Jun (AMB, BCM) and a female King Eider at Whitefish Pt. 3 Jun (KM, AMB, CN). A Mississippi Kite soared over Rock 22 Jul (p.a., RSR1; Wisconsin has 20 previous records. Michigan’s only Sharp¬ tailed Grouse were in the U.P in Chippewa. Northern Bobwhite was found in five s.-cen. Wisconsin counties. Though rare and local in Michigan, bobwhite reports were up from last year; this species is now extirpated from Minnesota. Lingering in Michigan were Rough-legged Hawks in Marquette 7 Jun (SH) and Gogebic 10 Jun (ATC). Wet conditions precipitated a banner year for Yellow Rails in nw. Minnesota, but Michigan and Wisconsin had only single reports from Chippewa and Marquette, re¬ spectively. A pair of King Rails with at least one young was at Pte. Mouillee (p.a., BCM, AMB, LW); Wisconsin heralded Kings in Columbia, WI 4 Jun (ST) and Horicon 25 Jun+ (CS, SC, T&rlB). Common Moorhen has declined in Minnesota, so an ad. with 6 chicks in Stearns 27 Jul+ (BR et al.), 2 ads. in Meeker 19 Jun (DMF), and singles in Olmsted 16-18 Jul (JWH, LS, PWP) and Wright 27 Jul (DMF) were encouraging; good numbers were also reported in Michi¬ gan at Maple River S.G.A. and at Pte. Mouillee. Whooping Cranes from the ex¬ perimental flock wandered around Wis¬ consin to Dane (BD) and Walworth (WR) in early Jun, as well as to Horicon 2-30 Jul Oh LM). SH0REBIRDS Piping Plover nesting success was good in Michigan ( fide AMB). Also noteworthy in Michigan was a migrant Piping Plover at 600 NORTH AMERICAN BIRD St. Joseph, Bcirien 21 Jul (AM, MO). An un¬ known number of Piping Plovers attempted nesting at Pine Is., Lake of the Woods, MN (BB, fide JM). Another Black-necked Stilt visited Horicon 2 Jul (T&1B). An American Avocet with one chick was seen in Big Stone, MN through 3 Jul (PCC). In Michi¬ gan, apparent fall migrant avocets arrived as early as 1 Jul in Berrien (RHo); another was in Oakland 21 Jul (PB, DF). Two avocets visited Floricon 24 Jul (LM). Solitary Sand¬ pipers in Berrien, MI 16 Jun (DCV) and Walworth , WI 18 Jun (SF) were probably still northbound. Wisconsin had Willets in Ashland 19 Jun (EB), Milwaukee 12 & 21 Jul (JI, TP), and Manitowoc 20 Jul (CSo). Michigan had numerous reports of Willets in Berrien beginning 21 Jun (DH, m.ob.), while Minnesota had scattered reports from five counties in Jul. Two Whimbrels in She¬ boygan (MM, JP, NP) and one in Milwaukee 5 Jun (SL) were still northbound; one in Cook 9 Jun (fide JWL) furnished only the 2nd Minnesota report for 2005. Most un¬ usual among several godwit reports were single Hudsonians in Manitowoc, Wl 22 Jun-4 Jul (CSo) and Berrien, Ml 12 Jul (AMB). Semipalmated Sandpiper counts peaked at 1101 and Least Sandpipers at 1197 in Lac Qui Parle, MN 24 Jul (PHS). Wisconsin re¬ ported a Western Sandpiper in Iowa 7 Jun (p.a., AH). A first-summer Curlew Sand¬ piper at Pte. Mouillee 11-13 Jul (p.a., AMB, MH, JJ, KT) was followed by an ad. at Lake- wood W.T.P, Iotiia 20-21 Jul (p.a., TBa, ST, KT). Buff-breasted Sandpipers arrived in all three states by the end of Jul, including a record-early arrival in Racine, WI 23 Jul (p.a., SF). The Regions only Ruff was a Reeve in Delta, Ml 28 Jul (p.a., SH). A count of 319 Short-billed Dowitchers was note¬ worthy at Pte. Mouillee 9 Jul (AMB). Wil¬ son’s Phalarope nested at Muskegon; in Min¬ nesota, most of the 272 Wilsons at Salt L., Lac Qui Parle 24 Jul were juvs. (PHS). GULLS THROUGH NIGHTJARS Wisconsin had a Laughing Gull in Mani¬ towoc 28-29 Jun (CSo), but none were re¬ ported in Michigan through Jul. Out of range were single Lranklin’s Gulls at W.P.B.O. 19 Jun (LD) and Pte. Mouillee 21-23 Jun (AMB, LW), 3 in Ashland, Wl 3-13 Jun (RB), and one at Ely, St. Louis, MN 6 Jun (RG). Providing Minnesota’s 2nd sum¬ mer record was an ad. Black-headed Gull in Jackson 16Jul+ (p.a., PHS, AXH, m.ob.). Un- seasonal was the Thayer’s Gull in Manitowoc 30 Jun (CSo). Establishing Minnesota’s 19th record and first since 1999 was an ad. Least Tern at Sherburne N.W.R. 8-9 Jun (PLJ, ph. AXH, ph. DWK, PCC). Lingering from spring was at least one Eurasian Collared-Dove at Three Oaks, Berrien, Ml (p.a., AMB, JTW et al.). Wis¬ consin had Eurasian Collared-Doves in Green 11 Jun (QY) and Grant 16 Jun (ME); in Minnesota, they nested again in Dakota and Houston and were seen in at least six more counties. Michigan reported single White-winged Doves in Alger 12-16 Jun (p.a., BH, SHi, AMB, ATC, m.ob.) and Chippewa 13 Jun (p.a., DM). Furnishing Minnesota’s 8th record was a White-winged Dove in Cook 10-16 Jul (JGW, ph. PHS, PCC). Unusual for Michigan’s Lower Penin¬ sula was a Great Gray Owl in Emmet 21 Jun (BK). Unprecedented numbers of Great Gray Owls summered in Bayfield, WI fol¬ lowing last winter’s irruption, but none of the 28+ Great Grays there nested (RB). Also unusual for Wisconsin was a Boreal Owl in Douglas 22 Jun (RJ). The Chuck-will’s-wid- ow in Berrien, Ml called through 3 Jul (MBu, m.ob.), while one in Vernon, WI was last heard 29 Jun (J&KS, DJ). FLYCATCHERS THROUGH THRUSHES Far from its usual Minnesota haunts was an Acadian Flycatcher in Spencer Twp., Aitkin 10-11 Jun (WEN, WMS et al.). A pair of Say’s Phoebes summered at Felton Prairie, Clay (m.ob.); nesting by this casual species has never been confirmed in Minnesota. Loggerhead Shrikes in nine Minnesota coun¬ ties was typical for recent years, but Wiscon¬ sin’s only reports were from St. Croix, and Michigan’s last summer record was in 2001. White-eyed Vireos were found in three Wis¬ consin and four Michigan counties. Michi¬ gan hosted a territorial Bell’s Vireo at Romu¬ lus, Wayne 27 Jun-23 Jul (p.a., JCr, DO). Wisconsin had Bell’s Vireos in Dane, Green, Iowa, and LaCrosse, while Minnesota report¬ ed a county first in Brown (BTS). In Michi¬ gan, Philadephia Vireo breeding was con¬ firmed in Marquette 7 Jul (SH). Unusually far s. and of uncertain prove¬ nance was a Black-billed Magpie in Anoka, MN 16 Jul (JEH). At least one Rock Wren re¬ turned to the same location at Felton Prairie where Minnesota’s first nesting occurred last year. Carolina Wrens were in five Wisconsin counties; Minnesota had 2 in Scott (RBW, BAF) and one in Fillmore (NBO). Carolina Wren breeding was confirmed for the first time in the U.P in Delta (SH). South of its usual Wisconsin range was a Golden- crowned Kinglet in Waukesha 19 Jun (ASz); similarly lost in Michigan was a Hermit Thrush in Allegan 2 Jul (JR). WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES A Black-throated Blue Warbler was tardy in Hillsdale, MI 2 Jun (JR). Yellow-throated Warblers graced Berrien and Lenawee in Michigan and Grant and Sheboygan in Wis¬ consin. Michigan’s record-high total of 1415 singing male Kirtland’s Warblers included 18 birds in five U.P counties; up to 3 Kirt¬ land’s in Jackson (p.a., JPo) was noteworthy for Wisconsin. Three Prairie Warblers in Sheboygan, WI were no match for Michi¬ gan’s multiple pairs in three counties. In Minnesota, where the species is considered casual, a territorial Prairie Warbler sang for naught in Dakota 6 Jun-2 Jul (ph. JPM, m.ob.). A remarkable 80 Cerulean Warblers at Allegan S.G.A., Allegan, Ml was the high¬ est tallied there in a decade (RS). Michigan’s only Kentucky Warblers were in Hillsdale ; Kentucky Warblers were in two Wisconsin and three s. Minnesota locations in early Jun. Wisconsin reported Hooded Warblers in five counties, including nesting in Dane (TB). Yellow-breasted Chats were in five Michigan and six Wisconsin counties, in¬ cluding one as far n. as Bayfield, Wl 11-13 Jun (TO, RB). In Minnesota, a male Summer Tanager paired with a female Scarlet Tanager in Dakota and fledged 2 young 29 Jun: one Brown-headed Cowbird and one Summer Tanager x Scarlet Tanager (ph. JPM). The nest was found 17 Jun; the young cowbird was seen on the 21st and the tanager chick, which was fed by both parents, was first seen on the 28th. In Wisconsin, Lark Spar¬ rows were found in Portage (MBe) and Sauk (DT, BDu) in early Jun, and in Burnett on 23 Jul (LS). Henslow’s Sparrows fared well in all three states, including 11 Lower Peninsula counties in Michigan and five Wisconsin counties as far ne. as Door 5 Jun (T&rlB). Unprecedented numbers of Henslow’s were in 28 Minnesota counties as far n. as Polk 17 Jun-1 Jul (NGE, ph. PHS), Mille Lacs 4 Jul (HHD), and Traverse 30 Jul (KRE et al.); at least 18 individuals were at Murphy-Hanrehan (RBW). Unseasonal in Wisconsin were White-crowned Sparrows in Milwaukee in late Jun (BBo), Oneida 18-31 Jul (J&KS), and Portage 29 Jul (RW). In nw. Minnesota, an accommodating Black-headed Grosbeak extended its late May visit in Marshall through 16 Jun (MBr, PCC, JMJ). Straying outside of its usual Minnesota range were single Blue Gros¬ beaks in Dakota (CM) and Yellow Medicine (D&BM) 13 Jun; a pair was in Brown 25 Jun+ (BTS). Michigan reported “fair num¬ bers” of Evening Grosbeaks, with nesting in the Lower Peninsula, while Wisconsin’s only reports were in Vilas (JBa). Corrigenda: Michigan: Change Cinnamon Teal in Crawford during winter 2003-2004 from Michigan to Wisconsin ( N.A.B . 58: 230). Delete Tufted Duck in Van Buren 6 Mar 2004 (N.A.B. 58: 375); the documentation suggested possible hybrid derivation. Delete undocumented Baird’s Sandpipers in Sagi¬ naw and Houghton, Spring 2004 (N.A.B. 58: 375). Delete Ancient Murrelet 7 Nov 2004 VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 601 WESTERN GREAT LAKES Institute for Field Ornithology Jilt Min Opportunities Binding by Ear 5-10 June 2006 Location: White Mountains, NH Instructor: Mark Suomala Caribbean Seabirds 18-24 June 2006 Location: San Salvador, Bahamas Instructors: Bill Hayes and Betty Anne Schreiber Sparrows 26-30 June 2006 Location: Fort Collins, CO Instructor: Jim Rising Field Study and Classroom Education • EMAIL: ifo@aba.org • WEBSITE: www.americanbirding.org/ifo • PHONE: 800-850-2473 Ext. 235 American B i rd i nej ASSOCIATION ^ SOSftD COFFEE SHADE-GROWN COFFEE Jleed <7 (jreat bird slic/e? The Cornell Lab of Ornithology offers nearly 2000 first-rate, full-color slides at reasonable prices. SAVES TREES FOR MIGRATING BIRDS BUY YOUR NEXT BAG OF SONG BIRD COFFEE FROM ABA SALES 800.634.7736 WWW.AMERICANBIRDING.ORG/ABASALES Available individually or in specially priced sets. Some sets include written scripts or taped narration and bird sounds. Perfect for educators, libraries, birders, artists, and commercial use. Visit us on the Web at http://birds.cornell.edu/closlides American Birding ASSOCIATION YOUR PURCHASE SUPPORTS THE ABA'S BIRDERS' EXCHANGE PROGRAM Write or call for a free catalog Cornell Lab of Ornithology Visual Services 159 SapsuckerWoods Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850 (607)254-2450 birdslides@cornell.edu due to uncertainty about whether the mur- relet actually entered Michigan waters ( N.A.B . 59: 81). Change maximum number of Eurasian Collared-Doves to 4 in Grand Traverse (N.A.B. 58: 231, 375), and delete one in Berrien 7 May 2004 (N.A.B. 58: 375). Change number of Cave Swallows at S.M.R.R., Wayne 5-6 Nov 2004 to 2 (N.A.B. 59: 81). Delete undocumented Lark Sparrow in Wayne 7 May 2004 (N.A.B. 58: 376). Min¬ nesota: Delete Prairie Falcon in Ramsey 11 Dec 2004 (N.A.B. 59: 270). Cited observers (subregional editors bold¬ faced): Tim Baerwald (TBa), Pat Baize, Jim Baughman (JBa), Ty & Ida Baumann, David R. Benson, Murray Berner (MBe), Bill Berg, Tom Bethell, Brian Boldt (BBo), Marilyn Bontly (MBo), Chuck & Sue Bradford, Ryan Brady, Mary Broten (MBr), Erik Bruhnke, Marvin Budd (MBu), Adam M. Byrne (Michigan), Allen T. Chartier, Philip C. Chu, Julie Craves (JCr), Seth Cutright, Herb H. Dingmann, John Dixon, Louie Dombroski, Becca DuBey, Kim R. Eckert, Jessie Ellis, Nathaniel G. Emery, Marty Evanson, Bruce A. Fall, Sean Fitzgerald, Dan M. Floren, Jim Frank, Darlene Fried¬ man, Richard Gibson, Skye Haas, Jay E. Hamernick, Don Henise, Anthony X. Hertzel, Scott Hickman (SHi), John W. Hockema, Pete Hoeger, Randy Hoffman, Ronald Hoffman (RHo), Aaron Holschbach, Bill Hurst, Matt Hysell, John Idzikowski, Dan Jackson, Scott Jennex, Robbye John¬ son, Paul L. Johnson, Jeanie M.Joppru, Jer¬ ry Jourdan, Douglas W. Kieser, Ann E. Kessen (Minnesota), Ben Klaver, Mark Ko- rducki, David O. Lambeth, Tim Lamey, James W. Lind, Steve Lubahn, Chris Mans¬ field, Dennis & Barbara Martin, James R Mattsson, Mike McDowell, Ken Mettie, Jr., Larry Michael, Andre Moncrief, Jenny Moorman, Doug Munson, Brad C. Murphy, Warren E. Nelson, Chris Neri, Darrin O’Brien, Tim Oksiuta, Marie Ostrander, Nancy B. Overcott, Paul W. Pedersen, Jesse Peterson, Janine Polk (JPo), Nolan Pope, Tom Prestby, Jack Reinoehl, Janet L. Riegle, Wayne Rohde (Wisconsin), Bob Rogers, Robert P. Russell, Jr., Russ Schipper, A1 Schirmacher (ASc), Jim Schnur (JiS), Carl Schwartz, Julian P. Sellers, Larry Semo, Richard Smallwood-Roberts (RSR), Brian T. Smith, Jerry & Karen Smith, Charles Sontag (CSo), Linda Sparling, William M. Stauffer, Aaron Stutz, Peder H. Svingen, Andrea Szymczak (ASz), Daryl Tessen (DTe), Kevin Thomas, Dar Tiede, Ed Thelen, Steve Thiessen, David C. Vinnedge, Josh G. Wat¬ son, LaRue Wells, Rob Whitmire, Robert B. Williams, Jonathan T. Wuepper, and Quentin Yoerger. Our sincere thanks to hundreds more contributors who could not be acknowledged individually. - , . B| — I — " 1 1 602 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS It was the warmest June in Iowa since 1991, with rainfall about average. July was somewhat warmer and drier than normal, with the first 100-degree days since 2003. Habitat conditions seemed fairly nor¬ mal, although severe drought affected parts of eastern Iowa. In Missouri, temperatures were slightly above average in June and July, and precipitation was near to slightly below normal statewide. However, parts of central, southeastern, and eastern Missouri had very hot and dry conditions for much of the sum¬ mer. Rain from Hurricane Dennis provided some relief in mid-July. Accidental species found in Iowa were Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Brown Peli¬ can, and Vermilion Flycatcher, all of which remained for lengthy stays. Good finds in Missouri included Eared Grebe and White Ibis. Missouri had its first Trumpeter Swan nest in more than 100 years, and White¬ winged Doves may have nested as well. Iowa had the first documented nesting by King Rail since 1998, and the second (and possi¬ bly third) nestings of Red-breasted Nuthatch. Bald Eagles and Northern Bob- white had good years in both states. Least Tern, Barn Owl, and Henslow’s Sparrow all posted good nesting success in Iowa. Abbreviations: Dunbar (Dunbar Slough, Greene, IA); E.B.C.A. (Eagle Bluffs C.A., Boone, MO); ER.C.A. (Four Rivers C.A., Ver¬ non, MO); N.VC.A. (Nodaway Valley C.A., Holt/Andrew , MO); R.M.B.S. (Riverlands Mi¬ gratory Bird Sanctuary, St. Charles, MO); Saylorville (Saylorville Res., Polk, 1A); S.C.N.W.R. (Squaw Creek N.W.R., Holt, MO); T.R.W. (Thompson River Wetlands, Livingston, MO). LOONS THROUGH FALCONS Summering Common Loons in Iowa includ¬ ed 3 at Spirit L., Dickinson (ET) and one at North Twin L., Calhoun (Todd Burras). In Missouri, 2 on 4 Jun at L. Jacomo, Jackson (LR) was the only report. Red-necked Grebes included up to 3 summering at Eagle L., Hancock, IA (RG, PH, DA) and 2 on 4 Jul at Union Slough N.W.R., Kossuth (MK). Each state had one Eared Grebe: 15 Jun at May¬ nard Reece W.PA., Kossuth, IA (MK) and 18 Jul at ER.C.A. (JH, SK, LL, TR). American White Pelicans were numerous in Iowa, with 1000 on 23 Jul at Saylorville (JB), a high count for so early. Up to 45 were at T.R.W. in Jun (SK). Single first-year Brown Pelicans 14-18 Jul at Spirit L., Dickinson (ET, m.ob.) and 30-31 Jul at Saylorville (tSD, tJD, m.ob.) were probably the same bird, Iowa’s 10th record. The bird also moved into the Minnesota portion of the lake. American Bitterns were back at S.C.N.W.R., including 4 on 28 Jun and 2 juvs. on 16 Jul (Frank Durbian). Least Bit¬ tern seemed fairly common in both states, Missouri Yellow R. Forest Cone Marsh Lacey-Keosauqua SP State Forest Pool 19 Weston Bend SP Smithville Res. Riverlands Environ. Demonstration Area MISSOURI Montrose CA ■ Four Rivers CAm ■ Schell-Osage CA Prairie SP Table Rock L. Y Roaring River SPM: ■ Drury- Mincy CA Mark Twain NF (8 units shown in dashed tines) Ten Mile Pond CA with numerous reports statewide in Mis¬ souri (m.ob.) and reports from 10 Iowa counties, including three nests at Cardinal Marsh, Winneshiek (DK, m.ob.). Great Egrets were common in Missouri, with a high count of 76 on 31 Jul at Pershing S.P, Linn (SK). Iowa’s only Snowy Egret was one 26 Jun at Goose L., Clinton (BS). Missouri’s only Tricolored Heron was a juv. 27 Jun at a heronry near Sikeston, Scott (JE). One or 2 Black-crowned Night-Herons were found in six Iowa counties, but no one noted nesting (m.ob.). Up to 6 Yellow-crowned Night- Herons in early Jul in Lucas is the most seen in Iowa in several years (RA, PA, m.ob.). Up to 5 White Ibises were seen several times at a heronry near Sikeston, Scott, MO (CM, JU, JE), and one was seen in Jun at Ozark Na¬ tional Scenic Riverways, Shannon (refuge staff). Iowa’s only White-faced Ibis were one on 1 Jun at Maynard Reece W.PA., Kossuth (RG, PH, DA) and 2 on 14 Jun near Spirit L., Dickinson, IA (NB). An amazing 216 Turkey Vultures were at a roost 29 Jul near Decorah, Winneshiek, IA (Katie McVey). Single Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks 22 Jun in Lee (tBill Ohde) and 26 & 29 Jul at Lake Anita S.P, Cass (tJD, ph. SP, m.ob.) add to the growing presence of this species in Iowa. A pair of Trumpeter Swans hatched 3 young in Jul near the Carroll/Livingston bor- JamesJ. Dinsmore 4024 Arkansas Drive Ames, Iowa 50014 oldcoot@iastate.edu der (SK, m.ob.), Missouri’s first successful nest in more than 100 years. Trumpeter Swans had 23 nests in Iowa, a big jump from 14 in 2004 (RAn). Lingering waterfowl in Missouri included a Gadwall and Northern Pintail 17 Jul at ER.C.A. (DE) and a Green-winged Teal at B. K. Leach C.A., Lincoln (JE). In Iowa, stragglers included single Greater White- fronted Geese 9 Jun-30 Jul at Grimes, Polk QB, JG) and 15 Jun in Kossuth (MK), Buffle- heads 4 Jun at Grover’s L., Dickinson (LS) and 15 Jun near Sioux City (BH), and a Common Merganser 15 Jun near Sioux City (BH). Reintroduced Osprey occupied five terri¬ tories in Iowa, but only one nest, in Johnson, was successful (BEh). In Missouri, a nest near Jacksonville, Randolph produced at least one young (AF, Alan Wagner), and a pair was feeding young 8 Jul at Truman L. (SK, m.ob.). Iowa’s only Mississippi Kite was one 4 Jun in Des Moines (JG). In Missouri, a pair in Columbia, Boone produced one young VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 603 — (Kathleen & Harold Anderson), a pair was seen lOJun in Kansas City, Jackson (LR), and several others were seen statewide (m.ob.). Bald Eagle nesting populations increased in both states. Missouri added at least 20 new nests (AF), and Iowa’s total was 190 nests, up from 175 in 2004. Nests have been found in 7i of Iowa’s 99 counties (BEh). Northern Harrier nests were found near Greenfield, Adair, 1A (BEh), near Spirit L., Dickinson, IA (NB), and at White River Trace C.A., Dent, MO (Rob Chapman). Several other harriers were seen in both states. Single Sharp- shinned Hawks in Howard (PH) and in Des Moines (RC) raise the possibility that this species might nest in Iowa. The last nesting report was in 1989. Intensive surveys of Iowa’s woodlands for the Important Bird Ar¬ eas program helped provide numerous re¬ ports of Cooper’s (21 counties), Red-shoul¬ dered (8 counties), and Broad-winged Hawks (10 counties) (SP, KP, m.ob.). Most were probably nesting. Cooper’s Hawks were also reported in good numbers in Missouri (m.ob.). A Swainson’s Hawk was seen 12 Jun near ER.C.A. (SK), and nesting birds were found at several locations in Greene, MO (DR). Peregrine Falcons in Iowa occupied 10 territories, seven of which produced 21 young, both record totals (BEh, PS). GROUSE THROUGH TERNS Gray Partridges continued to be found in n. and cen. Iowa (m.ob.). Drumming Ruffed Grouse were heard in Jun at two isolated sites in s.-cen. Iowa (SP, KP). Reintroduced Sharp-tailed Grouse and Greater Prairie- Chickens in Iowa had a poor year; only one brood of the former was noted (Ed Wiener, Ed White). Northern Bobwhite seemed to have done well in both states; many were re¬ ported statewide in Missouri (m.ob.), and the species seemed to have made a slight comeback in s. Iowa as well. A King Rail brood injul near Cumming, Warren QG) was Iowa’s first since 1998. Other King Rails were seen 18 Jun at Errington Marsh, Polk, 1A (BE), 4 Jul at B.K. Leach C.A., Lincoln, MO (JE), and 17 Jul at ER.C.A. (DE). A Virginia Rail brood near Iowa City, Johnson was s. of its usual Iowa range (JF, TK). Even farther out of expected range were 2 Virginia Rails and a Sora 1 Jul at Columbia, Boone, MO (BG). Common Moorhens were also at Co¬ lumbia, Boone (BG), and one was present 10 Jul at Mingo N.W.R., Stoddard, MO (JE). In Iowa, Common Moorhens nested at Long Pond, Guthrie and Cardinal Marsh, Win¬ neshiek (JG, DA, DK) and were found in three other counties (m.ob.). Sandhill Cranes were found in six e. and ne. Iowa counties (m.ob.), about typical of recent summers. An American Golden-Plover 6-7 Jun at R.M.B.S. (CM, JU, JE) was late, and one 9Jul at Dunbar (JD, SD) was early. Piping Plovers were at their usual Iowa nesting sites, with 10 on 24 Jun near Council Bluffs QG) and two broods 4 Jul near Sioux City (BH). The 719 Killdeer 30 Jul at Dunbar was an un¬ usually high count (SD). A cold front 27 Jul brought 3-9 American Avocets to Johnson, Polk, and Pottawattamie, IA (DP, SD, JD), more than most summers. Single Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, and Pectoral Sandpipers 21 Jun at Dunbar (SD) were probably summering; the same was probably true for a Lesser Yellowlegs 20 Jun at R.M.B.S. (CM). Four Solitary Sandpipers 18 Jun at Johnston, Polk, IA (BE) were late. Six¬ teen Willets on 31 Jul at Saylorville (DT) is a high count for southbound birds. Upland Sandpipers were found in fairly good num¬ bers statewide in Missouri (m.ob.) and were found in 14 counties that spanned Iowa (m.ob.), typical of recent years. Rare in Iowa injul, a Ruddy Turnstone was at Dunbar 30 Jul (SD) and a Sanderling 28 Jul at Coralville Res., Johnson (DP). A Bairds Sandpiper 2 Jul in Butler (PH) was early. The 581 Pectoral Sandpipers 30 Jul at Dunbar (SD) was the highest count recorded. A fairly early flock of 150 shorebirds 4 Jul in Livingston, MO in¬ cluded 100+ Lesser Yellowlegs, 25 Pectoral Sandpipers, and 10 Willets (SK). At two sites in Kossuth, IA, Wilsons Phalaropes were probably nesting 4 & 20 Jun (MK). An ad. Laughing Gull was at R.M.B.S. 11 Jun Old)- A Black-headed Gull was at its usual hangout at the n. end of Spirit L., Dick¬ inson, IA 16-31 Jul (tET, m.ob.). Two Her¬ ring Gulls 18 Jul at N.V.C.A. (DE) were ear¬ ly. Two Caspian Terns 15 Jun at R.M.B.S. (JE) and one 17 Jul at ER.C.A. (DE) were unex¬ pected. Common Terns in Hancock and Woodbury, IA (PH, BH) were late 1 & 5 Jun, respectively. An ad. Common 30 Jul at Say¬ lorville (SD) was early. Forsters and Black Terns were reported throughout Jun and Jul in Iowa, but no one mentioned them nest¬ ing. Least Terns had a great year at their two Iowa nesting sites: 40 birds, at least 18 on nests, on 24 Jun near Council Bluffs (JG) and 3 on 15 Jun near Sioux City (BH). This is the most nests reported in Iowa in the past 20 years. Two Least Terns 1 1 Jun at Schell- Osage C.A., Vernon (Alan Branhagen) was the only Missouri report away from the Mis¬ sissippi River. DOVES THROUGH VIRE0S A White-winged Dove near East Prairie, Mis¬ sissippi, MO on 28 Jun, 2 there on 10 Jul, and 3 on 14 Jul suggested a successful nest (JE). Singles 4 Jul in Plymouth (ph. Loren Hansen) and 29-31 Jul in Graettinger, Palo Alto (t Richard & Lois Weber) add to the records for Iowa. Black-billed and Yellow¬ billed Cuckoos were found in 16 and 34 Iowa counties (m.ob.), probably an under¬ statement of the greater abundance of Yel¬ low-billed Cuckoos in Iowa. Good numbers of Greater Roadrunners were reported from the species’ usual range in the Missouri Ozarks (m.ob.). Barn Owl nests in Adair, Jones, Lucas, and Tama (BEh) all seemed to be successful, Iowa’s best season in several years. Yellow-billed Sapsuckers were found in seven n. Iowa counties (m.ob.), including broods at Effigy Mounds N.M., Allamakee and Pikes Peak S.P, Clayton (DK, SP). Late Yellow-bellied Flycatchers included singles 3 Jun in St. Louis, MO (JU) and 5 Jun in Cerro Gordo, IA (PH). Least Flycatchers in Bremer, Butler, Harrison, Sioux, and Worth, IA mid-Jun-late Jul (m.ob.) may have in¬ cluded some nesting birds. The summer sta¬ tus of this species in Iowa is poorly under¬ stood. Both Acadian and Willow Flycatchers were found in numerous Iowa counties (m.ob.), mainly in the e. half of the state. A Willow Flycatcher near Mound City, Holt, MO (TR) was near the edge of its range. The male Vermilion Flycatcher found in May near Coon Rapids in Guthrie, IA remained throughout the summer (tJB, tDA, m.ob.). With two nests in Polk, Western Kingbirds continued to occupy their cen. Iowa outpost (JG, AB, Scott Rolfes). In Missouri, Western Kingbirds continued to expand their range eastward (m.ob.). Two Black-billed Magpie nests in Ply¬ mouth, IA were probably successful (Scott Moats, fide JD); magpies have nested there for several years. Red-breasted Nuthatches nested in Carroll, IA (Shirley Schirck) and probably in Sioux City (GV), about the 2nd and 3rd nesting records for Iowa. As expect¬ ed after the recent mild winter, Carolina Wrens were widely reported in e. Iowa (m.ob.). One or 2 Bewick’s Wrens were found at its usual site near Argyle, Lee, IA (JF, MP). Five Sedge Wrens were singing 20 Jul on Clement Prairie, Nodaway, MO (DE). Veeries had a good year, with 16 found 4 Jul in Delaware (KP, SP) and nesting noted in Allamakee, Clayton, Delaware, and Dubuque, IA (SP, KP). A Northern Mockingbird nest in Cherokee was far n. of its usual Iowa range (DB). Loggerhead Shrikes were found in 21 counties (m.ob.) spanning most of Iowa; nowhere is it common. White-eyed Vireos were found in eight Iowa counties (m.ob.), mainly in s. Iowa, more than most years. WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES A Tennessee Warbler 5 Jun at Duck Creek C.A., Stoddard, MO (JE) was late. Territorial Chestnut-sided Warblers in Jun in Allama¬ kee, Hancock, Lucas, and Winneshiek, IA (DK, m.ob.) were more than most summers. A Yel¬ low-throated Warbler in Jun at St. Joseph, Buchanan, MO (JH, Tom Nagel, m.ob.) was nw. of its usual range. Cerulean Warblers had a good year in both states. In Missouri, good numbers were found (DR, AF), and in Iowa, 604 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Ceruleans were noted in 17 counties, mostly in e. Iowa (m.ob.). At least 13 males were at Effigy Mounds N.M., Clayton (DA). Single male Black-and-white Warblers 9 & 19 Jun in Lucas and Jefferson, 1A (SP, DP) seemed territorial. Worm-eating Warblers were found in Decatur, Lee, Pottawattamie, and Watren, IA (m.ob.). The only indication of nesting was ads. feeding a young cowbird 18 Jun in Lee (MB). Iowa’s only Hooded War¬ blers were widely scattered in Allamakee, Lee, and Warren (DK, CE, MP, SP). Single Summer Tanagers in Black Hawk and Boone (TS, WO) were at the edge of the species’ usual Iowa range. A singing male Clay-colored Sparrow lOJul in Winneshiek, IA (SP, KP) was e. of where expected. Others in Dickinson and Hancock (RG, PH, DA, LS) were in more typical locales. Henslow’s Spar¬ rows were reported from 20 Iowa counties (m.ob.); the number of reports of this for- merly rare species has increased dramatical¬ ly in recent years. Grasshopper Sparrow, Lark Sparrow, Dickcissel, and Bobolink were widely reported across Iowa. Single Blue Grosbeaks 2 Jun (CE) and 17 Jul (SP), both in Lee, were far e. of its usual w. Iowa range and may be of the e. sub¬ species. In Missouri, they seemed quite com¬ mon this summer (m.ob.). A Painted Bunting throughout the season at Weldon Springs C.A., St. Charles QE, JU) was n. of where expected. In Missouri, Bobolinks were common 5 Jul at Dunn Ranch, Harrison (SK) and seen in Jul as far s. as Hickory (Mike Skinner). Great-tailed Grackle added to its range in both states, with 13 on 1 1 Jun at Coulter Marsh, Franklin (AB), 3 at Co¬ lumbia, Boone, MO (BG), and several at E.B.C.A. (AF). Single Pine Siskins 23 Jun in Scott (WZ) and 2 Jul in Clayton, IA (DA) were unexpected. Cited observers (subregional coordinators in boldface): Danny Akers, Pam Allen, Reid Allen, Ron Andrews, Neil Bernstein, Dick Bierman, John Bissell, Aaron Brees, Mark Brown, Robert Cecil, James Dinsmore, Stephen Dinsmore, Joe Eades, David Easter- la, Chris Edwards, Bruce Ehresman, Bery En- gebretsen, Andrew Forbes, James Fuller, Jay Gilliam, Bill Goodge, Rita Goranson, Paul Hertzel, Jack Hilsabeck, Bill Huser, Thomas Kent, Matthew Kenne, Steve Kinder, Darwin Koenig, Larry Lade, Charlene Malone, Wolf Oesterreich, Katy Patterson, Shane Patter¬ son, Diana Pesek, Diane Porter, Mark Proescholdt, Dean Rising, Larry Rizzo, Tom¬ my Rogers, Bill Scheible, Pat Schlarbaum, Lee Schoenewe, Tom Stone, Ed Thelen, Den¬ nis Thompson, Josh Uffman, Gerald Von Ehwegen, Walt Zuurdeeg. An additional 21 uncited individuals contributed to the re¬ port; all have our thanks. O T he summer 2005 season was overall hot and dry, with temperatures reaching the 90° F mark in Louisville on 23 days and in Nashville on 33 days. Pre¬ cipitation at Louisville and Nashville was be¬ low normal for the period. Some areas were not as dry, especially in the eastern and west¬ ern portions of the Region, which received rainfall from the remnants of two tropical storms, Hurricane Cindy 6-7 July (eastern portion) and Hurricane Dennis 11-12 July (western portion). Certainly without doubt the highlight of the season was the collection of rare pelagic species that were deposited with the rem¬ nants of Dennis 12-15 July. An Audubon’s Shearwater on Kentucky Lake may have rep¬ resented the first-ever interior record for the species, and a Bridled Tern and a Royal Tern on Pickwick Lake were a first and a second, respectively, for Tennessee! No fewer than 21 Sooty Terns were found in Tennessee, with multiple Sooties observed in western Ken¬ tucky and one as far north as the Ohio River upstream from Cincinnati, Ohio. Grabbing smaller headlines but certainly noteworthy were reports of Roseate Spoonbill and White¬ winged Dove in Tennessee, and Marbled Godwit in Kentucky. Least Tern nesting suc¬ cess was mixed, with moderate success on the Mississippi River but low success on the lower Ohio and Tennessee Rivers. Abbreviations: Ensley (Ensley Bottoms, in¬ cluding the EARTH Complex, in sw. Shelby , TN), Standifer Gap (Standifer Gap Marsh, Hamilton, TN). LOONS THROUGH STORKS A few Common Loons in basic plumage Tennessee & Kentucky A = Kentucky Dam B = Barkley Dam C = Kentucky Lake D = Barkley Lake E = Jonathan Creek Embayment F = Land Between the Lakes G = Blood River Embayment KENTUCKY Smithland DamL Ballard WMA(m Al Long Point Unit, ' ^ Reelfoot NWR Sauerheber Unit, Sloughs WMA W ji ro* \/ Henderson ■ L. Peewee Boone Cliffs State Nature Preserve * \ Markland Dam Falls of the Ohiom.J ^ r» Louisville •Frankfort ■ Daniel Bernheim Forest A Minor Clark Fish .■ Hatchery/Cave Run L. *Red River Gorgt Geological Area Mammoth Cave NP Reelfoot Lake rf J & Paris Landing SP Tennessee NWl Big Sandy Unit 2 fb , . Meeman-Shelby m Forest SP Peabody WMA Barren Forest: l River L. lMcElroy U Chaney L. 'ross Creeks NWR mm Shelby Bottoms Radnor Lake State Natural Area \ Tennessee NWR Duck River Unit Fork NRA Sharp’s Ridgei m Kingston Steam Plant / S. Holston Lake ij Rankin Bottoms » Shelby Farms Ensley Bottoms Pickwick Landing SP Hiwassee WR m SoddyMtn.mmBajnerd Nickaiack Lakem m .. Craven’s House Shady Valley Great Smoky Mtns. NP TENNESSEE Chris Sloan 224 Hicks Road Nashville, Tennessee 37221 (chris.sloan@comcast.net) Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr. Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission 801 Schenkel Lane Frankfort, Kentucky 40601 (brainard.palmer-ball@ky.gov) VOLUME 59 (2005) NUMBER 4 605 TENNESSEE & KENTUCKY In the wake of Hurricane Dennis, at least 20 Sooty Terns were reported in Tennessee, including 1 4 (one of which is shown here) at Pickwick Lake, Hardin County 11 July 2005. Photograph by Jeff R. Wilson. were likely summering: one on Kentucky L. above Kentucky Dam 12 Jul (DR), one on the Tennessee R., Hamilton , TN 1 2 Jul (KC), 2 at the latter location 23 Jul (DJ), and one at Dale Hollow L., Clay , TN 21 Jul (SJS, TC). Pied-billed Grebes were confirmed breeding in Union, KY for the first time, with at least six family groups present 6 Jul (BP). An imm. Brown Pelican, possibly attribut¬ able to Hurricane Dennis, remained below Chickamauga Dam, Hamilton, TN 11 Jul+ (ph. DJ, m.ob.). Double-crested Cormorants were documented nesting in three locations: one nest at Rankin W.M.A., Cocke, TN 19 Jun (DMi, LG, MSI), ca. 20 nests on Kentucky L., Calloway, KY (EC, HC et al.), and an aston¬ ishing count of about 137 nests on four is¬ lands on Old Hickory L., Sumner, TN (CS). Least Bitterns were confirmed nesting in Union, KY again this year (BP). At Standifer Gap, at least 10 Least Bittern nests and at least 20 nestling Least Bitterns were observed in Jun (DP). An ad. Tricolored Heron at Stan¬ difer Gap 9 Jun (DP) was surprising both for the location (they are rare across the Region, and most records are from the far w. portion) and for the date (most Regional records are from late summer or early fall). The only Yel¬ low-crowned Night-Herons confirmed nest¬ ing in Kentucky this year were two pairs in suburban Lexington, Fayette (fide JW). 1mm. White Ibis appeared widely across Tennessee starting in late Jun: 14 were at Hatchie N.W.R., Haywood 25 Jun (CR), and at least 2 lingered through 30 Jun (/ideJRW); one was in Loretto, Lawrence 29 Jun (DoS, fide DaS); 2 were at Eagle Bend Fish Hatch¬ ery, Anderson 13-16 Jul (RH et al.); and 3 were in Anderson 16 Jul (NM, DMy, RH). _ Even more surprising were 5 Roseate Spoon¬ bills in Obion, TN 25-26 Jul (K&BL, ph. JRW); one remained as of 30 Jul (HC). Two Wood Storks, possibly driven northward by Hurricane Dennis, were at the Duck River Unit of Tennessee N.W.R., TN 14 Jul (CF). WATERFOWL THROUGH TERNS An injured Greater White-fronted Goose lin¬ gered through the season at Ballard W.M.A., Ballard, KY (ph. SR et al.). A male and an in¬ jured female American Wigeon and 3 male Ring-necked Ducks were at White L. Refuge, Dyer, TN 5 Jun (ph. JRW). A male Green¬ winged Teal was certainly out of place on L. Barkley, Lyon, KY 13 Jul (DR et al.). A few Lesser Scaup were detected during the sum¬ mer on Kentucky L., Marshall/Calloway, KY; a male Bufflehead off Kentucky Dam Village S.P 12 Jul (DR) was likely injured. A female Red-breasted Merganser on the Ohio R. at Louisville 13-14 Jul (BP) may have been summering. A male Ruddy Duck lingered in Union, KY to 6 Jul (BP), but no other evi¬ dence of nesting was observed there this summer. Likewise, a male Hooded Mer¬ ganser in Shady Valley, Johnson, TN 17 Jun (WC) did not appear to be nesting. New nesting sites for Osprey were found in McCracken and Marshall, KY (BP et al.). A Rough-legged Hawk on a reclaimed sur¬ face mine in e. Greenup, KY 7 Jun (IBP) was unprecedented for summer in the Region. Again this year, five pairs of Peregrine Fal¬ cons were successful in fledging young from nest sites scattered along the Ohio R., KY (SV, AS). Their survival rate remains un¬ clear, as each year a few are found injured or unhealthy; this year, one from Louisville was found to have an elevated level of lead in the blood (EW). Two ads. with one fledg¬ ling were observed regularly below Chicka¬ mauga Dam, Hamilton, TN throughout Jun (fide KC). Two Virginia Rail nests, as well as several fledglings, were observed through the period at Standifer Gap. Common Moohens were again confirmed nesting in Union, KY (ph. BP), with likely nesting also in Henderson, KY (CC); a lone bird was at Chickasaw N.W.R., Lauderdale, TN 26 Jun (JRW). At least two pairs of Spotted Sandpipers nested in w. Henderson, with family groups of 2 and 3 chicks observed 6 Jul (BP). Nearly all shorebird highlights from Kentucky oc¬ curred during the passage of the remnants of Hurricane Dennis, which likely grounded many early southbound migrants. Interesting reports included one to 22 Willets at seven locations 12-18 Jul (m. ob.); an American Avocet at the Falls of the Ohio, Jefferson, KY 14 Jul (BP); 2 Marbled Godwits over Ken¬ tucky L„ Marshall, KY 12 Jul (tBY, tMSt, MM); and one to 6 ad. Western Sandpipers at five sites 13-20 Jul (m. ob.). Latest spring migrant shorebirds included a Semipalmated Plover in Henderson, KY 10 Jun (MM, BP); a Ruddy Turnstone in Wayne, KY 2 Jun (ph. RD); 10 Semipalmated Sandpipers in Union, KY 10 Jun (BP, MM); 2 White-rumpeds at Ensley 17 Jun (JRW) and another in w. Hen¬ derson, KY 21 Jun (BP, MM); and a Dunlin in Union, KY 10 Jun (BP, MM). Unusually early fall migrants included a Semipalmated Plover at Ensley 25 Jun (JRW), an ad. Long-billed Dowitcher at Chickasaw N.W.R., Lauderdale, TN 4 Jul (JRW), and single Bairds Sand¬ pipers at Ensley 28 & 30 Jul (JRW). Five American Avocets were at the Falls of the Ohio, Jefferson, KY 28 Jul (BE et al.). There were reports of one to 4 Laughing Gulls in the vicinity of Kentucky L., KY 10- 15 Jul (m.ob.); it is unclear to what extent the passage of the remnants of Hurricane Dennis were involved, as the species occurs there fairly regularly in summer. In Tennessee, an ad. at Nickajack L., Marion 11 Jul (KC) and an ad. in Gibson 12 Jul (MG) were almost cer¬ tainly associated with Dennis. Single Franklin’s Gulls in Ohio, KY 3 Jun (DR, NR, TE) and on the Mississip¬ pi R„ Shelby, TN 30 Jul (JRW) rep¬ resented very rare summer records. Quite unusual was a first-summer Bonaparte’s Gull on L. Barkley, Lyon, KY 13 Jul (DR). A count of 6 Her¬ ring Gulls on Kentucky L., Cal¬ loway, KY 10 Jul (ME, HC et al.) was rather impressive for so early in the season. A Caspian Tern in Marshall, KY 24 Jun (BP et al.) was likely an early returning fall migrant. A few Common, Forster’s and Black Terns — likely early migrants — were grounded by the remnants of Dennis 12-14 Jul (m.ob.). Twenty-five Black Terns in Hamilton, TN 26 Jul (DJ, KC) was a noteworthy concentration. Levels of Least Tern nesting success were mixed. Birds on the Mississippi R. apparent¬ ly did fairly well, but smaller populations on the lower Ohio R. and Tennessee R. were Following Hurricane Dennis, no fewer than six Sooty Terns were present on the north end of Kentucky Lake, Livingston and Marshall Counties, Kentucky 12 July 2005 (here), with at least 3 lingering through 1 5 July. Image from video by David Roemer. 606 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS r j The remnants of Hurricane Dennis deposited an unprecedented number of pelagic birds into the Region 12-15 Jul. Jn Highlights of this event included an Audubon's Shearwater, apparently the first interior North American record ever documented, on Kentucky L., Livingston/Marshall, KY 12 Jul (vt. DR, MM, BP), and three exceptionally unusual finds on Pickwick L., Hardin, TN 11 Jul: a Bridled Tern (tJRW, tMT), a Royal Tern (tJRW, MT, DMa, JG), and a Parasitic Jaeger (tJRW, MT). The most numerous pelagic species was Sooty Tern; in Tennessee, no fewer than 14 were reported from Pick¬ wick L., Hardin, 1 1 Jul (ph. JRW, et al.), as well as 4 at Chickamauga Dam, Hamilton 1 1 Jul (ph. KC, m.ob.), and single ads. 12 Jul from Gibson (MG), J. Percy Priest L., Davidson (tRC), and Putnam (ph. SJS, BHS); the last was picked up dead on a road. In Kentucky, one to 6 Sooty Terns were reported at three locales in the w. portion of the state 12-15 Jul (vt. DR et al.), as well as one on the Ohio R. upstream from Cincinnati, Campbell, KY 12 Jul (tDMr). mostly unsuccessful because of rises of river levels and apparent predation, respectively (RR, EC, BP). On the Mississippi R., ca. 710 ads. were counted at three sites in Kentucky and ca. 1027 ads. were counted at 13 sites in Tennessee 25-26 Jun (KJ, JR et al.). A new nesting site was discovered some 16 km from the Ohio R. in Union , KY (BP). DOVES THROUGH WARBLERS The Region’s 7th White-winged Dove was re¬ ported from Tipton , TN 9-10 Jul (DB, fide MT). Nesting Barn Owls were reported from Nelson (C&CL) and Hart ( fide SK), both KY, during the season. The only Black-billed Cuckoos reported were singles in Putnam, TN 4 Jun (RS) and Boyle, KY 17 Jun (BD). Again this year, interesting interactions between possible polygamous Red-headed Woodpeck¬ ers involved in three nesting cavities in adja¬ cent trees were studied at Long Run Park, Jef¬ ferson, KY during Jun and Jul (BW). Least Llycatchers were confirmed nesting at the summit of Black Mt., Harlan, KY again this year, with at least 11 birds detected 13 Jun (ph. BP, MM); quite out of place were single singing birds at Lt. Campbell, TN 17 Jun (DMs) and in Marshall, KY 28 Jul (HC, JH). One singing in Lrozen Head State Nat¬ ural Area, Morgan, TN 5 Jun (SJS) was also suggestive of breeding. Shelby, TN again hosted as many as four Western Kingbird nests (ph. JRW). The pair of Scissor-tailed Llycatchers in s. Livingston, KY nested for the 4th consecutive summer (m.ob.). In Ten¬ nessee, evidence of breeding was observed near S. Pittsburgh, Marion (2 ads. and 3 fledglings [DJ, RJH, JCh] ); in Murfreesboro (pair at nest [SD] ) ; in Shelby (nest with 3 nestlings [J RW ] ) ; and in Bledsoe (one seen near regular nest location [R&DS, HB]). An ad. male was in Tipton, TN 11 Jun (JRW). Two pairs of nesting Tree Swallows in Harlan 14 Jun (MM, BP) represented a first for se. Kentucky. Up to two pairs of Red¬ breasted Nuthatches were present at their traditional Wolfe, KY breeding locale in Jun and early Jul (PR, BP); in addition, a nest was located 5 km nw. of there in mid-Jun (ph. PR). The only Bewick’s Wren reported all year in Kentucky was a male heard sever¬ al times in Jun and early Jul in nw. Scott (LB); one in Sumner, TN 10 Jun (MR) was less surprising. Possibly breeding Sedge Wrens were seen/heard in Grant, KY 4 Jul (DO, JCr); Muhlenberg, KY 15 Jul (BP, MM); and Henderson, KY 29 Jul (CC). A Hermit Thrush and a Myrtle Warbler were at Roan Mt., Carter, TN 17 Jun (TM); Roan Mt. is the only suspected breeding lo¬ cation in the Region for the latter species and one of only a few for the former. Late spring transient warblers included a Mourn¬ ing in Nashville, TN 4 Jun (JA), a Blackpoll in Henderson, KY 4 Jun (CC), and a Canada in Jefferson, KY 4 Jun (BP). A continuing University of Kentucky study documented the presence of the following numbers of territorial male Golden-winged Warblers in se. Kentucky: Bell (21), Harlan (12), and Whitley (11) (LP et al.). The study also re¬ sulted in data collection on five active Gold¬ en-winged nests in Bell (2), Harlan (2), and Whitley (one) (LP et al.). The same study documented the following number of terri¬ torial male Brewster’s Warblers: Bell (5), Harlan (2), and Whitley (6) (LP et al.); a bird in Bell was observed feeding a fledgling (LP et al.). Another Brewster’s was reported in Pike, KY 27 Jul (JCa). A male Chestnut¬ sided Warbler singing on territory in Wolfe, KY for at least 10 days in mid-Jun (PR) was well away from known breeding areas. Again this summer, small numbers of Bachman’s and Lark Sparrows were moni¬ tored at Pt. Campbell, Trigg, KY (DMs). The only Lark Sparrow reported in Kentucky away from Pt. Campbell was an ad. in n. Marshall 12 Jul (ph. BP). The only Bach¬ man’s Sparrow reported in Tennessee was one in Wayne 17 Jun (DaS). A Savannah Sparrow exhibiting defensive nesting behav¬ ior in Lame, KY 6 Jul (DR et al.) would rep¬ resent a significant range expansion outside of the cen. Bluegrass region, if actually nest¬ ing. One in Holston Valley, Sullivan, TN 28 Jun (WC, DW) constituted the county’s first summer record. Henslow’s Sparrows were relatively widespread in small numbers this season, with one to 25 reported at more than a dozen sites in Kentucky (m.ob.), plus a re¬ markable ca. 120 territories mapped at one site in Hardin, KY during Jun (BD). Again this year, a White-throated Sparrow lingered in e. Jefferson, KY through 6 Jun (BW); one also lingered in Nashville, TN through 10 Jun (SM). There were a few Jun reports of Bobolinks in n.-cen. Kentucky in Boyle (BD), Washington (BP ), Jessamine (JO, and Shelby (BS). A male and 2 females were in Washington, TN 22 Jul (DH, m.ob.). Cited contributors (subregional editors in boldface): Jan Alexander, Harold Birch, David Brown, Laura Burford, Kevin Calhoon (se. Tennessee), Terry Campbell, Joan Carr (JCa), Phillip Casteel (middle Tennessee), Janice Chadwell (JCh), Hap Chambers, Elizabeth Ciuzio, Wallace Coffey (e. Tennessee), Richard Connors, Julie Craves (JCr), Charlie Craw¬ ford, Brian Davidson, Scott Degen- hardt, Roseanna Denton, Melissa Easley, Bett Etenohan, Troy Evans, Clayton Perrell, Leslie Gibbens, Joe Guinn, Mark Greene, R. John Hen¬ derson, Ron Hoff, Don Holt, Jenny Howard, Daniel Jacobson, Kenneth Jones, Steve Kistler, Joe Lacefield, Ken & Betty Leggett, Charles and Cindy Lemons, Tom McNeil, Don Miller (DMi), Don Manning (DMa), Mark Monroe, Sharon Monroe, Nell Moore, Donald Morse, Jr. (DMr), Daniel Moss (DMs), Dollyann Myers (DMy), Darrin O’Brien, Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr., David Pat¬ terson, Laura Patton, Nicole Ranalli, Christi¬ na Rangel, Scott Record, Prank Renfrow, Rochelle Renken, Mike Roedel, David Roe- mer, John Rumancik, Roi & Debbi Shannon, Damien Simbeck (DaS), Don Simbeck (DoS), Richard Simmers, Jr., Michael Sled- jeski (MSI), Chris Sloan, Adam Smith, Brian Smith, Barbara H. Stedman, Stephen J. Sted- man, Matt Shekel (MSt), Mike Todd, Shaw- chyi Vorisek, Eileen Wicker, Jim Williams, Jeff R. Wilson, Barbara Woerner, Dave Wor¬ ley, Ben Yandell. Many thanks go to the nu¬ merous additional individuals who con¬ tributed information that was used in this report. O This active Least Flycatcher nest was photographed at the summit of Black Mountain, Harlan County, Kentucky 1 3 June 2005, representing the first documented nest of the species in the state. Photograph by Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr. — VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 607 — _ Central Southern ■ Craig Fish Hatchery •Harrison • Fayetteville , Big Lake NWR Jonesboro. Ft. Smith * . I L. Dardanelle ',ey Ha Hoila i Bend NWR Bald I Knob NWR Hulsey State Fish Hatchery DeGrav Lm * L. Conway Joe Hogan State Cross L Oakwoodi NWR ArkadelphiaOxi- m dation Ponds Millwood L. L Chicot Overflow NWR OQan Fish Hatchery F.^1 White Riverm AS. NWR HS' Shreveport • Monroe LOUISIANA _ Red River Toledo!- NWR Catahoula BendSjr L. m Res.\ Alexandria. Cheneyville* i Lake Rice r Charles Country Cameron : . *— Lafayette Parish Wheeler Dam Huntsville t*Wheeler NWR Decatur Bankhead NF Guntersville " L . Birmingham Tuscaloosa • Harpersville ALABAMA Auburn. . Montgomery Eufaula NWR* • Baton Rouge New’'~ H^^.Orleans C B ■ \ Gull Is. Natl. /\ Seashore (MS) ■ . Venice \ LETTERED ALABAMA GULF COAST SITES: A = Gulf Shores B = Ft. Morgan C = Dauphin I. D = Bayou La Batre Lacassine ^tchajalaya NWR Basin ’ / Grand Reserve-Bonnet lsle Carre Spillway Chandeleur- Breton Islands (LA) South Pass GULF OF MEXICO Robert D. Purrington Department of Physics Tulane University New Orleans, Louisiana 70118 (danny@tulane.edu) This report is being written in the wake of the devastation wrought by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Virtual¬ ly the entire coastline of Louisiana and Mis¬ sissippi, as well as parts of Texas and Alaba¬ ma, were damaged beyond anything seen since Hurricane Camille of 1969. Entire communities, even parishes, were wiped out or rendered uninhabitable, the city of New Orleans will take decades to rebuild, and the Chandeleur Islands, a major breeding area for colonial waterbirds, are essentially gone, reduced to mere shoals by Katrina. In¬ evitably, some observations in this report, or data presented here, may have been ren¬ dered moot by the later storms. Tropical activity in the Gulf of Mexico be¬ gan with Tropical Storm Arlene , which went ashore on the Florida panhandle on 11 June, the first of six tropical storms or hur¬ ricanes that made landfall in the Gulf states and Mexico in June and July. Three of the six were hurricanes. Hurricane Cindy, which made landfall in southeastern Louisiana on 5 July, caused significant tree damage and overwashed the Chandeleur Is¬ lands not long after the peak of breeding in the huge tern colonies there. Hurricane Dennis made landfall as a Category 3 storm near the Alabama-Florida line on 10 July, less than a week after Cindy, while Hurri¬ cane Emily and Tropical Storm Gert made landfall in Mexico. Cindy and especially Dennis produced interesting and important records along the coast and drove many birds well inland. The storms had a largely unknown impact on birds that nest in coastal areas or on barrier islands. Lastly, some reorganization: this Region will henceforth include just the states of Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, and Missis¬ sippi. Florida’s westernmost reaches will join the rest of that state in the new Florida Region, covering the entire state. Bob and Lucy Duncan will continue their work as editors of the Central Southern region, so autumn observations should be sent to them for inclusion in what will be a memo¬ rable Fall Migration seasonal report. LOONS THROUGH FALCONS A Red-throated Loon in Tallapoosa, AL 3 Jun (TRP, CK) established the 2nd summer record for the state and the first inland. Records of Pied-billed Grebes, uncommon and erratic breeders in Alabama, came from Shelby 10 Jun (a pair; JG, BCG) and Mobile 8 Jul (one bird; DD, CD), both noteworthy. A Band-rumped Storm-Petrel was watched from shore for over three hours in the wake of onshore winds from Tropical Storm Cindy 6Jul in Santa Rosa, FL (RAD, LD, m.ob.). An imm. Masked Booby, a species casual in the Florida panhandle, was picked up on the beach at Panama City 2 Jun (NE), rehabili¬ tated, and eventually released. The first record of Northern Gannet for Arkansas (pending acceptance by the state’s B.R.C.) was of one on Bull Shoals F., Marion 25 Jul (DN, ML, RL, DL). The bird, which was present for one hour, was seen successfully diving for fish in the lake. Sand L, MS had single gannets 30 Jun and 14 Jul (SJD). There were inland records of American White Pelicans from Marshall and Marengo, AL (HH, DS, JS) as well as in Lowndes, Ok¬ tibbeha, Leflore, and Humpreys, MS (RW, LW, TS, SJD) during the period. Also far inland at the height of the breeding season were ad. Brown Pelicans 3 Jun in St. Martin, LA (VR, BO, DA). Neotropic Cormorants were re¬ ported 17 Jul from Humphreys and Yazoo N.W.R., MS (SJD, GK, SK). One 22 Jul in Iberville, LA (JFI) was at the extreme e. edge of the species’ breeding range. An American Bittern 7 Jun in Cameron, LA, was very late (JH). As a rare breeder in the Mountain region of Alabama, a Least Bittern 21 Jun in Shelby (HHK) was note¬ worthy; there were also records from Nox¬ ubee, Oktibbeha, and Washington, MS total¬ ing 4 birds (TS, MS, MSt), while over 20 were in Desha, AR 25 Jun (DB, SDV). Of a half-dozen records of White Ibis from ex¬ treme n. Alabama 26 Jun-23 Jul (DJS, PDK), at least three could reasonably be at¬ tributed to the effects of Hurricane Dennis ; 40 were seen 30 Jul in Jefferson, AR (BE). Up to 45 Plegadis ibis in Mobile 15 Jul (BCG) represented a high count for Alabama, as did 28+ Glossy Ibis the previous day and 3-4 White-faced Ibis 15-17 Jul at the same spot (ph.; HEH, TH, TSi). Two White-faced Ibis 17 Jul at Yazoo N.W.R. (SJD) were also of interest. Two Roseate Spoonbills 21 Jun in Ft. Walton Beach, FL (RAD) established the 5th area record, and another 10 Jul in Oktibbeha, MS (MK) was the earliest ever in the area by two weeks. Another 15 Jul in Washington, LA (KS) was notable, and as many as 44 were seen 17 Jul in Sunflower, MS (SJD, GK, SK). Records of Wood Storks included up to 50 at Noxubee N.W.R., MS 16Jun+ (TS, DR, m.ob.), 300+ in Iberville, LA 22 Jul (JH), and 500+ in Dallas/Perry, AL 19 Jul (TRP). One seen displaying 25 Jun in 608 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Coffee, AL (DMW, CW) was thought likely to be nesting. Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks continued to make news in the Region, highlighted by 11 on 15Jun at Ft. Walton Beach (RAD) for the 3rd area record, plus two 17 Jul sightings by Dinstnore: 4 in Leflore and three pairs at Yazoo N.W.R., MS. They continue to nest on Bayou Sauvage N.W.R. in e. New Orleans. Single Fulvous Whistling-Ducks were seen 25 Jun and 23 Jul in Desha, AR (DB, SDV). There were several reports of summering waterfowl, most of which are difficult to evaluate without information on whether the birds were capable of flight. Of special interest, however, was a pair of Mottled Ducks with 9 young 1 Jun in Desha, AR (KN, LDN), the first nesting record for the state. As many as 38 were noted there in late Jul (KN, DB). Reports of Swallow-tailed Kites included a the first known hatching of eggs in Arkansas since the 1940s, 1 Jun at White River N.W.R. (KN, LDN, DB), though the nestlings were later found dead, probably the result of owl predation. The peak of 44 in Autauga, AL 30 Jul (GJH) was notewor¬ thy, and Jennifer Coulsons ongoing studies in the Atchafalaya and Pearl River Basins yielded the following numbers: 59 individu¬ als 19 Jul in the Atchafalaya (JOC, PS), 156 the next day in the Pearl River basin, LA/MS (JOC, PS, ICF), and 177 in the same basin 28 Jul (JOC, PS, ZL). An ad. Bald Eagle 9 & 1 1 Jul in Oktibbeha, AR (TS) was unexpect¬ ed in view of their usual May-Sep absence. While a Sharp-shinned Hawk as late as 4 Jun in Mobile (MVH) established the first Jun record for the Gulf coast of Alabama, nine reports of summering Cooper’s Hawks, including one definite breeding, added to evidence of the robust recovery of this species in n. and cen. Arkansas (KN, MMl, JN, MW). A pair of Swainson’s Hawks nest¬ ing in Vermilion fledged 2 young by 26 Jul (ph. CH, DP) for one of the first document¬ ed nestings in Louisiana. There were three Arkansas records of Swainson’s Hawk, ap¬ parently involving 4 individuals, all from Benton 2-30Jul (JN, MMl). Three records of Red-tailed Hawks in St. Martin, St. Mary, and Iberia (JH), including one pair, suggest¬ ed nesting near the Louisiana Gulf coast. Five reports of American Kestrels from Arkansas included at least 29 ads. in five counties in the nw. part of the state (JN, SJG, MMl); the species is very scarce in the nesting season in the Mississippi Delta counties of Arkansas, despite what would appear to be extensive suitable habitat in which Loggerhead Shrikes, for instance, are numerous. SHOREBIRDS THROUGH TERNS While 11 Black-bellied Plovers 30 Jun on Horn L, MS (SJD) were probably “summer¬ ing,” Snowy Plovers 30 Jun (3) and 14 Jul (4) on Horn I. and on the latter date on E. Ship I., MS (11) were probably breeding birds (SJD). A Wilsons Plover survey carried out on Louisiana beaches found 759 pairs (fide R. Demay). A group of 30 Semipalmated Plovers 19 Jun at Port Fourchon, LA (RDP) was un¬ precedented for the “hiatus” period between migrations. The only Piping Plovers report¬ ed were on Horn 1. (one) and E. Ship I. (3) 14 Jul by Dinsmore, 2 far inland in Red Riv¬ er, LA 16 Jul (NM, JM, DB), and another 27 Jul in Prairie, AR (KN). American Oyster- catchers nested this season on both Horn and E. Ship Is. (SJD). There were records of Uncommon on the Alabama coast in summer, this Glossy Ibis was well documented at Mobile 1 6 July 2005. Photograph by Terry Hartley. single Willets in inland Wilcox (GDJ, DGJ) and Henry (LW), AL on 11 Jul in the wake of Hurricane Dennis. Three were found 27 Jul in Prairie, AR (KN). Although some Marbled Godwits reach the coast by mid-Jul, one at Ft. Walton Beach, FL 5 Jul (RAD, CB) and 27 on E. Ship L, MS on 14 Jul (SJD) were a bit surprising. Another was in Cameron, LA 20 Jul (JEl), and one was in Prairie, AR 29 Jun (RH). While a single Semipalmated Sandpiper 16 Jun in Benton, AR (MMl) was a late northbound migrant, 20 in Humphreys, MS 14 Jul (SJD, GK, SK) were evidently southbound. Two Western Sandpipers 30 Jun on Horn I., MS (SJD) were either very early fall migrants or summering, and the same could be said of 2 Least Sandpipers 2 Jul in Tallahatchie, MS (SJD); 920 were counted 17 Jul in Humphreys, MS (SJD, GK, SK). A total of 174 northbound White- rumped Sandpipers 5 Jun at the Craig Fish Hatchery, Benton, AR (MMl) was impressive, and a single Pectoral Sandpiper there 16 Jun (MMl) was quite late; one a day earlier in Ft. Walton Beach, FL (RAD, CB) was the first area record for Jun. Single basic-plumaged Dunlin 30 Jun at Horn 1. and 14 Jul on E. Ship I., MS (SJD) were evidently summering, a distinctly unusual occurrence. A Stilt Sandpiper 5 Jul at Ft. Walton Beach (RAD, CB) was the earliest ever by six days for nw. Florida. A Wilsons Phalarope 5 Jun in Ben¬ ton, AR (MMl) was unusually late. There were four inland reports of storm- driven Laughing Gulls 11-12 Jul in Wilcox, Henry, Lee, and Colbert, AL (EB, MB, PM, SJD, GDJ, DGJ, LEG), following landfall of Dennis; an earlier 22 Jun record in Clarke, AL (HHK, TK) was not obviously storm-re¬ lated. Another was seen in 27 Jul Prairie, AR (KN). A Ring-billed Gull 27 Jul in Prairie, AR (KN) was definitely out of season. Dins¬ more noted a basic-plumaged ad. Lesser Black-backed Gull 14 Jul on E. Ship L, MS. Rooftop-nesting of Gull-billed Terns has been much reduced in the New Orleans area, whether through human interference (such as a change in roofing materials, as seen in Florida construction) or other caus¬ es; this summer, there was a small colony on a Metairie, LA shopping center. Dinsmore found 19 nests 30 Jun on Sand I., MS. Per¬ haps the most interesting bird of the season was a probable basic-plumaged ad. Sand¬ wich Tern x Elegant Tern hybrid in a tern colony 30 Jun on Sand I., MS (SJD); also here were 30,000+ ad. Sandwich Terns and 18,246 nests, plus 5000+ ad. Royal Terns with 2927 nests. Royal Terns 11 Jul in Wilcox (GDJ, DGJ) and Henry, AL (EB, MB) were evidently fleeing Dennis. Single Com¬ mon Terns were seen 12 Jul in Tishomingo, MS (SJD), following Dennis, and 27 Jul in Prairie, AR (KN). Forty-five Sooty Terns 6 Jul at Pensacola Beach (LC, RAD, LD), the largest number ever for the area, were evi¬ dently fleeing Hurricane Cindy, and there were four inland records from Alabama in the days immediately following Dennis: 17 birds on 1 1 Jul in Henry (EB, MB, LW) and one the same day in Lee (PM), 5 birds on 12 Jul in Colbert (SJD, DJS), and up to 5 birds in Lauderdale/Lawrence 13 Jul (DJS). Four more Sooty Terns were seen 12 Jul in Tishomingo, MS (SJD), and 2 were found dead 14 Jul in Franklin, FL (TEL). All were clearly storm waifs. One Sooty Tern was present at the Sand L, MS tern colony 20 Jun (SJD). Least Terns were in Humphreys, MS, where one was seen 25 Jul (MSt,JS, BS), and in Desha, AR, where 32 ads. and 3 imrns. were counted 30 Jun (KN, LDN). DOVES THROUGH FLYCATCHERS A pair of White-winged Doves 9 & 12 Jun in Saline, AR (CMa, MBa, MBo, CS, CMi, DS, ph. LY) may have been nesting, and the same is true for early-Jun birds in Bossier, E. Baton Rouge, and St. Martin, LA (Jl, DL, JH), VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 609 CENTRAL SOUTHERN plus 3 in Iberville, LA (VR, SWC, DLD). The total of 27 Whip-poor-wills recorded 4 Jun in Coosa/Tallapoosa, AL (LFG, GDJ) repre¬ sented a very7 large number for the s. edge of the species’ breeding range. Seven Willow Flycatchers, representing at least three terri¬ torial males, were found 4 Jun in Boone in extreme n. Arkansas (JS). A Tropical King¬ bird on Grand Isle, LA 23 Jul (DM) was doc¬ umented with videotape, including record¬ ings of diagnostic vocalizations; there is one previous record for the state. Six reports of nesting Western Kingbirds received from Crawford, Sebastian , Mississippi, and Miller , AR (BB, TB, Zach Coulson, CM) involved at least 50 birds, highlighted by 35 in one block in downtown Ft. Smith (BB, TB). Gray Kingbirds nested for the 3rd consecutive year along the New Orleans lakefront (EW, ph. DM, m.ob.). Three nesting attempts in¬ volving two pairs, including two nests aban¬ doned after Hurricane Cindy, finally pro¬ duced 3 young in mid-Aug (DM). In Alaba¬ ma, a pair that fledged one young bird 18 Jul in Baldwin (BM) represented the first nesting in the state since 1997. Four reports of actu¬ al or probable nesting of Scissor-tailed Fly¬ catchers in Jun-Jul (NC, BW, RSH, DH, JJ, SJ, TRP) substantiate the continued expan¬ sion of breeding in cen. Alabama, and there were six more reports from n. Arkansas, most involving single birds (GH, GHi, DB, SDV), but 10 were noted 17 Jul in Randolph (GH). VIREOS THROUGH WAXWINGS At least 5 singing male Bell’s Vireos were heard at Stuttgart, AR 20 & 22 Jun (WS, LY). A pair of Warbling Vireos 3 Jun in St. Martin (VR, BO) suggested breeding, as did a pair of Blue-headed Vireos 25 Jun in Clay, AL (GJH), at the s. edge of the species’ breeding range. There was at least one report of nest¬ ing Tree Swallows from Alabama, a rare but increasing breeder there, 10 Jun in Etowah (RRS, MBS), involving over 30 individuals, including many fledglings. Five Northern Rough-winged and 5 Bank Swallows 10 Jul in e. New Orleans seen riding northerly winds from Dennis were extraordinary (PY, DM); another Bank Swallow was seen 19 Jul in Lee, MS (WP). Cliff Swallows were found nesting for the first time in Attala and Win¬ ston, MS OS, FH, DW, VW, TS), and Arkansas obtained its first record of Cave Swallow at L. Millwood 29-30 May and 2 Jun (CM, KN, LDN). Bewick’s Wrens, which have declined significantly in Arkansas since the 1950s, were seen in Benton, AR 4 & 18 Jun (JN). House Wrens, rare breeders in Al¬ abama, were found at two locations in Ran¬ dolph 23-24 Jun (RLW). A singing Sedge Wren 23 Jul in Benton (JN) was unexpected away from the rice-growing areas of Arkansas; one was also seen 21-22 Jul in Coahoma, MS (RC, ph. SJD). The first Jun record of Ruby-crowned Kinglet for Alaba¬ ma was of one 16 Jun in Tuscaloosa (JTG). Nesting Cedar Waxwings noted 19 Jun in Tallapoosa, AL represented the southern¬ most confirmed breeding in the state, and 2 each in Benton and Washington, AR 2 & 17 Jun (MMl; JN), respectively, were also unex¬ pected. Ten in West Carroll, LA 1 Jun (RO) were late migrants, while one in Calhoun, MS 4 Jun (TS) could have been either a late migrant or a local nester. WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES There were three reports of Blue-winged Warblers from the s. edge of their range, in¬ cluding a pair 7 Jun in Tallapoosa, AL (BKF); 3 territorial males 12 Jun in Saline (LY, DS) and a silent ad. 3 Jul in Faulkner (HR) were even out of their Arkansas breeding range. Two singing male Chestnut-sided Warblers 9 Jun in Jackson, AL (ECS) might have been attempting to nest there. A singing male Black-throated Green Warbler heard on a B.B.S. route in Perry, AR 9 Jun (HP) was un¬ expected, and a fledgling 25 Jun in Clay, AL was quite far s. for breeding in that state. Also quite far s. for Alabama if nesting were a Worm-eating Warbler in Conecuh 25 Jun (DMW, CW), 5 Ovenbirds in Coosa/Tal¬ lapoosa 4 Jun (GJH,MH), and single Louisiana Waterthrushes 6 Jun in Baldwin (CK) and 5 Jul in Mobile (RLW). The total of 28 Scarlet Tanagers recorded 4 Jun in Coosa/Tallapoosa, AL represented a very high number so far s., and a singing male 18 Jun in Choctaw, MS (LT, ST) was also unusual. Up to 7 Bachman’s Sparrows were recorded by Schiefer at Noxubee N.W.R., MS during the season. There were four reports of likely breeding Lark Sparrows in new sites in Alabama — in Greene, Tal¬ lapoosa, Elmore, and Jackson (RR, JJ, LFG, SWM) — and 6 were recorded in Noxubee, MS 5 Jun (TS, MS). Neal recorded 27 indi¬ viduals 24 Jul in Benton and Washington, AR. Grasshopper Sparrows were found nesting in at least three sites in the Starkville, MS area, including 24 Jun in Lowndes (PB), a new nesting locality. At least 25 pairs and six nests were found on a single farm in Coa¬ homa, MS (RC). There were three reports from Benton, AR totaling 7 birds (JN). Up to 7 Henslow’s Sparrows were seen and/or heard 9 & 23 Jul in Benton, AR (JN, MMl) at the s. edge of their breeding range. Remarkably, there were two separate Jul records of Rose-breasted Grosbeak in Louisiana: an ad. male in Lafayette 14 Jul (ph. RM) and another in Cameron 20 Jul (JH). A Dickcissel 9 Jun in St. Bernard, LA (GO) was noteworthy; its breeding status in se. Louisiana is obscure. An ad. male Yellow¬ headed Blackbird in Miller, AR 26 Jun estab¬ lished the first summer record for that area (CM). From the spring season, an ad. male Shiny Cowbird was in Franklin, FL 21 May (BS). There were two records of Red Cross¬ bills from Yell, AR: an ad. male 9 Jul (JD) and a juv. 18 Jul (JD, NB). Two Pine Siskins in Macon 3 Jun (TH) tied the latest ever in spring for Alabama, but as many as 3 were visiting a feeder in Benton, AR regularly 12 Jun-21 Jul (CR, ET). If 2 female American Goldfinches 5-6 Jun in Rapides, LA (JH) were late, then 2 in West Feliciana, LA 20 Jun and 3-5 Jul (DPB, TPB) were thoroughly out of season. Observers (subregional editors in bold¬ face): David Anderson, Maury Baker (MBa), David P. Banowetz, Tracey P. Banowetz, Phillip Barbour, Dick Baxter, Bill Beall, Toka Beall, E. Boehm, M. Boehm, Nelva Bohan- nan, Denise Bonck, Morris Boyd (MBo), Steven W. Cardiff, Laura Catterton, Ross Conover, Jennifer Coulson, Zack Coulson, Neil Cowles, Jack David, Sarah DeViney, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Donna Dittmann, Doug Dortch, Carrie Dortch, Robert Dun¬ can (nw. Florida), Lucy Duncan (nw. Flori¬ da), Bill Ellis, Nancy Evou, Inga C. Falter- man, Barry K. Fleming, Lawrence F Gardel- la, Ben C. Garmon, Jeff T. Gamer, Jessica Germany, Sallyjo Gibson, R. Stan Hamilton, Dana Hamilton, G. J. Harber, T. Hartley, Frances Henne, Robert Herron, Tyler Hicks, Gary Higgins (GHi), Henry Hill, M. Hodges, Charlie Hohorst, George Hoover, H. E. Horne, Jay Huner, Jim Ingold, Debra Jack- son, Greg Jackson (Alabama), Jud John¬ ston, Silvia Johnston, Matt Kaminski, Ty Keith, Charles Kennedy, Helen H. Kittinger, Paul D. Kittle, Joe Kleiman (Louisiana) Gene Knight, Sharon Knight, Dan Lane, Matt Larson, Ryan Larson, Danny Larson, Zack Lehmann, Thomas Lewis, John McBride, Steve W. McConnell, Bailey McK¬ ay, Nancy Menasco, Ruby Michel, Charles Mills, Paul Milotis, Carolyn Minson (CMi), Mike Mlodinow, David Muth, Joe Neal, Kenny Nichols, LaDonna Nichols, Dennis Novey, Brian O’Shea, Glen Ousett, Rosalie Overby, Helen Parker (Arkansas), Wayne Patterson, Dave Patton, Tommy R. Pratt, R. D. Purrington, Herschel Raney, Robert Reed, Van Remsen, Dave Richardson, Cathy Ross, Perry Samrow, James Sanders, Robert R. Sargent, Martha B. Sargent, Terry Schiefer (Mississippi), Marion Schiefer, Don Self, Judy Self, Jody Shearer, William Shepherd, Dan Shuman, T. Siegwald, D. J. Simbeck, Katie Simmons, Clint Sowards, Barbara Stedman, Mary Stevens (MSt), Jack Stewart, Bill Stripling, Lauren Thead, Sheila Thead, Ellen Turner, Mark Van Hoose, Ed Wallace, Don M. Ware, Carol Ware, Ray Watson, Louise Watson, L. West, Rick L. West, Mel White, Danny Williams, Viki Williams. <£r 610 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS . . . . . . . . . . Northern Canada ^-/“•lAlert Beaufort Sea Herschel I. Victoria Old Crow/# Exciting reports from across the Re¬ gion underscored that every new pair of eyes can make a tremendous con¬ tribution to our knowledge of birds in the North. This summer played havoc with the Yukon’s freshly printed bird checklist with the addition of one new species, four new confirmed breeders, and various assorted rarities! A late July trip to Yohin Lake, in the southwest corner of Nahanni National Park Reserve (N.N.P.R.) revealed a number of new park birds and first confirmed breeding records. Elsewhere in Northwest Territories and Nunavut, observers turned up a variety of surprising finds and new breeding records. While the birding was great, the weather was less than sensational. The weather gurus at Environment Canada is¬ sued forecasts throughout the summer promising idyllic conditions for the Yukon; well, the weather may have been great for fungus and frogs, but the rest of us grew a little tired of a few too many cold and wet days. Likewise in Northwest Territories, wa¬ ter levels in the Mackenzie and other rivers remained somewhat higher than average throughout the summer, with relatively cool, wet weather prevailing throughout much of July. On the bright side, Northerners, partic¬ ularly in the Yukon, were spared the harsh smoke-laden atmosphere that prevailed last summer as a result of extensive forest fires. LOONS THROUGH SHOREBIRDS An ad. Red-throated Loon on a nest on a small pond at km 118 Dempster Hwy., cen. Yukon 11 Jun (WE, HG) proved successful, as a pair with one nearly full-grown young was seen there 18 Jul (CE, PS). A Pied-billed Grebe, well n. of the species’ regular range, was at Gravel L., N. Klondike Hwy., cen. Yukon 3 Jul (RF). The American White Pel¬ ican colony on the Slave R., NWT had a rel¬ atively high number of nests this year, with 568 recorded on four nesting islands (JVP, DJ). A count of 33 American White Pelicans, very rare in James Bay, was made at Akimis- ki Strait, Nunavut 3 Jun (KA, KR, DF); At- tawapiskat residents have been reporting small numbers (< 10) the past few years, as have residents of other small Cree villages in the Hudson Bay Lowland (fide KA). Two Double-crested Cormorants were seen at Akimiski Strait 3 Jun (KA, KR, DF); this is not a regular species in this part of James Bay, but it seems to be increasing in recent years ( fide KA). Range counts for little when identifying summer swans in cen. Yukon; a close look at 4 ad. swans on Chapman L., km 116 Demp¬ ster Hwy. 18 Jul revealed 2 Tundras and 2 Trumpeters (CE, PS). One has to admire the tenacity of a visiting birder from Germany who called from a pay phone in northern British Columbia to report, through a non- birding interpreter, that a male Tufted Duck, the Yukon’s 2nd, that she had first seen on a pond near Rancheria Falls 4 Jun was still present two weeks later (ph. IG, HS); it re¬ mained there through 23 Jun (ph. CE; SH; HG). Three male Harlequin Ducks were re¬ ported from Klukshu Cr., sw. Yukon 2 Jun (JB). Flocks of 25 and 60 Surf Scoters on the lower South Nahanni R. 9 Jul were indica¬ tors of post-breeding aggregations (DT, JT). Five ad. White-tailed Ptarmigan, includ¬ ing 2 females with broods seen 23 Jun on the Tlogotsho Plateau (DT, MC), confirmed breeding status of this species in N.N.P.R. An aerial raptor survey of the South Nahanni and Flat R. valleys, NWT 15 Jun located ac¬ tive nests of Osprey and Bald Eagle (DT, MC) but found no evidence of nesting Pere¬ grine Falcons; however, other reports of Peregrines from the South Nahanni corridor suggest breeding may occur in the vicinity. North America’s northernmost Swainson’s Hawk nest, and the Yukon’s first confirmed breeding record, was established by a dark- morph pair at a nest with at least one young at km 256 Dempster Hwy., about 112 km s. of Eagle Plains 5 Jul (ph. UN); a check of the nest again 19 & 29 Jul noted at least one quickly growing young (ph. CE). A Yellow Rail heard calling and seen briefly in a sedge marsh near Yohin L. 29 Jul (DT, KS) established the first N.N.PR. record and added to the mere handful of records for this secretive species in Northern Canada. An ad. American Coot with 5 young noted at a pond near the Jarvis R. 23 & 25 Jun (KC; Cameron D. Eckert 1402 Elm Street Whitehorse, Yukon, Y1 A 4B6 (cdeckert@yknet.ca) PS, CE) extended the species’ known breed¬ ing range into sw. Yukon. The Yukon’s first confirmed breeding record for Greater Yel- lowlegs was provided by a frantically mob¬ bing ad. with its fluffy, flightless young at an expansive sedge fen near the Hyland R. 1 1 Jul (CE); it is apparently a fairly common breeder in the area, as agitated pairs were seen at other fens from the Hyland R. w. to the Liard R. and n. to the Meister R. (CE). A Wandering Tattler, possibly a breeder from the nearby mts., was seen feeding at the s. end of Aishihik L., Yukon 29 Jun (HG, RH). A survey for Upland Sandpipers on the Prairie Cr. alluvial fan, N.N.P.R. 6-7 Jul found only 2 birds (DT, JT, RL, MM); 2 were also seen on fence posts at the Ft. Simpson airport, NWT 21 Jul (DT). Hudsonian God- wit has not yet been found breeding in the Yukon, so 2 seen at the Babbage R., North Slope 8 Jun (PS, LC) were intriguing. A Mar¬ bled Godwit nest with one egg at Akimiski L, Nunavut 18 Jun (LN) was only the 2nd nest found on the island by the “Canada Goose research crew” in the past 10 years (fide AJ). Two confirmed breeding records VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 611 for Surfbird were reported this summer: a to¬ tal of 5 ads. and one downy young came from at Trapper Mt., Tombstone Territorial Park, cen. Yukon 22 Jun (ph. BB, MK), and an ad. at a nest with 4 eggs found 21 Jun in the Ruby Range, e. of Kluane L., sw. Yukon was ultimately depredated (SN). GULLS THROUGH FINCHES A count of 9 Pomarine Jaegers was made at Clarence Lagoon, North Slope, Yukon 9 Jun (PS, LC, MG, IM). Summer breeding records for Long-tailed Jaeger in the Yukon included a pair with a large fluffy young near Surfbird Mt., km 91 Dempster Hwy. 18 Jul (PS, CE); and an ad. with a nearly full-grown young at Herschel 1. 24 Jul (ph. BB, CK). An ad. Ring¬ billed Gull was scrounging scraps at grocery store parking in Whitehorse, Yukon 17 Jul (CE). An unusual-looking gull with bleached-white wing coverts in Ft. Simpson, NWT 5 Jun (vt. DT) was subsequently iden¬ tified as a first-year California Gull ( fide CE). A large dark-mantled gull, possibly a Slaty- backed, in Norman Wells, NWT 3 Jul (DW) was not photographed and could not be pos¬ itively identified to species. Glaucous-winged Gull reports, all from the Yukon, included a freshly dead ad. found on the Alaska Hwy. at Johnson’s Crossing 6 Jun (AdM); a ratty first- summer bird in Whitehorse 13 Jul (ph. CE); and a pristine ad. that provided the first record for Herschel 1. 22-23 Jul (ph. CE). Eight Arctic Tern nests were recorded on Akimiski I., Nunavut this season (fide AJ). Two Mourning Doves spent much of Jun at a feeder in Haines Junction, sw. Yukon (VO, WO); another was reported from the Slims R. west access rd., sw. Yukon 22-24 Jun (fide DH). Researchers at Squirrel Camp, Sulphur L., sw. Yukon reported a good year for Great Gray Owls (fide AB); addi¬ tional reports from the area in¬ cluded one seen 20 km s. of White R. 20 Jun (PS) and one at Boutelier Summit 23 Jun (KC). One of the most amazing Yukon records of the summer was of a Long-eared Owl nest, about 700 km nw. of the species’ breeding range, at Sulphur L., sw. Yukon; a downy fledgling was first dis¬ covered at its nest 9 Jul, fol¬ lowed by numerous other sight¬ ings of 2 ads. and the fledgling through 31 Jul (MA, ph. AB, CS). A Com¬ mon Nighthawk nest found at Prairie Cr. al¬ luvial fan, N.N.P.R. 17 Jun contained two eggs (JT, DT); another nighthawk was seen about a km away doing a distraction display 7 Jul (JT). Three Yellow-bellied Flycatchers were noted on the Rancheria Breeding Bird Survey This Western Kingbird, a second for Northwest Territories and the first to be photographed, was seen at Fort Liard on 4 (here) and 5 June 2005. Photograph by Craig Machtans. route, se. Yukon 24 Jun (HG). A nest-build- ing Eastern Phoebe, rare anywhere in the Yukon, was well n. of its range at Dawson City 13-14 Jun (RDM, ph. BG); another was singing at Dezadeash L., sw. Yukon 23-26 Jun (PS, ph. CE). A Say's Phoebe was report¬ ed from Rankin Inlet, Nunavut 3 Jun (RR). A pair of Eastern Kingbirds seen near Ft. Good Hope, NWT 21 Jun (PL, DM) suggests possible breeding at this location, near the n. edge of their known range. Another Eastern Kingbird, a rare-but-regular summer visitor to the Yukon, turned up at the DuLac farm near Hainesjunction 19Jun (ph. LAn,JB). A Western Kingbird, only the 2nd recent Northwest Territories record for the species, was at Ft. Liard 4-5 Jun (ph. CM, TH, GK). A Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, the Yukon’s 2nd, made a brief appearance near Haines Junction 9 Jun (TH, ph. LH, ph. JB). A pair of Blue-headed Vireos, one carrying nest ma¬ terial, was noted at Albert Cr., se. Yukon 3 Jun (ph. GR, TT). A Red-eyed Vireo, well w. of the species’ typical range, was singing at Little Atlin L., s. of Whitehorse, Yukon 27 Jun (PS). A Northern Rough-winged Swal¬ low, rare in the Region, was reported from Ft. Smith, NWT 10 Jul (RR). A pair of ad. Barn Swallows, a used nest, and 2 recently fledged young at Yohin L. 9 Jul (DT, JT) pro¬ vided the first breeding record for N.N.RR. Two ad. Marsh Wrens (including one ac¬ companied by 2 juvs.) at Yohin L., N.N.RR. 29 Jul (DT, KS) provided the first park record as well as establishing breeding status for the species. The Yukon’s long overdue first confirmed breeding record for Golden- crown Kinglet was provided by an ad. feed¬ ing 3-4 recently fledged, dependent young in old-growth, mid-elevation Subalpine Fir for¬ est in the lower La Biche R. valley 8 Jul (CE). A University of Alberta research crew work¬ ing near Ft. Simpson, NWT found remark¬ ably high densities of Swainson’s Thrush in their study areas (fide EB); this thrush was also the most common species on forest bird surveys in Deadmen Valley, N.N.PR. 16 Jun (DT, MC). Swainson’s Thrush numbers were up this year at Akimiski L, Nunavut (AJ). Tennessee Warbler abundance showed pronounced fluctuations across the Region; while the species was in higher-than-normal numbers in the Whitehorse area, s. Yukon (CE, PS), and extremely numerous in the Watson Lake area, se. Yukon (CE, TMK, GR, TT), it was less common than in previous years and stopped singing earlier in the season at Ft. Liard, NWT (TH), with similarly low num¬ bers noted in the nearby La Biche R. valley, in the extreme se. Yukon (CE); farther e., there was a notable increase in num¬ bers this year at Akimiski I., Nunavut (AJ). While knowl¬ edge of Orange-crowned War¬ bler subspecies in s. Yukon in¬ creased somewhat this spring and summer, so did the ques¬ tions; a bright yellow bird band¬ ed at Teslin 4 May (ph. BS) looked right for the coastal sub¬ species lutescens ; also, numer¬ ous breeding birds seen from Dezadeash L. s. along the Haines Rd., sw. Yukon 22-26 Jun appeared quite yellow and had the drier, faster song of lutescens (ph. CE, PS). However, it remains unclear how these birds fit with the presumed range of the Rocky Mountain subspecies orestera. The Albert Creek banding station in se. Yukon reached a notable milestone on 28 Jul This male Spotted Towhee was seen at Arviat on 7 and 8 (here) June 2005 — a first record for Nunavut and for the Northern Canada region. Photograph by Lisa-Jo van den Scott. 612 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS with its 10,000th bird banded since the sta¬ tion opened in 2001; the celebrity bird was a hatch-year Magnolia Warbler, an appropri¬ ate “southeast Yukon specialty” (TMK). Cape May Warblers seem to have a small foothold at Albert Creek; 2 males were on territories there 3 Jun (ph. GR, TT); and sin¬ gle males were banded at the station 25 & 27 Jul (TMK). A male Bay-breasted Warbler singing at Congdon Cr. campground, Klu- ane L. 21 Jun (PS) established the Yukon’s westernmost record. A first-year male Black- and-white Warbler, well w. of its range, was seen at Albert Cr., se. Yukon 3 Jun (GR, TT). An imm. American Redstart, a rare breeder in sw. Yukon, was reported from Haines Junction 18 Jul (DH). MacGillivray’s War¬ bler was found to be common in deciduous shrubs along the Haines Rd. from Dezadeash L. s. to the British Columbia border 22-26 Jun (CE, PS); elsewhere in s. Yukon, a pair carrying food was observed just w. of Rancheria Falls 2 Jul (HG). An extralimital male Western Tanager singing on territory in Whitehorse, Yukon 16-17 Jun managed to find a good patch of habitat but not likely a mate (ph. CE). A male Spotted Towhee, Nunavut’s first, was a surprising find at Arviat 7-8 Jun (ph. LS). Sooty Fox Sparrow was confirmed breeding in the Yukon with the observations of 5 ads., recorded in Siberia. A prolific White Spruce one feeding 2 juvs. at treeline along the cone crop provided food for an abundant Haines Rd., just n. of the British Columbia and widespread population of White-winged border 24-26 Jun (ph. CE, PS). Three Song Crossbills in se. Yukon and sw. Northwest Sparrows were also noted along the Yukon Territories this summer (CE; DT). section of the Haines Rd. 26 Jun (PS). Those in search of Smith’s Fongspur on its breeding Contributors (subregional editors in bold- grounds need look no farther than Tomb- face): Ken Abraham, Fibby Anderson (LAn), stone Territorial Park, cen. Yukon; this year a Mark Andruskiw, Findsay Armer (FAr), singing male was noted at km 98 Dempster Julie-Ann Bauer, Erin Bayne, Brian Bell, Adi Hwy. 13 Jun (HG), and one was seen at the Boon, Marcel Cholo, Kevan Cowcill, Alan same spot again 2 Jul (RF). Fate but note- deMartini, Cameron Eckert, Wendy English, worthy was the report of a one-day count of Don Fillman, Roger Foxall, Mike Gill, Bill about 2000 Snow Buntings, including one Gilmour, Helmut Grunberg, Ingrid Grun- flock of at least 1000 birds, along the Alaska wald, Todd Heakes, David Henry, Scott Her- Hwy. between Haines Junction and Beaver ron, Fiz Hofer, Rudi Houtrouw, Andrew Creek, sw. Yukon 24 Mar (JW). Herschel Is- Jobes, Deb Johnson, Catherine Kennedy, land’s reputation as n. Yukon’s top rarity Martin Kienzler, Greg Kubica, Paul Fatour, hotspot was further enshrined by the territo- Ross Layberry, Craig Machtans, Mike Matou, ry’s first McKay’s Bunting, a well-studied Ian McDonald, R. Doug McRae, Fee John male, which looked right at home in the Meyook, Donna Mulders, Ted Murphy-Kelly, driftwood around Pauline Cove 16-28 Jul Forien Nesbitt, Uwe Neubauer, Sabine Nou- and possibly later (ph. FJM, ph. CE et al.). A vet, Vi & Wilf Oakley, Heather Passmore, singing Western Meadowlark was seen near Richard Popko, Gary Rosenberg, Ken Ross, Ft. Fiard, NWT 10 Jun (vr. ph. GK, TH, Rand Rudland, Kim Schlosser, Ben FAr). A silent and skittish meadowlark, be- Schonewille, Helmut Schumann, Fisa-Jo van yond its range regardless of species, was seen den Scott, Pamela Sinclair, Christina Sobol, at Akimiski I., Nunavut 2 Jun (KA, FN); Douglas Tate (NWT), Thede Tobish, j Easterns seem to stray shorter distances out Jonathan Tsetso, Jacques Van Pelt, John \ of range than Westerns, which have been Wenger, Dave Wilderspin. | xceptionally heavy rains in June and • the first half of July brought wide- JL—f spread, record-breaking floods across the southern third of the Region. Riparian species such as Spotted Sandpiper, Belted Kingfisher, and Bank Swallow probably suf¬ fered heavy nesting losses,' and many West¬ ern Grebe and Franklin’s Gull colonies were disrupted or displaced by high lake levels. The impact on other colonial waterbirds is difficult to assess because of the remote lo¬ cations of major colonies. Exceptional num¬ bers of American White Pelicans benefiting from floodwater across s. Manitoba and s. Saskatchewan may have been displaced from northern lakes or from abandoned colonies in the Northern Great Plains. Impending flooding of Fake Diefenbaker, Saskatchewan led to a heroic Piping Plover captive-rearing effort coordinated by the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority. With 1 13 nests threatened by inundation, 260 eggs were collected and over 100 young were eventually released at Chaplin Fake. Word on grassland sparrows was mixed but was generally bad in Saskatchewan. Baird’s Sparrow continued to decline in southwest¬ ern Manitoba, but Grasshopper Sparrow numbers were above average there and in southern Alberta. Moisture-loving Fe Con¬ te’s Sparrows appeared to thrive, as did Black Terns and most dabbling ducks. Bobolinks Prairie Provinces / Wood Buffalo^* T - r - - - - - 1 / / * Uranium City j i HudsonBay / j'--j Churchlf \ / Ft. McMurray# j j ' / / .Grand Prairie LaR°"9e | , / ALBERJA / Thomp*¥ / Kea^i SASKATCHEWAN | MANITOBA C y Wabamun L £dmO"ton' i ; / \ / \\p Banff N.P. 1 Saskatoon^/ j iJ" r I Mt.Lorettef Calgary JtTD m"uL j Riding Mtn. \ Pintails i Le,hbid9e ^Cypres* SWift CUTOnt *Re9ina 1 ' D5a?SwmJMarsHh W.Kk WeVburn* .Brandon Whitewater L. Rudolf F. Koes Peter Taylor 1 35 Rossmere Crescent P.0. Box 597 Winnipeg, Manitoba R2K 0G1 Pinawa, Manitoba ROE 1 LO (rkoes@mts.net) (taylorp@granite.mb.ca) VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 613 too seemed to benefit from the moist condi¬ tions and delayed hay harvest. Conversely, Swainson’s Hawks near Saskatoon seemed to find better hunting following hay-cutting than those near Kindersley, where reduced numbers of grazing cattle could not keep up with exuberant grass growth (SH). Wide¬ spread reports of Yellow Rails from Calgary to Winnipeg suggest that many were dis¬ placements from more traditional marshes and fens to wet fields. GREBES THROUGH OSPREY A colony of 500+ pairs of Western Grebes was “discovered” (known to locals) near the n. range limit at lle-a-la- Crosse, SK 25 Jun (SS). A nesting pair of Great Egrets at St. Albert, AB (LBo, DN, ph. GR) provided a first provincial breeding record. Single Great Egrets were also noted near Rosebud, AB 9 Jun (BI, Bui) and Chaplin L., SK 24Jul (LD, MD, RD, DT, VT), a Little Blue Heron was seen at Whitewater L., MB 28 Jun (WC, MW, BCa), and a Cattle Egret was at Eyebrow, SK 18 Jun (fide VT). Exceptional numbers of egrets in Manitoba continued to increase in late summer; highlights will be summarized next season. Up to 5 White-faced Ibis were at Chaplin L. 24-26 Jul (LD et al.), and up to 15 were re¬ peatedly seen at Whitewater L., MB (m.ob.). Manitoba breeding for this species was fi¬ nally confirmed at Whitewater L., with two nests found 7 Jul (ph. RB). A pair of Tundra Swans accompanied 2 cygnets 1 Jul near Clavet Mine, SK, where a pair also nested successfully in 2003 (M&SL). Outside the recently established breeding range in Manitoba, single Trum¬ peter Swans were found near Lyleton 6 Jun (KDS, JCo), Steinbach 16 Jun (KDS et al.), Pinawa approximately 5-20 Jun (E&OG, PT), and Churchill 13 Jun (C.N.S.C.). A Mute Swan was a remarkable visitor to Churchill 2 Jul (BC). Several small groups of Snow Geese summered in s. Manitoba and s. Saskatchewan; more unusual was a Ross’s Goose at Lac Vert, SK 14 Jul (fide MD). Up to 8 Brant were observed on shoreline flats at Churchill 13 Jun (EG., C.N.S.C.). An or¬ ange-billed male Common Eider at Churchill 16 Jun (BDL, TH) was apparently of the subspecies v-nigrum. A Barrow’s Gold¬ eneye was inshore near Churchill 27 Jul (BC, PM). RAILS THROUGH WOODPECKERS A Virginia Rail was unusual w. of Calgary, AB 31 Jul (TB). Two family parties of Black¬ necked Stilts were seen at Chaplin L., SK 31 The bird of the season in the Prairie Provinces region was undoubtedly Manitoba's second Sage Thrasher, present at Cape Merry, Churchill 11- 15 June (here 13) 2005. Photograph by Jerry Kumery. Jul (BL, FB). An American Avocet wandered n. to Churchill, MB 11-18 Jun (RR, m.ob.). A male Ruff appeared e. of Irricana 16 Jul (RC). An American Woodcock furnished a n. sighting near The Pas 9 Jul (DR). A female Red Phalarope was at Eagle L., Strathmore, AB 17 Jul (MM), and 2000 Red-necked Phalaropes gathered at nearby Namaka L. 23 Jul (TK). Twenty-two Little Gulls near Churchill 10 Jun equaled last year’s peak count, and at least two pairs nested there (BC). A second- year Glaucous Gull furnished an unusual summer record at Cold L., AB 10 Jun (THm). Notable at Churchill were 2 Iceland Gulls 6 Jun (BF et al.) and an ad. Great Black-backed Gull 12Jun (EG., m.ob.). An Arctic Tern was a rarity at Eagle L., AB 18-19 Jul (BG, TG, MM, m.ob.). Two Black Terns wan¬ dered n. to Churchill 10-16 Jun, and one was also seen there 14 Jul (RK, m.ob.). Eurasian Collared-Doves con¬ tinued their expansion in Saskatchewan, with sightings at Val Marie 2 (BDL) & lOJun (KB) and a fledgling at a Wey- burn feeder 5 Jul (MB, CB). A Snowy Owl at Winnipeg 10 Jun (RPo) may have been a release from rehabilitation elsewhere. Ex¬ ceptionally, 5 Northern Hawk Owl nests were found in Saskatchewan; one was un¬ usually situated in an aspen copse in a horse pasture near Glaslyn (SH); also just outside the forest proper was a pair at Silver Falls, MB throughout Jul (JM, PT). No nesting Great Gray Owls were found in se. Manitoba, but Long-eared Owls were unusually numer¬ ous in agricultural Manitoba, with 34+ confirmed or proba¬ ble breeding occurrences (JD). Only one of eight Short-eared Owl nests found in Saskatchewan was successful (MB, AHo,/ide SH). Above-average Common Nighthawk numbers in s. Saskatchewan and s. Alberta were encouraging. Single Com¬ mon Poorwills were noted at Eastend, SK 11 Jun (LD, MD, RD) and near Purple Spring, AB 10 Jul (LB), and 3 were found in traditional areas of the Cypress Hills, SK 5 Jul. (AH). A Whip-poor-will was far n. at Partridge Crop L. near Thompson, MB around 22 Jun (fide DR). Chimney Swifts have declined in Manitoba in recent years, making outlying sightings of 3-4 at The Pas 1 Jun (BF et al.), 2 at Mehta 25 Jun (RK), and 2 in Brandon 25 Jul (CC) note¬ Dickcissels have been exceed¬ ingly rare across the Prairie Provinces for over a decade. This male at Exshaw, Alberta 4-8 (here 6) June 2005 fur¬ nished only the fifth record for the province. Photograph by Terry Korolyk. worthy. A Red-headed Woodpecker was found near Patricia, AB 17 Jul (DTo). Rare in summer, a Red-bellied Woodpecker was at La Rochelle, MB 31 Jul (JR). Two Hairy Woodpeckers near Churchill 27 Jul (BC) added to a string of recent records there. PASSERINES A Gray Flycatcher at Hay Meadow, AB 6-7 Jul (p.a., PS, BW) was a potential provincial first. A Western Kingbird lingered at Churchill 10-14 Jun (AC, C.N.S.C., m.ob.). Purple Martins had a bumper year near Saskatoon, with 202 young fledged from 55 nests at one colony (GP, MHo). Common Ravens nested within residential Saskatoon, SK for the first time, with well-grown young 5 May (MSt, fide Stuart Houston). A Rock Wren established a territory at Grande Clair- iere, MB 21-26 Jun (GB, m.ob.), while a Sedge Wren along Goose Creek Rd. 18 Jun was only the 2nd for the Churchill area (BDL, TH). Northern Mockingbirds ap¬ peared in Alberta at Calgary 3 Jun (DC) and e. of Dorothy 21 Jun (CM), and 2 Winnipeg birds were also present in Jun (JC; AM, RA, LC). Manitoba’s 2nd Sage Thrasher was the bird of the year at Churchill 11-15 Jun (LCm, m.ob., ph. JK). A pair of Northern Shrikes was building a nest about 20 km s. of Thompson, MB 8 Jun (KDS, EG.). A Blackburnian Warbler was well s. of the Alberta breeding range at Mt. Lorette 23 Jun (PC, CH, JP, MS). A Canada Warbler at Churchill 9 Jun was well described (SJ,/ide BF). An obliging Yellow-breasted Chat lin¬ gered near Grande Clairiere 20-26 Jun (KDS, m.ob.). New for Grass¬ lands N.P, SK was a Western Tanager 19 Jun (KB), while one near The Pas 9 Jun (DR) added to the list of summer records from w.-cen. Manitoba. A feed¬ er-visiting Scarlet Tanager 10-11 Jun (EB) was a Churchill-area first. A Northern Cardinal visited Indian Head, SK 12-25 Jul (B&SE, m.ob.). A male Dickcis- sel at Exshaw 4-8 Jun (LP, m.ob., ph.) provided Alberta’s 5th record, and sightings near Mehta 2 (RP, JS, LV) & 20 Jul (CC) perhaps involved different birds. A Field Sparrow remained in the Lauder Sandhills, MB late May-26 Jun (KDS, LV, m.ob.). Also unusual were a Lark Sparrow near Millarville, AB 3 Jul (TK), a male Lark Bunting near Melita 23 Jun (GB) and a female at L. Macdonald, Calgary 24 Jul (RW), and a territorial Swamp Sparrow with¬ in Calgary city limits 11 Jun (BG,JB). A Har¬ ris’s Sparrow was late at St. Ambroise, MB 12 Jun (CBr). Saskatchewan’s first Eastern Meadowlark was carefully observed near 614 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS PRAIRIE PROVINCES Longney’s Crossing 19 Jun (BL). Five Brew¬ er’s Blackbirds were far n. at Churchill 15 Jun (BDL, KN). Irregular in Saskatchewan, a male Bullock’s Oriole was near Grasslands N.P 10 Jun (KB), and an apparent hybrid Bullock’s Oriole x Baltimore Oriole was at nearby Val Marie 14-15 Jun (AH). Observers (provincial compilers in bold¬ face): R. Austin, M. Bailey, R. Bazin, E. Baz- lik, E Bedard, L. Bennett, C. Bjorklund, T. Bodnar, L. Bogeart (LBo), C. Braden (CBr),J. Bregar, G. Budyk, K. Burton, D. Campbell, B. Carey (BCa), A. Carnio, B. Chartier, W. Christianson, J. Christie, Churchill Northern Studies Centre (tour), R. Clarke, L. Cocks, L. Comrack (LCm),J. Coons (JCo), p Cram, C.. Cuthbert, K. De Smet, B. Di Labio, L. Du- dragne, M.-A. Dudragne, R. Dudragne, B. & S. Ewart, J. Duncan, Field Guides (tour), B. Frenz, K. Gardner, E. & O. Greenfield, B. Goulet, T. Goulet, M. Harrison, A. Hartley, C. Harvard, T. Hince, T. Hindmarch (THm), A. Hoback (AHo), M. Houston (MHo), S. Houston, Betty Irving, Burt Irving (Bui), S. Johnson, R. Koes, T. Korolyk, G. Kratzig, J. Kumery, M. & S. Lewis, B. Luterbach, J. Markert, C. Mashon, P McIntyre, A. Mickey, M. Mulligan, D. Nadeau, K. Neill, G. Parent, R. Parsons, L. Pesata, J. Pilny, R. Porteous (RPo), D. Raitt, J. Rasmussen, G. Ro- manchuk, R. Rudland, S. Shadick, P. Sher¬ rington, M. Spitzer, M. Stoffel (MSt), J. Swartz, P Taylor, D. Thomas, V. Thomas, D. Torkelson (DTo), L. Veelma, M. Waldron, B. Wilson, R. Worona. N or them Great Plains Upper Souris NWR N Lake Alice NWR Havre • Medicine L. NWRm Bowdoin NWR \ C. M. Russell NWRt ' Great Falls •Lewistown Miles City. ,,\V"S Billings •v • ' "" ■' ** Lostwood ■ NWR Missouri R. Fort Peck L. & EASTERN MONTANA Turtle Mtns. NORTH DAKOTA ' ©Hettinger Minot* Salyer NWR m Grand! L. Sakakawea Devils L. Forks , 'Garrison Dam Arrowwood Bismarck -Y. NWfl , . %) Fargo* SOUTH DAKOTA Rapid Black City fr^' Hills • J Long Lake TewaukonK NWR ■ m NWR Badlands NPa LaCreek ■ NWR Vermillioi June was one of the wettest on record in most areas of the Region. At the author’s home near Minot, North Dakota, 19 cm of rain fell on 1 June, and the month total reached 40.6 cm. Other totals included 18 cm at Great Falls, Montana and 19 cm at Grand Forks, North Dakota. In contrast, July was hot in many areas, and precipita¬ tion was near record-low levels. One of the results of the record precipita¬ tion was an incredibly verdant Region, even into usually dry eastern Montana. However, flooding was also a problem in many areas. Displaced birds were noted, and nesting was delayed or birds had to renest. Colonial wa- terbirds were flooded in many places, but again, some renested later in the season. GREBES THROUGH WRENS Now a rare breeder in North Dakota, only one Horned Grebe was tallied. This species was a fairly common breeder as recently as two decades ago. In contrast, Red-necked Grebes continue expanding in the Region. A pair with young at Medicine Lake N.W.R., MT 13 Jul furnished the first nesting record for the refuge (EM, SL), and in ne. South Dakota, where the species is a local breeder, 11 pairs were confirmed nesting in three counties (ND). In a repeat of last year’s event, most of the nesting American White Pelicans at Chase Lake N.W.R., ND aban¬ doned nests and nestlings. The cause of these abandonments is still unknown. In South Dakota, 8000 nests were counted at Bitter L., Day (ND). Expansion of White¬ faced Ibis range continues, with 30 noted 25 Jun at a colony in Burke, ND (REM). A Ross’s Goose was unusual s. of Malta, MT 16 Jun (DP). Accidental in summer in South Dakota, a Tundra Swan was in Min¬ nehaha 12 Jul (p.a., DC). An American Black Duck in Burleigh, ND 30 Jul was the first in 10+ years for the Bismarck area (CDE, HCT). Accidental in summer away from Grand Forks, a Greater Scaup was at Long Lake N.W.R. 18 Jul (HCT). The 3rd summer report for North Dakota, a Surf Scoter was photographed at Long Lake N.W.R. 3 Jul (p.a., RC, fide MAG). Casual in summer, ex¬ cept in the Black Hills of South Dakota, a single Common Merganser was at Medicine Lake N.W.R., MT 15 Jun (TC). An ad. Bald Eagle in Malta, MT 10 Jun provided the first summer record for the area (DP). Rare in Cass, a Greater Prairie-Chicken was near Lake Bertha, ND 19 Jun (RHO). Accidental in South Dakota, a Yellow Rail was in Tripp 17 Jun (p.a., DB); the species is also rare in se. North Dakota, where 2 were noted in Ransom 11 Jun (DLK). Common Moorhen is casual in South Dakota, where one was in Lake 3-7 Jun (p.a., ND, TJ, JSP, DC). Providing the first Jun report for the state, a Whimbrel was in Meade, SD 16 Jun (p.a., DC). A Stilt Sandpiper was early 25 Jun in Kingsbury, SD (JSP)- Furnishing about the 9th report for North Dakota, a fe¬ male Ruff was photographed in Grand Forks Ron Martin 16900 125th Street SE Sawyer, North Dakota 58781-9284 (jrmartin@ndak.net) 25 Jul (p.a., EEF) Constituting the 5th record for South Dakota, a Laughing Gull was in Yankton 27 Jul (p.a., DS). Now rare e. of the Missouri R. in North Dakota, a Bur¬ rowing Owl was in Foster 3-4 Jun (PRS, DOL). Broad-tailed Hummingbirds in the Black Hills of South Dakota included singles in Lawrence (DGP) and at three locations in Custer (TJ, JF, JB, RDO). A first for South Dakota and the Region, a female Magnificent ■■■Ml VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 615 . - . - . - Hummingbird was an astounding find in Sturgis 18Jun (p.a., ph. RP). An Alder Flycatcher was on territo¬ ry 18-27 Jun in Lawrence, SD (p.a., DC, DGP); there are no nesting records for the state. Just the 7th re¬ port for Montana, a Great Crested Flycatcher was photographed in Fal¬ lon 3 Jul (p.a., RM). A Yellow-throat¬ ed Vireo along the Tongue R. on the ne. border of the North Cheyenne Reservation 9 Jun (p.a., CB) was only the 2nd ever reported in Mon¬ tana. A Winter Wren was on territo¬ ry in Lawrence, SD 16 Jun-14 Jul (DGP, RDO); nesting is suspected but not confirmed in the Black Hills. Providing only the third summer season report for North Dakota, this Surf Scoter was at Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Burleigh County 3 July 2005. Photograph by Riley Case. GET DOWN AND DIRTY F 0 R AMERICA. And when you get you hands dirty in programs like National Public Lands Day, you help spruce up your beautiful lands. Last year, on this day, nearly 80,000 volunteers built trails, bridges, planted native trees and removed trash. To find out how you can help, go to www.npld.com or call 800-VOL-TEER (800-865-8337). HELPING HANDS FOR AMERICA’S LANDS DaV © 2004 Muench Photography, Inc. THRUSHES THROUGH FINCHES Accidental in North Dakota in summer, a Townsend’s Solitaire was in the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt N.P. 25 Jul (p.a., JAH). Two Swainson’s Thrushes were singing 11 Jul at Lake Metigoshe S.P., Bot¬ tineau, ND (PB). There are no nesting records for the state and only one other record of a singing bird in the summer peri¬ od. The year of the Northern Mockingbird continued, with four sightings in North Dakota following the five in spring. Casual in Montana, 2 Northern Mockingbirds were in Fallon 4 Jul (p.a., RM). In this Region, most early migrant warblers are recorded in e. North Dakota, so single Nashville and Wilson’s Warblers in Morton 18 Jul were un¬ usual (HCT). Vagrant Magnolia Warblers were noted 15 Jun in the Pryor Mts. of Mon¬ tana (WEH) and 16 Jun in Meade, SD (AB, PB). Casual in Montana, a late migrant Blackburnian Warbler was at Westby 9 Jun (p.a., TN, RRW). About the 9th report for Montana, a Black-throated Gray Warbler was found 15 Jun in Bear Canyon in the Pryor Mts. (p.a., WEH), the same area where the species nested in 2001. Another late, rare migrant in Montana, a Bay-breasted Warbler was at Ft. Peck 9 Jun (CC). Well n. of the species’ known range in North Dakota, a Brewers Sparrow was singing in Williams 30 Jun (DB). A few Lark Buntings made their way to n.-cen. North Dakota, the first in the area in some years. Henslow’s Sparrows contin¬ ued their presence in recent years in the Dakotas. Three reports for North Dakota included one in Fos¬ ter 3-7 Jun, found by a group at the Prairies & Potholes Birding Festival (p.a., DOL, REM), one in Ransom 11 Jun (p.a., DLK), and 2 in Eddy (p.a., LDI, TR). In South Dakota, 2 Henslow’s were in Miner 4-5 Jun (p.a., KM, TJ), a single was in Lincoln 14 Jun-9 Jul (p.a., DC), and another was in Clay 30 Jun (p.a., DC). Very rare in summer in North Dakota, a pair of Blue Grosbeaks was in Morton 1 Jul (MAG), and a single male was at another location in Morton 9 Jul (HCT, CDE). Dickcissels made a good showing in n.-cen. North Dakota, an area where they are absent most years. About the 8th report for Montana, a Lesser Goldfinch was singing in Billings 7 Jul (p.a., KO). Contributors (state editors in boldface): MONTANA: Chris Brown, Charles Carlson, Tim Connolly, Sean Cross, W. Ed Harper, Elizabeth Madden, Robert Martinka, Ted Nordhagen, Kayhan Ostovar, Duane Prell- witz, Robin and Richard Wolcott. NORTH DAKOTA: Patrick Beauzay, Riley Case, Corey D. Ellingson, Eve E. Freeberg, Mark A. Gonzalez, John A. Heiser, Larry D. Igl, Don L. Kubischta, David O. Lambeth, Ron E. Martin, Robert H. O’Connor, Travis Ru- nia, Paulette R. Scherr, H. Clark Talkington. SOUTH DAKOTA: Doug Backlund, Jocelyn Baker, Addison Ball, Patricia Ball, Doug Chapman, Nancy Drilling, Jennifer Fowler, Todd Jensen, Kenny Miller, Ricky D. Olson, Jeffrey S. Palmer, Randy Podoll, D. George Prisbe, Dave Swanson. © This Great Crested Flycatcher was in Fallon County 3 July 2005, furnishing the seventh report for Montana. Photograph by Bob Martinka. 616 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Wet conditions over most of the Region meant productive shore - birding this summer, if not an immediate rebound of marsh-bird popula¬ tions, which have been suppressed in recent years. Wet conditions delayed haying in some areas, sparing the nests and nestlings of Bobolinks and other wet-field nesters this season. The northward spread of several species continued to be evident, but there were a few apparent southward expansions as well. Abbreviations: Hackberry (Hackberry Flat W.M.A., Tillman, OK); Flarvard Marsh (Har¬ vard Marsh Waterfowl Production Area, Clay, NE); McConaughy (L. McConaughy, Keith, NE); Quivira (Quivira N.W.R., Stafford, KS); Rainwater Basin (playa wet¬ lands, s.-cen. Nebraska); Red Slough (Red Slough W.M.A., McCurtain, OK); Salt Plains (Salt Plains N.W.R., Alfalfa, OK). LOONS THROUGH RAILS Single Common Loons were in Pawnee, OK 5 Jun (JWA) and Russell, KS 16 Jul (MR), typi¬ cal of summer numbers. Some 464 Western Grebes 5 Jun at McConaughy (SJD) were few¬ er than the thousands recorded during this season in some years; among them were 13 Clark’s Grebes (SJD). An ad. Clarks was seen as far e. as York, NE 4 Jun (JGJ). A vagrant Brown Pelican appeared in Carter, OK 9 Jul (M&AC). A possible first for the Region, pending review, was a Northern Gannet seen briefly at Broken Bow L., McCurtain, OK 29 Jul (BHe), perhaps a confused spin-off of Hurricanes Dennis or Emily. Neotropic Cor¬ morants appeared as far n. as Quivira 27 Jun (MR); one was at Hackberry 21-25 Jul (JAG, m.ob.), with up to 2 at Red Slough through the period (DA, m.ob.). An Anhinga in Wash¬ ington, OK 13 Jun (DR, MP) was n. of usual range. American Bitterns were seen more often than usual in the Rainwater Basin, with as many as 4 found in mid-Jun (PD, JGJ, LR, RH), but 2 at Red Slough 21-30 Jun (DA, m.ob.) were exceptionally s. of their typical breeding range. Good water conditions pro¬ duced a few more sightings of Least Bittern this season; up to 9 were noted in e. Nebras¬ ka through 17 Jul ( fide WRS), and one was in Tulsa, OK 2 Jul (JL, PS). A Little Blue Heron in York, NE 11 Jun (JGJ) was a northerly vagrant. Tricolored Herons ap¬ peared at traditional Oklahoma sites in late summer; up to 3 were at Red Slough 21-29 Jul (DA, m.ob.), and one was at Salt Plains 29 Jul (JS, JWA). Even with good water, the 200 Black-crowned Night-Herons in Morton, KS 5 Jul (KH, SG) and 60+ at Hackberry in mid-Jul (L&MT, JAG, VF) were exceptional. The northernmost Yellow-crowned Night- Heron reported was a juv. in Seward, NE 3 Jul (JGJ). The only Glossy Ibis reported this VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBE Southern Great Plains season were 2 at Salt Plains 29-30 Jul (JWA, JS). Among a handful of confirmed breeding records for White-faced Ibis in Nebraska were the three pairs with nests in Fillmore 3 Jul (JGJ). The only regular Regional location for Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork is Red Slough; up to 5 spoonbills were there 1-24 Jul (BH, DA, FH), and up to 27 storks were present 21 Jun-9 Jul (BH, m. ob.). Maintaining their foothold in McCurtain, se. Oklahoma, up to 3 Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks were at Red Slough 3 Jun- 1 Jul (DA), with a pair of ads. and 14-15 juvs. near Broken Bow 8-11 Jul (BH, NH, CS). Still a significant rarity in Kansas, 2 Black-bellieds were noted near Quivira 21 Jul (MS). Single Greater White-fronted Geese in Clay 17-18 Jun (PD, JGJ) and Lan¬ caster 30 Jul (LE) were rare Nebraska strag¬ glers, as was a Ross’s Goose in Oklahoma, OK 1 6 Jul (BB). At Red Slough, up to 8 Gad- walls 8 Jun-1 Jul (DA) and a Green-winged Teal 21 Jun (DA) were unexpected so far s. in midsummer, as was a Northern Pintail at Joseph A. Grzybowski 715 Elmwood Drive Norman, Oklahoma 72072 (jgrzybowski@ucok.edu) W. Ross Silcock P.O. Box 57 Tabor, Iowa 51673 (silcock@rosssilcock.com) 617 SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS Hackberry 21 Jun (L&MT). A species whose status in the Region is somewhat unclear, a Mottled Duck was seen in Clark , KS 9 Jul (PJ et al.); the species may often be overlooked in the Region. A Canvasback was at Quivira 27 Jun (MR), and 2 Lesser Scaup lingered at Hackberry 21 Jun (L&MT); also unexpected were 6 male Ring-necked Ducks at four lo¬ cations in the Rainwater Basin through 17 Jun (JGJ, m.ob.). Quite exceptional during midsummer was a female Greater Scaup in Fillmore , NE 3 Jul (ph. JGJ), Nebraska’s first summer record. A Hooded Merganser in Tul¬ sa, OK 25 Jun (LMc) continued the pattern of summer reports. Rare in midsummer, an Osprey in Chary, NE 14Jul (B&LP) was likely a young bird. Clearly a “zootie” was the Swallow-tailed Kite at Red Slough 1 2 Jul (TS), one of few records for the state. Good numbers of Mississippi Kites returned to Ogallala, Keith, NE (MB, m.ob.), the northernmost breed¬ ing site in the Region. An unusual mid-summer report was that of a Sharp-shinned Hawk in Harvey, KS 10 Jul (GF); summer reports in the Re¬ gion are likely of nonbreeding second- year birds. Perhaps part of an erratic s. expansion were 2 Gray Partridges in Hamilton, NE 21 Jul (MB); 16 were noted in Dodge, NE in 2003 (D&JP). Even with better water in the Re¬ gion this season, the only King Rails reported were at Red Slough 8Jun-l Jul, with juvs. also noted (DA, m.ob.). Both Virginia Rail and Sora were more noticeable this summer in the Rain¬ water Basin, although no breeding was observed (JGJ, m.ob.). There are only about 35 Common Moorhen records for Nebraska, now including a bird in York 11-20 Jun (JGJ, AR). SHOREBIRDS THROUGH TERNS Shorebirds were widespread and plentiful this season, and, more than is usual, mid- Jun lingerers, probably nonbreeders, were widely reported. Among late spring migrants was a Black-bellied Plover in York, NE 10 Jun (JGJ). American Golden-Plovers includ¬ ed up to 2 birds in York, NE 17-26 Jun (JGJ, JSt) and singles 21 & 26 Jun at Hackberry (L&MT), Hamilton, NE 9 Jul (LR, RH), and Seward, NE 16 Jul (JGJ). Snowy Plovers were at McConaughy, where seven nests were found 5-21 Jun (GW, fide SJD); 200+ were at Quivira 27 Jun (MR). Two Semipalmated Plovers were in Fillmore, NE 11 Jun (JGJ), with 2 at Hackberry 21 Jun (BH). Impressive numbers of Piping Plovers were at Mc¬ Conaughy, where over 200 nests were locat¬ ed this season (GW, fide SJD), an indication that this is a significant site for a species whose world population was estimated at 5945 in 2001. A female Piping at L. Mi- natare, Scotts Bluff, NE was banded as a young bird at L. Diefenbaker, SK in 2004 ( fide KD). The only other report of the species was of 2 in York, NE 11 Jun (LE). Another species of conservation concern, Mountain Plover, was found in sw. Nebras¬ ka, with 47 nests located in Kimball and one in Banner ( fide CK). Black-necked Stilt has become quite numerous in the w. Sandhills of Nebraska, and this year it expanded much farther eastward, with nesting at three loca¬ tions in the Rainwater Basin (JGJ, m.ob.); This Tree Swallow (with fledgling) at Lake Stanley Draper, Cleveland County, Oklahoma 24 June 2005 was part of the species' gradual range extension southward. Photograph by Pat Velte. there were numerous other sightings in be¬ tween (fide WRS). Reports of Greater Yellowlegs have be¬ come routine in Jun, although not easily as¬ signed to status; this year’s reports included singles 10 Jun in Seward, NE (JGJ), 15 Jun in Morrill, NE (AK), and 18 Jun in the e. Rain¬ water Basin (JGJ). Single Lesser Yellowlegs in Douglas, NE 7 Jun (JSt) and at Harvard Marsh 17 Jun (PD), also difficult to catego¬ rize, were possibly nonbreeders. Probably a very early fall migrant was a Solitary Sand¬ piper in the Rainwater Basin 18 Jun (JGJ); 3 on 1 Jul at Red Slough (DA) were also early. Often early as southbound migrants, 3 Wil- lets were noted in the e. Rainwater Basin 24 Jun (JGJ), and one was at Quivira 27 Jun (MR). A Long-billed Curlew in Lincoln, NE 23 Jun (TJW) was likely southbound; a good count was the 70 in Scotts Bluff, NE 23 Jul (KD). A Whimbrel 18 Jun at Quivira (AM et al.) was unusual for the date. Two Hudsonian Godwits in Seward, NE 4 Jun (JGJ) were tardy. A Marbled Godwit nest with three eggs in Sheridan, NE 16 Jun (CK) was only the 4th for the state but the 3rd since 1990. Other Marbleds were al¬ ready moving southward in Jun, with one in Seward, NE 12 Jun (JGJ), 2 at Cheyenne Bottoms 15 Jun (ML, TSw), and 35 at Mc¬ Conaughy 21 Jun (SJD). A Ruddy Turnstone in Clay, NE 4 Jun was record late for the e. Rainwater Basin (JGJ). Also exceptional for Jun were 7 Sanderlings at McConaughy 5 & 21 Jun (SJD) and 2 at Quivira 15 Jun (ML, TSw). Some 300 Semipalmated Sandpipers were still in the e. Rainwater Basin 4 Jun (JGJ), and 41 were at McConaughy 5 Jun (SJD), with 8 (likely the first of the fall migrants) at Quivira 27 Jun (MR). In addition, over 9000 White-rumped ! Sandpipers were still at Cheyenne | Bottoms 8 Jun (HH), with up to 3200 estimated in Clay, NE 4 (JGJ) & 5 Jun (PD). The last White-rumpeds noted were the 48 at Quivira 27 Jun (MR). Two Pectoral Sandpipers were seen in Fillmore, NE 12 Jun (JGJ), with 4-5 in the e. Rainwater Basin 18 & 24 Jun (JGJ) and one at Quivira 27 Jun (MR). Mid-summer Stilt Sandpipers included singles in Lancaster, NE 18 Jun (LE) and the e. Rainwater Basin 24 Jun (JGJ); there were apparently six other reports 15 Jun-6Jul for Ne¬ braska (fide WRS). Dunlins lingered through 11 Jun in Seward, NE (JGJ). Single Buff-breasted Sandpipers in Clay 4Jun (JGJ) and York 25 Jun (LE) represented the first Jun records for Nebraska. Eight returning Buff- breasteds were found in Marion, KS 29 Jul (MR), with 37 in Sedgwick, KS 31 Jul (PJ). A Short-billed Dowitcher, clearly hendersoni, was noted in Hamilton, NE 15 Jul (MB). Quite early were 2 Long-billed Dowitchers in the e. Rainwa¬ ter Basin 24 Jun (JGJ). A Laughing Gull in Cedar 26 Jul (MB) and, quite exceptionally, a Little Gull in first- alternate plumage at McConaughy 21 Jun (SJD) were gull highlights in Nebraska. Cal¬ ifornia Gulls away from McConaughy in¬ cluded one in Scotts Bluff, NE 15 Jun (KD), 3 there on 9 Jul (KD), and one in Reno, KS 5 Jun (PJ). Unusual in summer, 2 Herring Gulls and a Lesser Black-backed Gull were at McConaughy 21 Jun (SJD). Surprising for summer were an ad. Common Tern at Mc¬ Conaughy 5 Jun and 3 ads. there 21 Jun (SJD). An excellent count for Black Tern was the 1569 at McConaughy 5 Jun (SJD). DOVES THROUGH WAXWINGS White-winged Doves are still pressing into Nebraska. A young bird downed by a storm in Albion 21 Jun (ph. D&CN) may have fledged in Nebraska, and 4 others were re¬ ported: singles at Harlan 3 Jun (G&WH), at McConaughy 5 Jun (ph. SJD), in Dawes 5 Jul — 618 NORTH AMERICAN BIROS ■ . . . — . (SA), and in Lincoln 23 Jul (TJW). About 20 Black-billed Cuckoos were reported in Ne¬ braska, a high number; cedar canyons in Lincoln produced some of the largest counts (TJW). Two Burrowing Owls in Fillmore , NE 1 1 Jun (LE) were e. of usual areas. Four juv. Long-eared Owls 25 Jun in Brown, NE (PD) provided the only report of the species. Calliope and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, once considered exceptional, are now almost expected, if rare, beginning in Jul. A Cal¬ liope was noted in Pawnee , KS 28 Jul (DK), while Broad-taileds were found in Scotts Bluff, NE 20 & 26Jul (KD), Kearney, NE 22- 23 Jul (TGL), and 27 Jul in Finney, KS (T&SS). Rufous Hummingbirds began ap¬ pearing 16-18 Jul in Scotts Bluff, NE (AK), with reports of 9 birds from Kansas (fide LM) but only one from Oklahoma, in Osage 26 Jul (KR). An absolute surprise for loca¬ tion, habitat, and season was a young male American Three-toed Woodpecker that scaled bark on mesquite in a campground in Morton, KS 3-9 Jul (MG, AM, m.ob). Strangely, the only two other Regional records for the species are also from mid¬ summer, but from Nebraska: a specimen col¬ lected 16Jun 1916 in Scotts Bluff and a sight¬ ing 18 Jul 1994 in Sioux. Cordilleran Flycatchers in Scotts Bluff, NE (SJD, WRS) and Kimball, NE (WRS) 4 Jun were tardy. A southbound Alder/Willow Fly¬ catcher, possibly Alder, was early in Wag¬ oner, OK 23 Jul (DG, JM), while 4 Willows at Red Slough during the period (DA, m.ob.) continued their very local summer presence there. An Ash-throated Flycatcher was in Morton, KS 3 Jul (DS, GP), where regular but rare, the same status applicable to 4 Vermil¬ ion Flycatchers in Cimarron, OK 23-25 Jun (BH et al.). A Great Crested Flycatcher was noted westward to Scotts Bluff, NE 14 Jun (fide AK). Scissor-tailed Flycatchers, ex¬ panding into s.-cen. Nebraska, nested near Kearney, NE (MU, KS, m.ob.), with single birds in Sarpy 10-18 Jun (DB, m.ob.) and Saline 24 Jun (RE). Black-capped Vireos continue to thrive in the Wichita Mts., OK, with over 2000 pairs estimated present this season (JAG, VF, JW). Two Plumbeous Vireos in Dawes, NE 3 Jun (EB) were e. of the known breeding range but may have been late migrants. Following the winter’s incursion, Clark’s Nutcrackers remaining in Monroe Canyon, Sioux, NE in¬ cluded as many as 40 ads. 3 & 14 Jun; how¬ ever, no breeding activity was noted, possi¬ bly the result of a cone-crop failure in 2004 (WM). Encroaching northward were 2 Fish Crows in Montgomery, KS 3 Jul (PJ, KG). Usually only migrants in cen. and w. Okla¬ homa, an ad. and 3 juv. Tree Swallows in Cleveland 24 Jun (PV, TU) and a nest in Co¬ manche, OK in Jun (in mesquite grassland; VF, JAG, m.ob.) provided first local breeding records. Apparently rare in both states, but probably underdetected, were 3-4 Cave Swallows in Carter, OK 8 Jun (BF) and one in Morton, KS 22 Jun (SP). Two Red-breast¬ ed Nuthatches were in Omaha, NE in Jun (PSw), one possibly injured (fide WRS). A Carolina Wren singing in Red Willow, NE 21 Jul was w. of usual range (LR, RH). A late migrant of the w. Veery subspecies group salicicolus was in Scotts Bluff, NE 4 Jun (SJD, WRS). A late fallout of Swainson’s Thrushes was detected 4 Jun in the Nebraska Panhan¬ dle, where 37 were counted (SJD, WRS). Single northbound Swainson’s were in Gar¬ den, KS as late as 8 Jun (T&SS) and Chase, NE 1 1 Jun (MB). The only Sage Thrasher re¬ port was one in Sioux, NE 23-24 Jul (HKH). The Sioux, NE Curve-billed Thrasher, first This White-faced Ibis nest at Rauscher Waterfowl Production Area, Filmore County furnished one of only a few confirmed breeding records for Nebraska. Photograph by Joel Jorgensen. noted in Oct 2002, was still present 7 Jul and for the second summer, fed both grackle and robin nestlings (LF). A mid-summer Cedar Waxwing 24 Jun in Cimarron, OK (BH et al.) was noteworthy. WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES Quite a surprise was a female Blue-winged Warbler in Scotts Bluff, NE 4Jun (WRS, SJD), only the 3rd Nebraska Panhandle record. A female Virginia’s Warbler in Sioux, NE 4 Jun (SJD, WRS) provided the 3rd spring record for Nebraska. A Northern Parula 3 Jun (PS) and a Black- throated Green Warbler 1 Jun, both in Alfalfa, OK (AW), a singing Cerulean Warbler in Morton, KS 22 Jun (SP), and a Prothonotary Warbler at the same location 5 Jul (KH, SG) were e. warbler highlights. At least two pairs of Louisiana Waterthrushes were n. of usual range in Thurston, NE 4 Jul (BFH). A Yellow-breasted Chat in Knox, NE 8 Jun (MB) furnished only the 9th record since 1981 from e. Nebraska. Enigmatic was a Western Tanager in Wagoner, OK 21 Jul (B&KG). It is rumored that Canyon Towhees noted in Platte and Madison, NE in 1999 and 2000 may have been transported from Ari¬ zona in 1998 and released (WF). Found rarely, and mostly in the se. corner of the Re¬ gion, 3 Bachman’s Sparrows were in Osage, OK 21 Jun (JL et al.). Surprising for the date and location were 2 White-throated Spar¬ rows in Tulsa, OK 30 Jun (BG, m.ob.), while a White-crowned in Scotts Bluff 9 Jun (KD) may have been tardy. Good numbers of Mc- Cown’s Longspurs were noted in the expect¬ ed Nebraska summer range along the Wyoming border in Sioux 4 Jun (EB) and also in Kimball, NE 4 Jun (WRS). A Black¬ headed Grosbeak in Greeley, NE 3 Jul (LR, RH) was at the e. edge of the nesting range. There was a strong westerly push of Dickcis- sels in Nebraska this summer, including one in Kimball 20 Jun (AR) and 8 in Banner 18 Jun (CK). At a hayfield study area in Hall, NE, all but 15 of 150+ Bobolink nests had fledged young by 4 Jul; their nesting success was a clear result of the delay of haying until mid- Jul (DKi). Surprisingly rare in the e. Rainwa¬ ter Basin, an Eastern Meadowlark at Harvard Marsh 18 Jun was noteworthy (JGJ). Six Red Crossbills as far e. as Boone, NE 3-4 Jun (D&CN) were unexpected. Several spring nestings of Pine Siskins away from the usual summer range were corroborated by obser¬ vations of a hatch-year bird in Sarpy, NE 16 Jun (RG) and 16 juvs. in Finney, KS (T&SS). A surprise so far e. was a Lesser Goldfinch in Wichita, KS 25Jun-17Jul (BR), possibly the same bird that was there Jul 2004 (fide LM). A small colony of three Lesser Goldfinch pairs was found in Comanche, OK (VF). Cited observers (area editors in boldface): NEBRASKA: Sue Amiotte, Elliott Bedows, Duane Bright, Mark Brogie, Kathy DeLara, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Paul Dunbar, Rick Eades, Larry Einetnann, William Flack, Lon¬ nie Frimann, Ruth Green, Robin Harding, Glen & Wanda Hoge, Helen K. Hughson, Bill E Huser, Joel G. Jorgensen, Alice Kenitz, Courtney Kerns, Dan Kim (DKi), Gary Lin- gle, Wayne Mollhoff, Don & Colleen Noeck- er, Babs & Loren Padelford, Don & Jan Pase- ka, Lanny Randolph, Allen Reyer, W. Ross Silcock, Kent Skaggs, Jon Strong (JSt), Phil Swanson (PSw), Mark Urwiller, T. J. Walker, Gabe Wilson, Ben Young; KANSAS: Gregg Friesen, Matt Gearheart, Kevin Groeneweg, Sam Guy, Helen Hands, Kellye Hart, Pete Janzen, Don Kazmaier, Mark Land, Aaron Mitchell, Lloyd Moore, Sebastian Patti, Galen Pittman, Mike Rader, Ben Rogers, David Seibel, Matt Sexson, Tom & Sara Shane, Terry Swope (TSw); OKLAHOMA: David Arbour, James W. Arterburn, Beth Brueggen, M. & A. Cooksey, Vic Fazio, Brush Freeman, Bob Ger¬ many, David Gill, Bill & Kelly Godley, Joseph A. Grzybowski, Berlin Heck, Berlin Heck, Jr. (BHe), Ford Hendershot, N. Hurliman, Jo Loyd, Jeri McMahon, Lynn McRill (LMc), Michael Patten, Dan Reinking, K. Riddle, Pat Seibert, Jerry Sisler, C. Stewart, Terry Stuart, Lou & Mary Truex, Terri Underhill, Pat Velte, Anne Wilbur, Jarek Wroblewski. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 619 Texas pearance of one in Lubbock. Other high¬ lights included a first-ever summer Townsend’s Solitaire and the first document¬ ed nesting of Gray-crowned Yellowthroat since 1894. Mark W. Lockwood 402 East Harriet Avenue Alpine, Texas 79830 (mark.lockwood@tpwd.state.tx.us) Randy Pinkston 913 Hillcrest Dr. Salado, Texas 76571 (drpinkston@earthlink.net) Ron Weeks 110 Indian Warrior Lake Jackson, Texas 77566 (empidonax@sbcglobal.net) The summer was hot and dry in most areas of the state. Rainfall in the northwestern part of the state was very spotty, with many areas receiving very little rain. As a result, there was little habitat for waterbirds, and shorebirds had a dismal showing. In the Trans-Pecos, monsoonal moisture began in late July, bringing some relief to the dry conditions in the Chisos and Davis Mountains, but El Paso would have to wait until August for the summer rains to begin. Farther east, rainfall was below aver¬ age with terms like “bone dry” used by some. Houston’s Intercontinental Airport registered 0.2 cm of rainfall in June, making for the driest June on record. The only rains seen in the Lower Rio Grande Valley were associated with Hurricane Emily in late July. As always, there were some eye-opening discoveries made during the season. One of the most unexpected was the invasion of White-eared Hummingbirds in Big Bend and the Davis Mountains. Even with these birds present, few would have predicted the ap¬ L00NS THROUGH VULTURES A Pacific Loon was noted until 1 Jun at Of- fat’s Bayou, Galveston (MLi), a place well known for lingering loons. A Common Loon found at L. Tanglewood, Randall 23Jul (JH, m.ob.) was just the 3rd summer record for the Panhandle. Eared Grebe numbers in the nw. portion of the state were well above nor¬ mal, with 50+ at Buffalo L., Randall 5 Jun (BP) and 36, including 24 nestlings, there 18 Jun (KS). There were 14 ad. Eared Grebes and an unknown number of nestlings through the period at Muleshoe N.W.R., Bai¬ ley (AH, BB, MDL). A Western Grebe at Buf¬ falo L., Randall 1 Jun (LN,JSm) represented a rare summer record for the Panhandle. The World Birding Center (WB.C.) pelagic trips off of South Padre I., Cameron 17 Jun and 29 Jul tallied Cory’s and Audubon’s Shearwaters on both trips. After the passage of Hurricane Emily 21 Jul, one of each of these shearwa¬ ters was found dead on Cameron beaches (DB), and a single Audubon’s was found alive along Padre Island N.S., Kenedy (ph. NM, ph. EO). McIntyre observed 300+ Audubon’s Shearwaters and 5 Cory’s Shear¬ waters during a 60-hour trip off Corpus Christi 12-14 Jul. Single Leach’s Storm-Pe¬ trels along with the more expected Band- rumped Storm-Petrels were found on each of the W.B.C. pelagic trips (tMO, tLB et al.). A Red-billed Tropicbird seen off South Padre I., Cameron 14Jun-19 Jul (ph. BD) was also observed during the 17 Jun W.B.C. pelagic trip (tBMc, tEC et al.). A Brown Pelican at L. Livingston, San Jacinto on 9 Jul (GR) pro¬ vided a rare Pineywoods record. A juv. Brown Pelican noted in the El Paso area in Jul may have been part of a large invasion of this species into Arizona; the possibility of a Gulf of California origin seems strong in this case (JPa, DA). Meanwhile 1306 pairs of Brown Pelicans at North Deer L, Galveston (WB et al.) made an impressive count. Neotropic Cormorants continue to expand, as evidenced by several hundred at an island rookery at Cedar Creek Res., Henderson 29 Jun (BG, DH) and a nesting pair in Denton 16 Jun, where breeding has not previously been reported (LD, DH). Six Double-crested Cormorant nests at Buffalo L., Randall (KS) and a count of 12 at Lubbock 15 Jul (AH) in¬ dicate the species is increasing its summer presence in the Panhandle and South Plains. Another seen 15 Jul (TR, CR) at Richland Creek W.M.A., Freestone was unexpected. Least Bitterns were noted several times at San Solomon Cienega, Balmorhea S.P. , Reeves , strongly suggesting nesting there ( fide TJ). A Tricolored Heron was observed 620 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 17 Jul+ at Hagerman, Grayson, where the species is a rare summer visitor (BG). At least three extralimital Tricolored Herons nests were found in a heronry in w. San An¬ tonio, Bexar 23 Jun (JiK). A juv. Reddish Egret was at Imperial Res., Pecos 24 Jul (EC). White Ibis were especially numerous in n.- cen. Texas, with over 40 photographed at L. Tawakoni, Hunt 3 Jul (RB). A Roseate Spoonbill found at the Palo Duro Club, Ran¬ dall 23 Jul (DSm, CBo, JH, ph. BiM) was just the 5th for the Panhandle; 2 hums, near L. Travis in Smithwick, Burnet 1 1 Jul were also unexpected (BH). An impressive total of 59 Wood Storks was seen flying from a pond near Corpus Christi, Nueces 15 Jun (JKe). The count of up to 3 Black Vultures in Clay 15-16 Jun suggests the species is expanding its summer range westward (DMc). WATERFOWL THROUGH FALCONS Most unexpected was a Snow Goose at Cac¬ tus Playa, Moore 16 Jul (BP). Two Black-bel¬ lied Whistling-Ducks in Kaufman 29 Jun (BG, DH) and one in Denton 27 Jun (LD) were distant from known breeding locations of this still scarce and localized n.-cen. Texas resident. One to 3 Wood Ducks at McNary Res. 11-19 Jun (JPa) represented just the 2nd summer record for Hudspeth. Nine Mottled Ducks were seen at Sore Finger W.M.A., Granger L., Williamson 18 Jul (TFe). A pair of Green-winged Teal was at Hagerman, Grayson 17 Jun+ (RR). A pair of Redheads was present through 22 Jun in Midland, but breeding could not be confirmed. A lingering male Ring-necked Duck was found at Choke Canyon S.R, McMullen 12 Jun (DMu, WS). Although regular in small numbers along the coast, an Osprey at Ray Hubbard Res., Dallas 11 Jun (GCo, BG, DH) represented one of only a handful of summer records from that area. Pairs of Mississippi Kites were monitored near Utley, and on 17 Jul, Freeman at last confirmed just the 2nd known nesting site for Bastrop. In nearby Williamson, 2 ad. Mississippi Kites were seen 20 Jul, suggesting nesting in an area where the species has been seen in previous sum¬ mers (TFe). A Swallow-tailed Kite near Sweeney, Brazoria 17 Jun (WB) was either a wanderer or a bird from an unknown local breeding population, while others seen 16 Jul over L. Jackson, Brazoria (ZF) and Cove, Chambers 19 Jul (PF) were most likely very early migrants. Cooper’s Hawks continue to do well in n.-cen. Texas but are not known to breed in the Central Brazos Valley or the U.T.C. Therefore, an imm. in Brazos 7-17 Jun (ER), one near Waller, Waller 17 Jun (FC), and singles at two Houston, Harris lo¬ cations in Jun (KH) were noteworthy. A Cooper’s Hawk near Afton, Dickens 4 Jul (BB) was notable, as they are only suspected of breeding on the South Plains, while an¬ other near Midland 26 Jul (BE) marked a first summer record for the area. More excit¬ ing was a Sharp-shinned Hawk carrying food 28 Jun near Cedar Creek Res., Kaufman (BG, DH), where the species is not known to nest. A Harris’s Hawk seen n. of Fort Stockton, Pecos 29 Jul (DO, COJ) was away from typi¬ cal locations for the species. As cavity nesters, American Kestrels may be finding more and more suitable nesting sites in ur¬ ban areas; several sightings came from Dal¬ las over the summer (m.ob.). More unusual was a juv. seen 4 Jul near Hitchcock, Galve¬ ston, representing only the 2nd known sum¬ mer record for the U.T.C. (JA). Single Prairie Falcons at the Martinez Ranch, Donley 9 Jul (BP) and near Lubbock, Lubbock 25 Jul (DSt) were both surprising sightings, as they are rare breeders in nw. Texas. QUAIL THROUGH TERNS Following up on the exciting spring reports, 2 male Montezuma Quail were located in the same area of the sw. rim of the Chisos Mts., Brewster 20 Jun (BW). Northern Bob- whites were reported as doing well through¬ out their Texas range, but there was some concern that the very dry early summer may have adversely affected breeding. Three at Dryden, Terrell 30 Jun (ML) were at the very w. edge of the species’ range. A Black Rail heard calling at the South Padre Island Con¬ vention Center, Cameron Jul 3 (BMc) was the first there in several years. An American Golden-Plover was at L. Tawakoni, Rains 19 Jun (MW), while 2 at Muleshoe, Bailey 30 Jul (AH, BB) furnished just the 3rd summer record for nw. Texas. A Snowy Plover seen in suitable habitat at Millers Creek Res., Baylor 4 Jun (BG) was notable, as the last nesting records from the area were in the 1920s. Also interesting were 20 Snowy Plovers, in¬ cluding several juvs., near the Brazos R. mouth, Brazoria, where they nested in 2001 (CTL). A Mountain Plover in Donley on 9 Jul provided the first Jul record for the Pan¬ handle (BP). A Solitary Sandpiper at Sea Center Texas, Brazoria 3 Jul (TC) tied the U.T.C. early record. A Willet at Belton L., Bell 1 Jun (GCr, RPi) was either very early or very late. Late Hudsonian Godwits included one at Fort Hood, Coryell 1 Jun (RKo, GE) and 4 at Hagerman, Grayson 5 Jun (RR). A Marbled Godwit in Randall 1 Jul (KS) repre¬ sented the earliest fall record ever for the Panhandle. Early Upland Sandpipers includ¬ ed singles in Wilbarger 1 Jul (CC) and Port O’Connor, Calhoun 10 Jul (BFr). A group of 1700 Long-billed Curlews tallied in Deaf Smith 10 Jul (JST) was a phenomenal num¬ ber for summer. Four Semipalmated Sand¬ pipers were at Hagerman, Grayson 5 Jun (RR), setting a new late date for the Region. Six basic-plumaged Red Knots at Bolivar Flats, Galveston 2 Jul and 2 at Bryan Beach, Brazoria 17 Jul (CTL) were likely summer¬ ing birds. A White-rumped Sandpiper at Cactus Playa, Moore (BP) was found 16 Jul, an anomalous date. A lingering group of 4 Dunlins was at Brazoria N.W.R. 5 Jun, while more unexpected were single alternate- pi umaged birds there 16 Jul and at Bolivar Flats, Galveston 23 Jul (CTL). Four Stilt Sandpipers at Brazoria N.W.R. 5 Jun (CTL) were late. Short-billed Dowitchers were con¬ spicuous through Jul at Hagerman, Grayson For the second year in a row, a Red-billed Tropicbird delighted birds on the pelagic trip 17 June 2005 (here) off South Padre Island, Texas pelagic trip. The bird was monitored from 14 June-19 July by the boat's captain, making this the longest staying Red-billed of the eight recorded in the state. Photograph by Brian Gibbons. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 621 (RR), including a record-high count of 25 there 27Jul (BG). Two Long-billed Dowitch- ers at Brazoria N.W.R. 5 Jun (CTL) were late. A female Red-necked Phalarope pho¬ tographed at Brazoria N.W.R. 16-17 Jul (CTL) provided the first summer record for the U.T.C. Two were also at Muleshoe, Bai¬ ley 30 Jul (AH, BB), representing the 3rd Jul record for the South Plains. Casual in summer, 2 Franklin’s Gulls were at Imperial Res., Pecos 4 Jul (GCo, BG). An¬ other was at Mitchell L., Bexar 6 Jul (MR). A Ring-billed Gull in Moore 16 Jul (BP) was likely an early migrant. Two California Gulls at Muleshoe NWR, Bailey 26 Jun-19 Jul (tAH, AvH et al.) constituted a 3rd record for the South Plains. A juv. Herring Gull in Marion 28 Jul (TFe) was noteworthy for the Pineywoods. Two Caspian Terns at Twin Buttes Res., Tom Green 19Jun (TM, AK) rep¬ resented a first Concho Valley record. Also unexpected were 2 Common Terns at Impe¬ rial Res., Pecos 4 Jul (GCo, BG). Least Terns were widely reported. Up to 23 ads. and 6 juvs. were observed throughout the season at L. Lewisville, Denton (LD, DH, KL), where nesting was suspected but not confirmed. Nesting by up to eight pairs at Hagerman N.W.R., Grayson ultimately failed due to flooding (RR); a few pairs nested successful¬ ly again at Southside W.T.P., Dallas. Three at L. Tawakoni, Rains 9 Jun (BG, DH), up to 2 in Marion 28-29 Jul (TFe), one at Balmorhea L., Reeves 3 Jun (BG), and 4 at Imperial Res. Pecos 4 Jul (GCo, BG) were not observed nesting; the species was not reported from the El Paso area for the first time in a num¬ ber of years. Off S. Padre L, a Sooty and 5 Bridled Terns were seen 17 Jun, while a Bri¬ dled and 5 Sooties were seen 29 Jul (BMc, m.ob.). McIntyre reported 200+ Sooty Terns and 50+ Bridled Terns off Corpus Christi 12- 14Jul. A Brown Noddy at South Padre 1. and across the channel at Boca Chica, Cameron 20-26 Jun (ph. ScC, m.ob.) delighted bird¬ ers, while Hurricane Emily brought another to Padre Island N.S., Kenedy 21 Jul (ph. NM, ph. EO). DOVES THROUGH WOODPECKERS White-winged Doves continued their ex¬ pansion into East Texas, where they arrived in Tyler, Smith 23 Jun (RKi). A report of Common Ground-Dove from Jack 24 Jul constitutes one of very few for n.-cen. Texas (fide SF). A White-tipped Dove in Uvalde 7 Jun-26Jul (ph. MH) provided only the 5th record for the Hill Country. A late Black¬ billed Cuckoo was heard in Bastrop 3 Jun (BFr). Always a good find in Big Bend, a Groove-billed Ani was at Cottonwood Campground 8 Jun (PI). Groove-billed Anis nested at Mitchell L., with up to 8 present (HR). A Short-eared Owl in Hartley 6 Jun (KS) provided the first summer record for the Panhandle since 1965. Two road-killed Short-eared Owls picked up in w. Jeff Davis 26 May (JPO, *LSMNS) pro¬ vided a very late record for the Trans-Pecos. An ad. and 4 juv. Burrowing Owls in Wilbarger 1 1 Jul provided a new nesting lo¬ cation for n.-cen. Texas (CC). Two Lesser Nighthawks in Port O’Connor, Calhoun 31 Jul were likely early fall migrants (BFr). Green Violet-ears were documented in Co¬ mal 2-4 Jun (RN, tLB et al.) and near Hunt, Kerr 14-16 Jun (tCH). A juv. Green-breasted Mango was at San Benito, Cameron 18-20 Jun (ph., tTFu). Wayward Buff-bellied Humming¬ birds were present in Houston, Harris through mid-Jun (DG) and in s. Bexar 26 Jun (TS). A Ruby-throated Hum¬ mingbird in Randall 17 Jul (BP) was rare for the Panhandle. A male Allen’s Hummingbird appeared for the 3rd consecutive summer in the Davis Mts. 22 Jul+ (M&ME). Extralimital Ringed Kingfishers were reported from the San Saba R., McCulloch 18Jun (JFIu) and in nearby San Saba 10 Jul (AH). The Green Kingfisher reported from L. Conroe, Montgomery in the spring was seen again 3 Jun (KeB, JCo). A Green Kingfisher on Salado Creek, Bell 17 Jul (RPi) furnished only the 6th county record. Red-headed Woodpeckers in Dallam 12 Jun (BP) and Lubbock 1 Jul (BRa) were w. of that species’ expected range. Another Red-headed in rural Midland 24 Jun was a rare find for the summer (DK, D&JM). Nesting pairs of Red-bellied Woodpeckers in Floyd 18 Jun (AH, AvH) and Downy Woodpeck¬ ers in Dickens 25 Jun (BB, AH, m.ob.) provided first confirmed breeding records for the South Plains. Ladder-backed Wood¬ peckers nested again at Arbor Hills Park, Denton (PP) at the e. edge of their range. A Ladder-backed in coastal Brazoria 24-29 Jul was likely a post-breeding wanderer (DVe et al.). FLYCATCHERS THROUGH RAVENS An Olive-sided Flycatcher in Nueces 18 Jun was a very late spring migrant (LJ). A singing Greater Pewee was discovered 13 Jun in the Davis Mountains Preserve, Jeff Davis, where the species nested in 2002 (tKBr, tEC, ph„ tGL, ph., tML, tRPi). An Eastern Wood-Pewee near Robertson, Cros¬ by 3 Jul (ML) was possibly nesting at this unlikely High Plains location. Two Acadian Flycatchers singing in Navarro 29 Jun (BG, DH) were probable nesters, which would be a first for that county. A Willow Flycatcher in Randall 27 Jul (KS) was a record-early fall migrant for the Region. A Least Flycatcher 1 Jun at the Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanc¬ tuary, Brazoria tied the U.T.C. late date (TC). A Dusky Flycatcher at Muleshoe N.W.R., Bailey 30 Jul (BB, AH) provided a This Brown Noddy was fairly easily observed off the jetty at South Padre Island, Texas 20-26 (here 21 ) June 2005. All of the other records of this species in Texas have been one-day wonders, hurricane waifs, or seen at sea. Photograph by Brad McKinney. 2nd Jul record for the South Plains. The pair of Buff-breasted Flycatchers in the Davis Mountains Preserve fledged 3 young in Jun, and they were feeding a second brood at a new nest 24 Jul (EC, ML, JPa, WS). What was likely a different bird was reported sev¬ eral times in the same canyon in Jun (ML) and again 23 Jul (BRo). A 2nd pair was con¬ firmed at a separate location within the Davis Mountains Preserve f2 Jun, after six years of looking (ph., tML). A Black Phoebe at Mitchell L., Bexar 17 Jul was notable (CM). A pair of Eastern Phoebes nested suc¬ cessfully in Kurten, Brazos (SW), but the species was scarce elsewhere in the cen. Bra¬ zos Valley (DVo). Live Vermilion Llycatchers reported from Jack 24 Jul were noteworthy for the n.-cen. region (DDC, DL). Three pairs of Dusky-capped Llycatchers were lo¬ cated 14 Jun in the Davis Mountains Pre¬ serve (tKBr, TEC, TML, TRPi). A return trip 9 Jul revealed that two pairs had successful¬ ly fledged young, representing the 2nd and 3rd nesting records for the range (ME, JKa, ML). The species was not reported from the Chisos Mts. for the first time in four years. A family of Great Crested Flycatchers at Palo Duro Canyon 23 Jun (KS) was w. of the usu¬ al breeding range in the Panhandle; breeding was also documented in Dickens 25 Jun (AH, BB). A Couch’s Kingbird present at Temple Lake Park, Bell since 5 May was still present 1 Jun (GCr). Breeding Western Kingbirds continued near Katy, Harris (KY), while a pair at Seabrook, Harris represented a new U.T.C. breeding location (HT). Three Eastern Kingbirds at Boy’s Ranch, Oldham 12 Jun (BP) were w. of their usual Pan¬ handle range. A singing Bell’s Vireo near Afton, Dick¬ ens 25 Jun was notable for the South Plains (AH). Singing Yellow-throated Vireos were found 11 Jun+ in Van Zandt (m.ob.) and 2 Jul in Brazos (DVo), where the species is a rare summer resident. A Red-eyed Vireo in High Island, Galveston 5 Jun was late (DVe). A territorial pair of Hutton’s Vireos was found 18 Jun in s. Real (JA). Yellow-green Vireos again suc¬ cessfully nested at Sabal Palm Grove, Cameron (JiP, m.ob.). A territorial Yellow- green Vireo, and possibly its mate, were ob¬ served w. of Pearsall, Frio 4 Jun (SCo, ph. MR, ph. WS). Several nesting pairs of Tamaulipas Crows were reported through¬ out the season near the Brownsville airport, Cameron — apparently the first productive season in several years for that species in the United States (m.ob.). Five Common Ravens were observed 12 Jun near a suspected nest in Dallam (BP), where the species is not known to breed. SWALLOWS THROUGH WARBLERS A male Purple Martin in Sanderson, Terrell 30 Jun (ML) was presumably an early fall migrant. Tree Swallows nested at Willis Creek Park, Granger L. again this summer (TFe). New nesting sites included L. Lavon, Collin 16 Jun (MW) and L. Tawakoni, Hunt/Rains (m.ob.). Cave Swallows contin¬ ued their northward expansion, with new nesting sites in Rains (RB, MW), Hunt 18 Jun (MW), Jack 24 Jul (DDC, DL), Kent 8 Jul (AH, AvH), and near Brownfield, Terry 24 Jul (BB). A Black-crested Titmouse at Buffalo L., Randall 9 Jun (KS) was a first summer record for the refuge; single Bushtits there 28 Jun (KS) and 19 Jul (KS) were likewise unexpected visitors to the refuge. Pairs of White-breasted Nuthatches were reported at McKinney Falls S.R, Travis 12 Jun (DaS), in Grimes 14 Jun (DVo), in both Kurten, Brazos (SW) and Temple, Bell (GCr, RPi) throughout the period, and near Granger, Williamson 31 Jul (TFe, BS), mak¬ ing for one of the best years for this species in cen. Texas. A rare find in n.-cen. Texas, 3 Brown-headed Nuthatches were near Edom, Van Zandt 28 Jun (BG, DH). A Brown Creep¬ er at Buffalo L. 1 Jun (LN, JS) constituted the first summer report for the Panhandle since 1926. Eastern Bluebirds nested near Marathon (ML), providing a rare Trans-Pecos nesting record. A Townsend’s Solitaire in Midland 29 Jul (ph. BL) represented a first summer record for the state. A Wood Thrush Presumed Virginia’s Warbler x Colima Warbler hybrids were again located in the Davis Mts., with up to 9 discovered 11-15 Jun (ML, KBr et al.). An apparent migrant Northern Parula was in DeWitt 1 Jun (DMu). The pair of Tropical Parulas at Hamilton Pool, Travis remained at least through the first week of Jun (CA). An in¬ triguing find was a singing Yellow Warbler along the Rio Grande near Ruidosa, Presidio 3 Jul (SCo, MR); a 2nd bird was thought to be present. This species is not known to nest in the Trans-Pecos. Other interesting Yellow Warbler sightings included a late migrant in Midland, Midland 2 Jun (D&JM) and an early one at Webberville Park, Travis 18 Jul (BFr). Continuing the astounding find of the past spring, up to 20 territorial male Mangrove Warblers were present in the mangroves surrounding the South Bay of the Laguna Madre, Cameron (ScC, DB). A singing Chestnut-sided Warbler in w. Har¬ ris 1 Jun (JoK) was the first ever Jun record for the U.T.C. Late migrant Magnolia War¬ blers included singles 1 Jun in Guadalupe (SS) and Quintana, Brazoria (RW). Two wandering first-fall Golden-cheeked War¬ blers were near Early, Brown 8 Jul (AH, AvH). Interesting summer records of Black- throated Green Warblers came from Peder- nales Falls, Blanco 12 Jun (PS) and Guadulupe 28 Jul (SS). The Yellow-throated Warbler discovered in the Davis Mts. in the spring remained until at least 19 Jun (ML). Apparent early migrants, single Prairie Warblers were at Dos Vacas Muer- tas, Galveston 24 Jul (DVe) and Port O’¬ Connor, Calhoun 30 Jul (BFr). A Black- and-white Warbler at Big Bend’s Laguna Meadows, Brewster 19 Jul (BRo) was on the early side for this rare migrant. Of particular interest was the discovery of a pair of Swainson’s Warblers in Van Zandt 9 Jun+ (BG, DH), which provided a first breeding record for n.-cen. Texas. Addi¬ tional searches in the vicinity revealed at least five other territories (BG, DH, RKi). A Swainson’s Warbler near the Navasota R., Grimes 2 Jul (DVo) was the 2nd for the county. A lingering migrant Northern Waterthrush was present in DeWitt 1 Jun (DMu). Louisiana Waterthrush is a local breeding species in the Hill Country and in n.-cen. Texas. This season, one was on ter¬ ritory in Dmton 16 Jun (DH), and singles were noted at Fort Hood, Bell 15 Jun and 9 Jul (RKo). Territorial male Common Yel- lowthroats were found for the 4th consecu¬ tive year near Afton, Dickens, where 2 were noted 25 Jun (AH, BB, m.ob ). The male Gray-crowned Yellowthroat that has been present at the Sabal Palm Sanctuary, Cameron for most of the past two years at¬ tracted a female this summer. A nest con¬ taining 4 young was discovered 26 Jun (SL, This first-year White-eared Hummingbird at Lubbock 12-18 (here 14) July 2005 was the most unexpected part of an invasion of this species into Texas and the Southwest. A staggering 1 4 were documented from the Davis and Chisos Mountains in the Trans-Pecos. Photograph by Brandon Best. singing at Clear Creek, Denton 16 Jun. (DH) provided a very rare summer record for n.-cen. Texas, where the species has been confirmed nesting only once. The long-staying Clay-colored Robin at L. Jack- son, Brazoria continued through the period (TMo). Gray Catbirds nested at Spring, Harris (DMa) for the 2nd consecutive year and Vidor, Orange 14 Jun (JW). Two Gray Catbirds at Anahuac N.W.R., Chambers 5 Jun (DVe) may also have been breeders. A Brown Thrasher at High Island, Galveston 5 Jun (DVe) continued the trend of summer¬ ing birds near the coast. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 623 Something was afoot with White-eared Hummingbirds this summer, as an unprecedented number was record¬ ed in the state. An inkling of what was to come began with a female in lower Boot Canyon, Brewster 2 Jun (ph., tBG). However, three weeks later, the dam burst, when at least 1 1 individuals appeared in the cen. Davis Mts. 24 Jun (ph., tM&ME, ph., tML). Many remained through the period, which raised speculation about local nesting in the highlands. In the Chisos Mts., an ad. male also appeared 24 Jun, to be joined by at least one other male and a female through 19 Jul (tAL, GCo, tBG, ph„ tBRo et al.). The topper was a first-year White-eared in Lubbock 12-18 Jul (JCr, tAH, tBB, m.ob.), providing a very un¬ expected first record for nw. Texas. JiP, DB); unfortunately, the nest suffered depredation four days later. A Hooded War¬ bler at Sabine Woods, Jefferson 30 Jul (SM) was apparently a very' early migrant. Painted Redstarts were again much in ev¬ idence in Big Bend’s Chisos Mts., with a high count of 11 on 2 Jul (GCo, BG). Less ex¬ pected was a pair with 2 young in the Davis Mountains Preserve, Jeff Davis 9 Jul (JKa, ME, ML), providing only the 2nd nesting record for the range. A Rufous- capped Warbler was discovered at Westcave Preserve, Travis 30 Jun-10 Jul (tVE, KH, et al.), pro¬ viding a first record for the Austin area. Some 20+ singing Yellow¬ breasted Chats were tallied 21 Jun in e. Van Zandt (BG, DH), a local¬ ized population. One at Silver Falls, Crosby 25 Jun (AnH) and 3 nearby at White River L., Crosby 2 Jul (BB) suggest a resident popula¬ tion in an area where breeding has been noted for four years. TANAGERS THROUGH FINCHES A male Hepatic Tanager was near Utopia, Uvalde 26 Jun (tMH). A lingering Summer Tanager re¬ mained at Quintana, Brazoria 1-16 Jun (TC, CBr, JT). A Scarlet Tanag¬ er at Quintana 29 Jul (DVe) may have been an extremely early fall migrant. A Canyon Towhee in sw. Stephens 22 Jun (BG, DH) repre¬ sented a new county record, and another at Waggoner Ranch, Wilbarger 8 Jun (CC) was also of interest. At least 10 singing Chip¬ ping Sparrows were found 21 Jun in Van Zandt (BG, DH), w. of the known breeding range. Three Field Sparrows at White River L., Crosby 2 Jul (BB) represented the 3rd year of breeding documented for the site. This site is well away from the known breeding range of this species. Vesper Sparrow is a rare summer visitor to Texas, and this season 2 were near Floydada, Floyd 18 Jun (AH, AvH), 3 near Dougherty, Floyd 19 Jun (AH, AvH), and 5 at Muleshoe N.W.R., Bailey 26 Jun (AH, AvH). Two imm. Vesper Sparrows at Muleshoe N.W.R. 30 Jul (BB, AH) were probably migrants, but considering the earlier reports, additional survey efforts many be warranted. A singing Black-throated Sparrow in sw. Stephens 22-25 Jun (BG, DH) represented a rare n.-cen. Texas record. An amazing find was a White- crowned Sparrow at Canyon Country Club, Randall 29 Jul (l&WD), representing a first Jul record for the Panhandle. A wandering Black-headed Grosbeak in the Franklin Mts., El Paso 2 Jul (J Pa) was at least three weeks ahead of the normal arrival dates for fall migrants. Also unexpected were single Black-headed Grosbeaks at Canyon Country Club, Randall 20 Jul (l&rWD) and Palo Duro Canyon S.P, Randall 27 Jul (KS). A male Pyrrhuloxia at Millers Creek Res., Throckmorton 4 Jun (BG) was well ne. of the breeding range of this species. A singing Indigo Bunting was in the Franklin Mts., El Paso 19 Jun (JPa). This species nested in small numbers in these mountains in the 1980s, but they have been absent in recent years, perhaps due to pro¬ longed drought. Indigo Buntings continue to be found in small numbers at White River L., Crosby (BB), but a male at L. Six, Lubbock 12 Jun (BB) was unexpected. A pair of Paint¬ ed Buntings tending fledglings at Muleshoe For the second consecutive year, multiple pairs of Dusky-capped Flycatchers were present in a secluded canyon in the Davis Mountains, Texas. Three territories were discovered 14 June 2005 (here), with at least two of them successfully fledging young. Photograph by Mark IV. Lockwood. — 624 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS N.W.R. 26 Jun (AH, AvH) represented the first documented breeding for the refuge and county. A Dickcissel at Rio Grande Village, Brewster 3 Jul (GCo, BG) must have been a very early fall migrant. A pair of Bronzed Cowbirds at Brazoria N.W.R. 5 Jun (G&DLi) continued this species’ expansion along the coastal prairies. Bronzed Cowbirds are also contin¬ uing to be seen on the South Plains, with several in Lubbock; however, one at Muleshoe N.W.R. 26 Jun (AH) and 4 imms. there 30 Jul (AH, BB) represented another step northward. Red Crossbills were present in the Davis Mts. again this season, but much more unexpected was one at Boot Spring, Big Bend N.P. 1 Jun (BG). Single Pine Siskins at Palo Duro Canyon S.P, Ran¬ dall 27 Jun (KS) and in Amarillo, Potter 29 Jun (KS) represented rare summer records for this species, which has bred only spo¬ radically in the Panhandle. Cited observers (subregional editors in boldface): Charles Alberty, Dan Allen, John Arvin, Ron Baltzegar, Lynn Barber, David Benn, Brandon Best, Carolyn Boyd (CBo), Kevin Broussard (KeB), Charles Brower (CBr), Kelly Bryan (KBr), Winnie Burkett, Eric Carpenter, John Cocanower (JCo), Sheridan Coffey (SCo), Scarlet Colley (ScC), Fred Collins, Tom Collins, Greg Cook (GCo), Mel Cooksey (South Texas: f6 Townhouse Lane, Corpus Christi, TX 78412. email: ssi@stx.rr.com), Grant Critch- field (GCr), Jim Crites (JCr), D.D. Currie (DDC), Claire Curry, Isabel & Walt Davis, Manuel De Leon (MDL), Lawrence Duhon, Bobby Duncan, Marc & Maryann Eastman, Gil Eckrich, Victor Emmanuel, Paul Fagala, Tim Fennell (TFe), Sophie Floyd, Brush Freeman (BFr), Bert Frenz (BeF) (East Texas: 221 Rainbow Dr., #12190, Liv¬ ingston, TX 77399-2021. email: bert2@ bafrenz.com), Terry Fuller (TFu), Brian Gib¬ bons, Charles Gifford, Doris Graham, Ken Hartman, Mitch Heindel, Anthony Hewet- son (AH) (Northwest Texas: 4407 36th St., Lubbock TX 79414. email: terrverts@ya- hoo.com), Aveline Hewetson, Troy Hibbitts, Phillip Hight, Derek Hill (North-central Texas: 1508 Linden Drive, Denton, TX 76201. email: kinglet32@yahoo.com), John Hoogerheide (JHo), Charles Howell, Kurt Huffman, Jim Hughes (JHu), Bill Hupp, Janelle Hutchison, Patsy Inglet, Tom John¬ son, Larry Jordan, John Karges (JKa), Andy Kasner, Donna Kelly, Joe Kennedy (JoK), Jim Kessler (JiK), Judy Kestner (JKe), Richard Kinney (RKi), Rich Kostecke (RKo), Greg Lasley, Allison Leavitt, Cin-Ty Lee (CTL), Zane Lee, Michael Lindsey (MLi), Dell Lit¬ tle, Gerald & Dee Little (G&DLi), Keith Lockhart, Mark Lockwood (ML), Stephan Lorenz, Bill Lupardus, Debbie MacSorley (DMa), Terry Maxwell (TM), Steve Mayes, Curt McCamy, Debra McKee (DMc), Bill McKinney (BiM), Brad McKinney (BMc), Don & Joann Merritt, Nick Meyer, Tom Morris (TMo), Derek Muschalek (DMu), Robert Norris, Lyn Nyemyer, Dale Ohl, Car¬ olyn Ohl-Johnson, John P. O’Neill, Mike Overton, Eric Ozolins, Jim Paton (JPa) (Trans-Pecos: 4325 Boy Scout Lane, El Paso, TX 79922. email: patonjn@netzero.net), Jimmy Paz (JiP), Barrett Pierce, Perry Ping, Randy Pinkston (RPi), Bob Rasa (BRa), Ross Rasmussen, Ellen Ratoosh, Martin Reid, He¬ len Rezjek, Thomas Riecke, Bill Rowe (BRo), Chris Runk, George Russell, Susan Schae- zler, Willie Sekula (Central Texas: 7063 Co. Rd. 228, Falls City, TX 78113-2627. email: wsekula@evl.net), Ken Seyffert, Dale Smith (DSm), Dan Smith (DaS),Jude Smith (JSm), Darleen Stevens (DSt), Byron Stone, Tim Stone, Paul Sunby, Joann Thompson (JT), Heidi Trudell, Jo-Szu Tsai (JST), Don Verser (DVe), Darrell Vollert (DVo), Pat Wade, Ben¬ jamin Wardwell, Ron Weeks (UTC: 1 10 In¬ dian Warrior, Lake Jackson, TX 77566. email: empidonax@sbcglobal.net), Matt White, Jan Whittle, Shirley Wilkerson, Kin- jo Yonemoto. ^ New titles from the American Birding Association! American Birding0 ASSOCIATION by Mel Cooksey and Ron Weeks Revised 2006 342 pages; paper (lay-flat) Item #413 ABA Member Price: $1 9.96 (List $24.95) A Birder’s Guide to the Texas Coast Completely revised in 2006 by Mel Cooksey and Ron Weeks, A Birder’s Guide to the Texas Coast covers habitat diversity of the Texas coast ranges from the Pineywoods to the Gidf prairies, from the coastal wetlands to the subtropics. This revi¬ sion includes species accounts for 170 Texas special¬ ties, 48 maps for 200 birding sites, and seasonal and distributional abundance bar-graphs for 388 regularly occurring species. To order your advance copy, call 800/634-7736 • www. abasales.com VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 625 Idaho & Western Montana Bonners Ferry* Sandpoint > •Coeur d' Alene •Moscow ^ ■ Mann L. \ Lewiston • Libby Glacier NP Kalispei I •• Somers Flathead /.. J WESTERN M ON TANA 5 *o Poison ,Ninepipe NWR * Missoula 4e 4^X4-' • Clark f Lee Metcalf NWR ■ , Stevensville«Hami|ton Helena Three Forks * Bozeman Canyon Ferry L DAHO • McCall ■ Cascade Res. {Ft. Boise WMA * "Lucky Peak Boise • rft R. B°lSe Challis Island Park Res. Camas NWRm Market Lake WMA 1 Deer Flat NWR Stri Res. ►Mountain Home Hagerman ■ WMA ’Vy— Twin Falls American Falls Res „ k • Pocatello /jc_y Minidoka NWR .ivingston Red Lodge David Trochlell 2409 East N Avenue La Grande, Oregon 97850 (dtrochlell@earthlink.net) The summer of 2005 began with slightly cooler and wetter weather than usual. Missoula, Montana had twice its normal June rainfall, but Kalispell, Montana experienced a record rainfall total of 14.4 cm — more than 2.5 times their typi¬ cal average. July, on the other hand, was warmer than usual and very dry; in fact, it was the sixth driest July ever recorded in both states. Several contributors observed that the breeding season was very successful for most birds. Please note that the belated Winter 2004-2005 and Spring 2005 season¬ al reports follow this one; to conserve space, the list of Contributors at the end of this re¬ port contains all observers for the three re¬ ports, and the Abbreviations list below like¬ wise pertains to all three reports. Abbreviations: A.F.R. (American Falls Reservoir, Bingham and Power, ID); Camas (Camas N.W.R., Jefferson, ID); L.M. (Lee Metcalf N.W.R., Ravalli, MT); L.P. (Idaho Bird Observatory’s banding station at Lucky Peak near Boise; Latilong (area encom¬ passed by one degree latitude and one de¬ gree longitude. PELICANS THROUGH ORIOLES American White Pelicans are increasingly re¬ ported in n. Idaho, but a flock of 40 in Koote¬ nai 27-28 Jun (SS) was surprisingly large. Providing a first verified record for Idaho was a Least Bittern at Camas 17-19 Jun (RL, ph. DL). If accepted by the Idaho B.R.C., a Glossy Ibis at Camas 11 Jun (ph. DC1) will also represent a first record. Almost un¬ precedented in summer was the Broad¬ winged Hawk photographed in Bonneville, ID 6 Jun (DC1). A Yellow Rail that vocalized at Market Lake W.M.A., Jefferson 21-24 Jul (DC1, MD) represented Idaho’s 3rd record. An unusually early Mew Gull in Fremont, ID 11 Jul (CW) brought in a first for Latilong 16. Eurasian Collared-Doves summered at new locations in Idaho, including one near Lewiston 14 Jun (BJ) and a nesting pair in Rupert 7 Jul (KC). Four nesting pairs of Northern Hawk Owls were discovered in Glacier N.P., and ads. with fledglings were observed throughout the period (SG). A wayward Barred Owl entertained birders in Ketchum, ID 2 Jun (BS). Six active Black Swift nests, the highest count in nine years, were noted at Idaho’s only known nesting lo¬ cation in Shoshone 3 Jul (KD). Especially rare in summer, an Anna’s Hummingbird was present in Gem, ID 1 1-31 Jul (FZ). Several Gray Flycatchers photographed in Beaverhead, MT in nrid-Jun (BM) provided evidence of a possible nesting population. A breeding record for Cordilleran Flycatcher in Latilong 11 was established when a pair with 3 nestlings were observed in Gem, ID 24 Jul (FZ). Montana scored an 11th record for Scissor-tailed Flycatcher with a sighting in Beaverhead 16 Jun (KS, NS). The Yellow- throated Vireo found at Camas 29 May was last reported 4 Jun (CW). A Plumbeous Vireo was an interesting find in Owyhee 4 Jun (SP); the species is seldom reported outside of se. Idaho. Two Northern Mockingbirds fre¬ quented Fremont, ID 13-27 Jun (DC1, CW), where they are rare but nearly annual. A Brown Thrasher stopped at Camas 22 Jun-27 Jul (JC, CF), where there are about five pre¬ vious records. Providing a local first was a rare Tennessee Warbler near Bigfork, MT 16 Jun (BR). The showcase birds of the season at Camas included a Chestnut-sided Warbler that remained until 1 Jun (CW), a Black-and- white Warbler 1 Jun (JS), and a Magnolia Warbler 3 Jun (DC1). The warbler of the sea¬ son was the ad. male Blackburnian Warbler spotted in Jefferson 3 Jun (SG, RW, ph. CW) that provided Idaho’s 4th record. Another Idaho rarity was the Summer Tanager at Ca¬ mas 10 Jun (fide CW). An unprecedented high count of 96 staging Western Tanagers was made at L.P. 4 Jun (ES). A nesting pair of Great-tailed Grackles that fledged 6 young 8 Jul near Rupert (RW) established one of only a few Idaho breeding records. Unusual sight¬ ings of Common Grackles included one in Nampa, ID 1 Jun (DL) and 2 in Flathead, MT in Jun (DC). An ad. male Baltimore Oriole that graced Oneida 8-17 Jun (ph. LB, m. ob.) represented Idaho’s 4th record. Contributors: (winter through summer sea¬ sons; subregional editors in boldface): IDA¬ HO: Jack Alban, Dick Anderson, Larry Barnes, Steve Bouffard, Steve Butterworth (SBu), Kathleen Cameron, Jay Carlisle, Kei¬ th Carlson (KC1), Darren Clark (DC1), Mark Delwiche, Kas Dumroese, Dave & Elise Faike, Craig Fosdick, Terry Gray, Steve Gross, Don Grubb, Bill Gundlach, Lisa Hardy, Dave Holick, Denise Hughes, Cheryl Huizinga, Bryan Jamison, Harry Krueger, Rob Larranaga, Dave Lawrence, Darrell Marks, Stacy Peterson, Hadley Roberts, Jean Seymour, Gina Sheridan, Emily Stoddard, Brian Sturges, Shirley Sturts, Charles Swift, Chuck Trost, Ron Weeks, Cliff Weisse, Poo Wright-Pulliam, Fred Zeillemaker. MON¬ TANA: Ken Brett, Dan Casey, Dorothy Chamberlin (DCh), Dennis Flath, Steve Gni- adek, Brett Gullett, Stan Heath, Judy Hoy, Dick Hutto (DHu), Radd Icenoggle, Barbara Jaquith, Will Kerling, Deb Lewis, Bob Mar- tinka, John Parker, Wendy Ridenour, Jim Roscoe, Bob Rost, Jeff Safford, Kate Shick, Don Skaar, Nate Stone, Terry Toppins, Wayne Tree, Larry Weeks, Lewis Young. 626 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS _ Larry Barnes spotted this Baltimore Oriole at Stone Reservoir in southeastern Idaho on 8 June 2005; it was last reported there on 17 June, a fourth record for the Gem State. Photograph by Larry Barnes. THE WINTER SEASON 2004-2005 The season averaged slightly warmer and considerably drier than usual. In fact, Mon¬ tana’s precipitation in February averaged only 0.3 cm, making it the driest February in history. The mild weather encouraged water- fowl and a surprising variety of other half- hardy birds to linger in unusually high num¬ bers, and this was reflected in a bevy of record Christmas Bird Count totals. Winter ended with poor mountain snowpack condi¬ tions, presaging a continuation of drought in the region’s driest valleys. LOONS THROUGH DOVES Especially rare in winter were a lingering Pacific Loon in Kootenai, ID 18 Dec (LH) and 2 in Glacier N.P., MT 29 Dec (SG). With only one previous American White Pelican winter record in w. Montana, reports of 6 near Helena 18 Dec and one at Three Forks 26 Dec (DC) were surprising. A record count of 18 Double-crested Cormorants was made in Coeur d’Alene, ID 18 Dec (SS), likely a result of mild weather conditions and a rapidly expanding population. Idaho’s tally of Cackling Geese included up to 6 in Boise 1 Dec-24 Jan (HK) and singles in Canyon 18 Dec (HK), Kootenai 24 Dec-5 Feb (BG, GS), A.FR. 28 Dec (CT), and Custer 5 Feb (D&EF). In Montana, Cack¬ ling Geese reports included 4 in Lake 19 Dec (DC), 3 at L.M. (WT) throughout the period, and 2 in Gallatin 5 Feb (RI). Eurasian Wigeons were unusually scarce, with only two reported. A Harlequin Duck in Salmon 18 Dec (HR) provided a first win¬ ter record for Latilong 10. Eight Long-tailed Ducks was about double the usual winter total. A Turkey Vulture near Boise, ID 5 Feb (HK) was very early, and another near Three Forks 9 Feb (DF) brought in Montana’s 2nd winter record. A Red-shouldered Hawk showed up 23-24 Dec in Owyhee, ID (CW), where the species has wintered before. An excellent total of 9 Gyrfalcons was reported. A few Greater Yellowlegs sometimes linger into winter, but 8 tallied in American Falls, ID 19 Dec (CT) was likely a record count. A Spotted Sandpiper near Twin Falls, ID 18 Dec was rare but not unprecedented, but another near Rupert, ID the same day repre¬ sented a winter first for Latilong 26 ( fide CS). Dunlins were reported in Canyon and Nez Perce, ID, where they are now almost expected in winter. Five Bonaparte’s Gulls detected in Kootenai, ID 2 Jan (SS) were sig¬ nificant, because only a few previous winter records exist. The rare-but-regular gull tally was about average, with 2 Mew Gulls, 4 Thayer’s Gulls, 4 Glaucous-winged Gulls, and a Glaucous Gull. Far less expected were Lesser Black-backed Gulls that visited Canyon 21-29 Dec (HK, CW) and Kootenai 2 Jan (LH), providing Idaho’s 8th and 9th records. The larid of the season was an imm. Western Gull that stayed in Canyon 16 Dec-23 Jan (ph. CW), providing Idaho’s 6th record. Eurasian Collared-Doves appear to be prospering in both states; at least 54 were tallied at new colonies in Idaho and 15 in Montana. OWLS THROUGH FINCHES It was an average season for Snowy Owls, with one reported in Idaho and 2 in Mon¬ tana. A Northern Hawk Owl in Glacier N.R 6 Feb (SG) was especially noteworthy, be¬ cause the species has recently nested in the vicinity. Barred Owls are increasingly report¬ ed in Idaho, but singles near A.ER. through¬ out Dec (CT) and in Camas 14-28 Dec (DG) were far out of range. Also wayward were Idaho Great Gray Owls near Salmon 18 Dec (HR) and Boise 22 Dec-29 Jan (m. ob.). Lin¬ gering Anna’s Hummingbirds in Idaho’s Ada 15 Nov-8 Dec and Boundary 1 Dec-5 Jan (TG) were interesting, given the record numbers that came through the Gem State in autumn. The Costa’s Hummingbird pres¬ ent in Meridian, ID since 14 Oct persisted through 26 Jan (SP). A Williamson’s Sap- On 1 December 2004, Janet Gale and Rand Herzberg discovered an Eastern Towhee at their home, just south of Red Lodge, Montana. The bird was last observed 8 April (here 1 7 February) 2005 — Montana's first record. Photograph by Bob Martinka. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 627 sucker found in Caldwell 21-30 Jan (JA) made only the 2nd winter record in Idaho. An Empidonax flycatcher photographed in Stevensville 12 Dec OH) was an unprece¬ dented winter event in Montana, but identi¬ fication remains uncertain; the report is un¬ der review. Record numbers of Blue Jays wintered in both states, following an autumn irruption of epic proportions. Especially unusual in winter was a Northern Mockingbird found in Caldwell, ID 3 Jan (DH). An American Pipit at L.M. 31 Dec-27 Jan (WT) garnered w. Montanas 2nd winter record. A Black- and-white Warbler discovered in Coeur d’A¬ lene 18-24 Dec (SS) brought in a surprising first winter record for Idaho. Another winter first for w. Montana was the Common Yel- lowthroat found at L.M. 2 Jan (WT). The bird of the season was an Eastern Towhee that wintered near Red Lodge, MT 1 Dec-28 Feb+ (BJ, ph. BM), representing Montanas first record. Another winter first for Idaho was a Vesper Sparrow photographed in Blaine 18 Dec (BS). A lingering Sage Sparrow in Custer , ID 18 Dec ( fide CS) provided a first winter record for Latilong 14. Also un¬ precedented was the Yellow-headed Black¬ bird in Washington, ID 24 Jan-3 Feb (ph. FZ) that brought in a winter first for Lati¬ long 1 1 . Two rare Rusty Blackbirds wintered in Moscow, ID 18 Dec-28 Feb+ (CS). The only Great-tailed Grackles reported were 2 in American Falls, ID 13 Feb (CT). A Purple Finch stopped in Somers, MT 15 Jan (DC); they are rare but increasingly reported in nw. Montana. Reports of 4 Hoary Redpolls in Red Lodge, MT 4 Jan (BJ) and 3 in Eureka, MT 23-25 Feb (LY) were well above aver¬ age. A tally of 71 Lesser Goldfinches in Lewiston was surprising (TG) because they were very rare in n. Idaho until recently. THE SPRING MIGRATION 2005 This season averaged unusually warm and wet. Late snows and rainfall greatly eased concerns about an anticipated fire-prone summer and drought in light of the Regions deficient winter snowpack. These same fre¬ quent cool and wet periods no doubt caused arriving insectivores to suffer, but in general, habitat conditions and wild food resources were considered to be very good. GREBES THROUGH OWLS An astounding flock of more than 25,000 Eared Grebes staged at Ennis L., Madison, MT 3 May (JP). Both record-early and un¬ usual was a Black-crowned Night-Heron in Gallatin, MT 5 Mar (JS). Cackling Geese re¬ ports included a pair in Fremont, ID 19 Mar (CW) and 2 in Latah, ID 14 Apr (TG). It was an average season for Eurasian Wigeon, with 8 reported in Idaho and 9 in Montana. A pair of locally rare Harlequin Ducks returned to Missoula, MT 1 May (WR), where they have nested for the past three years. A sighting of 4 Long-tailed Ducks at Mann L., Nez Perce, ID 12 Mar (TG) was noteworthy, as they are not annual in spring. Providing a 2nd record for Montana was a White-tailed Kite discov¬ ered in Lake 1 Mar (BG). Three Gyrfalcons were recorded in Montana, a good spring season tally. Although Broad-winged Hawks are especially rare in spring, singles were re¬ ported in Idaho’s Fremont 18 May (DC1) and Camas 21 May (CW). A Ferruginous Hawk was a good find near Missoula, MT 10 Apr (WT), where the species is not annual. Two rare Snow)' Plovers stopped at Dr)' L., Canyon, ID 9-12 May (CF), and the same or 2 others were there 27 May (DM). Although Black-necked Stilts are increasingly reported in Montana, 4 in Glacier N.P 30 Apr (SG) represented a first record for the park. A Wil- let at L.M. 27 Apr-16 May (WT) was of in¬ terest; the species is not annual in w. Mon¬ tana. Two Upland Sandpipers were spotted in Valley 15 May (CH) at the last known breeding location in Idaho. A Marbled God- wit was near Kalispell, MT 23 Apr (BR), where they are unexpected. The bird of the season was a dazzling ad. Ross’s Gull that stopped w. of Missoula 3-4 May (DCh, ph. TT), providing a first record for Montana. A Thayer’s Gull spotted at Ennis L. 30 Apr (RI) represented a first for Latilong 38 and sw. Montana. A Glaucous Gull in Lewiston, ID 22 Mar (KC1) was a good find. The only re¬ ported Yellow-billed Cuckoo was a migrant in Minidoka, ID 25 May (SB). Incredible news was the discovery in May of breeding Northern Hawk Owls in Glacier N.P. (DHu). A wayward Barred Owl in Ketchum, ID 5-30 May (BS) was unusual there. DOVES THROUGH REDPOLLS New Eurasian Collared-Dove colonies were reported in five e. Idaho counties and near Livingston, MT. The discovery of singing male Gray Flycatchers at several locations in Beaverhead 23 May OR) was amazing; Montana had only two previously accepted records. Blue Jays were unusually numerous throughout the period. Northern Mocking¬ birds are casual in w. Montana, making one in Missoula 16 May (WK) and another s. of Red Lodge 24-27 May (SH) newsworthy. Extralimital Sage Thrashers appeared in Montana’s Flathead 13 May (BR) and Mis¬ soula 23 May (LW). The only reported Brown Thrasher was at A.FR. 8 May (DA). Splendid rarities at Camas included a Mag¬ nolia Warbler 2 1 May, an Ovenbird 24 May, a Blackpoll Warbler 25 May, and a Chestnut¬ sided Warbler 29-31 May+ (CW). For the 5th consecutive year, a territorial Ovenbird held forth e. of Bozeman, MT (JP). A record-early Western Tanager was in Latah, ID 3 Mar (DH). Rare Rose-breasted Grosbeaks came through Missoula, MT 16 May (KB), Camas 20 May (SBu), and Deer Lodge, MT 26 May (DL). A Green-tailed Towhee that wandered to Missoula, MT 2 May (WK) provided a local first. The East¬ ern Towhee present near Red Lodge, MT since 1 Dec remained through 8 Apr. Two Rusty Blackbirds that wintered near Moscow, ID were last reported 4 Mar. Great¬ tailed Grackles showed up at new locations in Idaho, including one in Fremont 9 May (CW), another w. of Arco 9 May (SBu), and a nesting pair near Rupert 15 May (KC). Common Grackles stopped in seven s. Idaho counties, where they are not annual. A Scott’s Oriole in Hailey, ID 19-21 May (BS) was especially surprising, because no accept¬ ed state records exist outside se. Idaho. A Purple Finch was in Flathead, MT 8-14 May (BR), where they are rare but increasingly re¬ ported. A Hoary Redpoll in Red Lodge, MT 12 Mar (BJ) furnished only the 2nd spring report in the past 10 years. The Friends of North American Birds Since its inception, the fund has allowed for many improvements such as Mailing in a protective wrapper to insure its delivery in one piece. Increase in page count, allowing the addition of articles and special sections. More color pages, allowing the addition of Photo Salons. All of this has been made possible with your generous contributions. ■ . -* ^ ■ & There are more plans in the works for future issues but the fund does need your continued support. Donations to the "Friends of NAB" fund can be mailed to: \ „ ; • *' % The Friends of NAB, 4945 N. 30th Street, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80919-3151 628 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Colorado Wyoming Summer in Colorado and Wyoming is rarely as memorable as it was in 2005. Colorado added two astonishing first state records this season, both essentially Mexican species, while Wyoming recorded two new nesting species (one a first for the western United States). While climatic con¬ ditions were near normal across the Region in June (albeit a bit wetter in Colorado), a trend of late migration kept observers pleas¬ antly busy. The second half of the nesting season was unusually hot and dry across the Region. Colorado’s July was the third driest since 1895, and Denver matched its all-time record high of 105° F on 20 July. The north¬ ward expansion of species, including Bushtit, Bewick’s Wren, Blue-gray Gnat- catcher, and Lesser Goldfinch was further documented in the Region this season. Abbreviations: Adobe Creek (Adobe Creek Res. [also called Blue L. ] , Bent/Kiowa ); Bonny (Bonny Res., Yuma)' Chatfield (Chatfield S.R, Jefferson/Douglas); Crow Valley (Crow Valley Campground, Pawnee National Grasslands, Weld); F.C.R.P. (Fountain Creek Regional Park, El Paso); J.M.R. (John Martin Res., Bent); Jumbo (Jumbo Res., Logan/Sedgwick); Tamarack Ranch (Tamarack Ranch S.W.A., Logan). “West Slope” denotes locations west of the Rockies. Due to reporting biases, all lo¬ cations can be assumed to be in Colorado ex¬ cept that each Wyoming location is noted as such the/irst time it appears in the text. LOONS THROUGH VULTURES A basic-plumaged Pacific Loon found 18 Jun at Chatfield (JK) was present into Aug, con¬ ducting its wing molt and providing only a 2nd or 3rd Colorado summer record. Sum¬ mering Common Loons included up to 4 at Jumbo (HA) and a single bird at Blue Mesa Res., Gunnison 21 Jul (CD, BW). A subad. Brown Pelican visited Windsor, Weld 10-18 Jun (m.ob.; finder undetermined); efforts to determine its subspecies were hampered by the bird’s immaturity and some apparent variability within the U.S. subspecies. The bird was seen once or twice not far away at Fossil Creek Res., Larimer during its stay (CW et al.). A Neotropic Cormorant (age unreported) was a one-day wonder at J.M.R. 5 Jul (DN, I&TS). A Least Bittern sang all day 5 Jun at Walden Ponds, Boulder (JK, ph. TL, ph. BS, m.ob.) and was present until at least 10 Jun. A Snowy Egret, quite rare in Chaffee , was at Clear Creek Res. 4 Jun (SY, TL); it was out¬ shone there by a first-county-record Great Egret standing next to it (ph. TL, SY). An ad. Res. Snowy Egret graced Kenney Res. 5 Jun (VZ) for a rare Rio Blanco record. An ad. Little Blue Heron was elusive at Walden Ponds 1-5 Jun (EZ et al.). All Colorado summer Green Heron reports came from typical locations except for the single bird at the Carrizo Canyon Picnic Area, Baca 3 Jun (DAL). A molting imm. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron was at Banner Lakes S.W.A., Weld 18 Jul (SL); most Colorado summer records are of ads. The ciconiiform highlight of the season was the apparent nesting by at least 2 Glossy Ibis (each paired with White-faced Ibis) at Hut¬ ton Lake N.W.R., Albany, WY 26 May-20 Jul (DF, ph. BS), the first such nesting in the western United States. Another ad. Glossy Ibis was photographed near Lower Latham Res., Weld 22 Jul (SM). Nelson continued his monopoly on the finding of Black Vultures in Colorado, with single birds at J.M.R. 7 Jul (ph. DN) and 22-23 Aug (DN, ph. J. Yost). White geese summer regularly now in Colorado, with this year’s birds found in Jul- Aug, including a Snow Goose at Jumbo, Lo¬ gan and Sedgwick (LS) and a Ross’s Goose at Bonny (LS, TL). A “tagged” Trumpeter Swan was at Jackson, Teton, WY 23 Jul (TA), and the same or a similar bird visited El Jebcl, Eagle six days later (M. Harris, L. Vidal). A male and a female Greater Scaup tarried at Christopher L. Wood Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Road Ithaca, New York 14850 (dw37@cornell.edu) Tony Leukering Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory 14500 Lark Bunting Lane Brighton, Colorado 80603 (tony.leukering@rmbo.org) Bill Schmoker 3381 Larkspur Drive Longmont, Colorado 80503 (bill@schmoker.org) VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 629 SA! Every summer and early fall, ad. and juv. Moun- i tain Plovers congregate in se. Colorado prior to heading to winter grounds in California (and else¬ where?). Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory personnel and other birders typically find aggregations of 100- 500 at various playas, tilled fields, and reservoir shores late Jul-Aug and into Sep. The birds utilize these areas of bare (or nearly bare) dirt to forage upon insects, par¬ ticularly beetles (TL, pers. obs.). This season, Nelson and the Schmokers chanced upon what must be the single largest migratory aggregation of the species ever re¬ ported. On 25 Jul, they were s. of Adobe Creek in Bent ■\ A ~zpr - > K. 1 •7 -» ■ u W 7 'f 1* Up to 1000 Mountain Plovers were noted 25 July 2005 south of Adobe Creek in Bent County, Colorado, probably the largest migratory concentration of this species ever documented. Photograph by Bill Schmoker. and found an estimated 800-1000 Mountain Plovers in tilled fields (DN, BS, JS), a significant portion of this species' popula¬ tion. Both ads. and juvs. were present. Interestingly, the ads. were all in the middle of their primary molt. As the number of birds is well in excess of what could be generated by local breeding, this event suggests to us that the species conducts a so- called molt migration and that this stopover area in se. Colorado may be critical to the species' natural history as a whole. Long L., Larimer 26 Jun (GW) for a rare Re¬ gional summer record. A more-than-typical 4 Common Goldeneyes were found in Col¬ orado this summer, highlighted by an imm. male first found in Salida, Chaffee during winter and still not in full alternate plumage this summer (SY). Though virtually un¬ known as a breeder in Colorado until very recently, Hooded Mergansers have provided at least the suggestion of breeding quite a few years in a row now. This year, two sum¬ mer reports included the finding of 2 young 3 Jun at Chatfield, Jefferson (H&UK). KITES THROUGH TERNS Out-of-range Mississippi Kites included sin¬ gle birds at Ovid, Sedgwick 16 Jun (HA), Ft. Collins, Larimer 17 Jun (DAL), and EC.R.R 5 Jul (D. Elwonger, B. Goycoolea). Merlin is ex¬ ceedingly rare in Colorado in summer and has not been proven to nest, so reports of a calling female from Bonny 9 Jul (LS) and a female or juv. from Phillips 30 Jul (JR) are of more-than- passing interest. Summer reports of Sandhill Crane from two s. West Slope counties, Mesa and Montrose (CD, BW), are nearly unique and suggest further colonization. Two Snowy Plovers visited Goldeneye Res., Natrona , WY 30 Jun-2 Jul (BR, CM, G&JL). Two Upland Sandpipers migrating over¬ head in e. Colorado Springs, El Paso 29 Jul (MP, J. Peterson) were w. of usual. A pair of Long-billed Curlews apparently produced at least one juv. this summer along the Utah line near Rabbit Valley, Mesa ( fide LA); the species has been confirmed as nesting in only one other Colorado West Slope loca¬ tion, also in Mesa. A Hudsonian Godwit was an exceedingly rare fall-migration find at Goldeneye Res. 30 Jun (BR). An alternate - plumaged Dunlin graced Ramah Res., El Paso 4 Jun (MP, GW et ah), and a basic- plumaged individual was found at Adobe Creek 25 Jul (DN, BS, JS). Rare on the West Slope, an alternate-plumaged Stilt Sandpiper provided some excitement at Fruitgrowers Res., Delta 15 Jul (FL). The Schmokers found an alternate-plumaged Short-billed Dowitcher at Adobe Creek, Kiowa 26 Jul. A Red-necked Phalarope was slightly tardy at Ft. Bridger, Uinta , WY 10 Jun (TA). A Pomarine Jaeger (age unreported) was a great find at the BP Pond, Natrona, WY 24 Jul (CM); all previous summer Regional jaeger reports have been of Pomarines and all (or nearly all) have been of subads. A first-sum¬ mer Laughing Gull visited Metro L., Col¬ Appropriately, this subadult Brown Pelican turned up at one of the Pelican Lakes in Windsor, Weld County, Colorado on 10 June 2005. Throughout its stay (here 14 June), it ventured off to neighboring Larimer County but still returned to roost in Windsor. Photograph by Tony Leukering. orado City, Pueblo 11 Jul (IDS). Summer re¬ ports of Caspian Terns in both states were nu¬ merous and highlighted by 2 ads. with 2 juvs. at L. John, Jackson 4Jul (T. Jones). The North Park area of Colorado is very important for breeding waterbirds, supporting a wide vari¬ ety of colonial breeders, including the only known Colorado colonies of Franklin’s Gull. It would seem to be a logical place for Caspi¬ an Tern to breed in the state. However, be¬ cause L. John does not have a suitable nesting island and because the juvs. were flying (and family groups in this species migrate together shortly after the young fledge), the record does not confirm the species as breeding in the state. Least Terns out of place on 3 Jun were an ad. at Grand Junction, Mesa (LA) and a first-year bird at Beebe Draw, Weld (GW, JK); this date seems a bit late for 100 Black Terns to be at Jumbo (JK, GW). DOVES THROUGH FLYCATCHERS Only 2 White-winged Doves were reported this summer, singles at residences in Broom¬ field 17 Jun (S. Arnesen, EZ) and Ft. Collins 18 Jun (B. Dillon, ,N. Komar). Inca Doves continue in Lamar, Prowers (DAL) and Rocky Ford, Otero. A Black-billed Cuckoo at Julesburg S.W.A., Sedgwick 5 Jun (SL) was probably a migrant. A singing bird at Bonny 6 Jun (N. Pieplow) through at least 9 Jul (LS) was more likely a bird attempting to nest. This species used to breed in Colorado, but it has been extremely scarce in the state in summers for the past several decades. A Barn Owl present at Wilson, Teton, WY 1 Jul- 1 Aug (N. Osterburg) was locally rare. Colorado’s first West Slope Eastern Wood- Pewee remained at The Nature Conservan¬ cy’s Yampa River Preserve until at least 21 Jun (N. Korte). Others were detected by song at Tamarack Ranch 11 Jun (JR, RS) and along the N. Shanahan Trail, Boulder 31 Jul- 2 Aug (RL). Increased coverage in late spring has revealed that Alder Flycatcher is an annual migrant in e. Colorado during the second half of May into early Jun. Up to 3 were at a private ranch in e. Weld 3 Jun (JK, ph. GW), and another was at Dixon Res 5 Jun (ph. R. Hopper). We continue to en¬ courage a cautious approach in identifying this species, particularly when dealing with silent birds. A male Vermilion Flycatcher made a one-day appearance at EC.R.R 6 Jul (K. Lafreniere, I. Huskey). One each of Cassin’s Kingbird and Ash-throated Fly¬ catcher at Crow Valley were unexpected on In Wyoming, Flammulated Owl was known only as a rare migrant until 2002, when 3 singing birds were found in the ■J i" Battle Creek drainage of the Sierra Madre Mts. by a Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (R.M.B.0.) biologist. The mixed aspen/conifer habitat found on the w. slope of this range is approximately 48 km from a Colorado breeding population in similar habitat. Flammulated Owls found in 2003 and 2004 by R.M.B.0. staff and local birders further established the belief that a small, localized breeding population exists here. With assistance from the U.S. Forest Service and Cheyenne Audubon, Doug Faulkner and Rich Levad organized a field trip 8-10 Jul to survey for Flammulated Owls. Ten were detected on noctur¬ nal surveys 9 Jul, including one each at three locations away from the Battle Creek drainage but on the w. side of the Conti¬ nental Divide. On 9 Jul, during a daytime search, Kim Potter discovered an owl occupying a cavity. Apparently, Flammulated Owls use cavities only for nesting purposes, thus this finding constitutes the first known nest in the state. Thanks to Doug Faulkner for supplying the information presented here. 630 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS L'OR A DO & WYOMING the odd date of 13 Jun (BS, TF). The only Scissor-tailed Flycatcher reported in the Re¬ gion was n. of Boulder 27 Jun (AB). SWALLOWS THROUGH FINCHES Three Purple Martins were found 9 Jul in the Sierra Madre Mts., near Battle, Carbon, WY (DF et al.), where the species was first found breeding last year. A female Purple Martin was reported from Julesburg 17 Jun (HA); there are few documented records of this species from Colorado’s Plains even during migration. A single ad. Cave Swallow was at J.M.R. 9 Jul (S. Seltman). This is the 4th Cave Swallow found by a single observer in se. Colorado; it seems only a matter of time be¬ fore this species is documented with photo¬ graphs or video in the Region. A Bushtit in the Sierra Madre Mts. that crossed the state line from Carbon, WY to Routt, CO 9 Jul (DF, CM) was a rarity in both counties. The spring’s Carolina Wren at Tamarack Ranch continued through at least 1 Jul (rn.ob.). Even more unexpected was one, possibly 2 Bewick’s Wrens found at separate locations in Boulder 3 (TF, BS) & 29 Jun (TF), roughly 160 km n. of where they are normally found. Continuing their northward expansion, a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was in Daniel, Sublette WY 13 Jun (SP), while others were noted in the Jackson, WY area ( fide SP). The Front Range of Colorado has always been a good place for late spring migrants and strays attempting to summer; a Wood Thrush at Gregory Canyon, Boulder 10-11 Jun (TF, BS) is a good example of this phe¬ nomenon. Golden-winged Warblers are also nearly annual, with one reported this year at Gregory Canyon 2 Jun (PG). Chestnut-sided Warblers exhibited this phenomenon with such regularity that they were illustrated on range maps as reaching the Front Range in some older field guides; this season, a pair of Chesnut-sideds was at Dixon Res., Larimer 4 Jun (RH), and a male sang at Lair o’ the Bear, Jefferson 12 Jun (J. Hackos). Undeniably the least expected bird to show up along the Front Range this summer was a singing Tropical Parula at Grandview Cemetery, Ft. Collins, 18Jun-4Jul (DAL, J. Mammoser). The nearest record of this species is from the panhandle of Texas Late migrant Northern Parulas were at Pueblo 1 Jun (BKP) and Lamar 2 Jun (DAL). A female Black-throated This Least Bittern was more easily heard than seen as it vocalized very close to the Cottonwood Marsh Boardwalk at Walden Ponds, Boulder County on 5 June 2005. Photograph by Bill Schmoker. Blue Warbler paused at Crow Valley 9 Jun (DAL). A first-year American Redstart in Craig 7 Jun (FL) furnished a very rare record for nw. Colorado. Two RMBO biologists (K. Behrens, C. Cox) discovered a large breeding population of Northern Waterthrushes in early Jul along Rock Cr. on the n. flank of the Medicine Bow Mts. This species was not previously known to nest in the Rockies s. of nw. Wyoming, exceptions being pairs docu¬ mented for three years along the Little Laramie R. in the s. Medicine Bow Mts. and for two years in e. North Park, CO. In addition to the more expected reports from Las Animas and Huerfano, a single He¬ patic Tanager was found far out of range along LR 60 in Routt (A. Boyce). Very rarely reported in the Region, even in Wyoming, a singing Baird’s Sparrow was found e. of Cheyenne 16 Jun by another RMBO biolo¬ gist (ph. R Hosner); the bird was present the next day (DP) but was not found thereafter. Northern Cardinals are still very rare away from the far e. plains. One (sex unreported) at Castlewood Canyon, Douglas (B. Shade, HK, UK) and a female at Salida 20 Jun (ph. N. Vickery, M. Emmer) were noteworthy. A singing Eastern Meadowlark was observed by many at Bellevue, Larimer 22 Jun-11 Jul (DAL, ph. SM, m.ob.); local birders reported a female at the site, too, and the area has hosted the species previously. A handful of Baltimore Orioles wandered westward in early Jun, with singles ne. of Boulder 2 Jun (fide S. Plooster), at Watson L., Larimer 4 Jun (S. Roderer), and at Crow Valley 5 Jun (NK, CW). Early-summer snows at high elevations kept Brown-capped Rosy-Pinches visiting lower-elevation feeders in numbers as high as 200 in Estes Park, Larimer through 13 Jun (N. Gobris et al.). Even single birds are rarely noted well below timberline after mid- May. It is not unexpected for Pine Siskins to linger on the plains following even mediocre flight years, as last winter was. Included among reports was the first confirmed nest¬ ing at Grandview Cemetery, where Leukering photographed a recently fledged juv. 21 Jun. A single Pine Siskin was at Keenesburg, Weld 29 Jun (LH); more unexpected, however, were 2 Lesser Goldfinches 7 Jun (LH) at the same locale. In addition to win¬ tering more regularly in the Region, small numbers of Lesser Goldfinches have spread onto the sprawling Front Range suburbs during summer. Cited observers (subregional editors in boldface): Susan Allerton, Henry Armknecht, Larry Arnold, Tim Avery, Jim Beatty (sw. Col¬ orado), Coen Dexter (w.-cen. Colorado), Doug Faulkner (Wyoming), Ted Floyd, Lau¬ ren Hyde, Joey Kellner, Hugh & Urling Kingery, Steve Larson, Gloria & Jim Lawrence (statewide RBA, Wyoming), David A. Leatherman, Tony Leukering, Forrest Luke (nw. Colorado), Terry McEneaney (Yel¬ lowstone), Steve Messick, Chris Michelson (Casper, WY), Duane Nelson, Susan Patla (Jackson, WY), Brandon K. Percival (se. Col¬ orado), Mark Peterson (cen. Colorado), Bert Raynes (Jackson, WY), Betty Rickman, Joe Roller, Ira & Tammy Sanders, Bill Schmoker, Jim Schmoker, Larry Semo (ne. Colorado), David Silverman, Glenn Walbek (n.-cen. Colorado), Cole Wild, Brenda Wright, Sherrie York, Eric Zorawowicz, Vic Zerbi. Many oth¬ er individual observers contributed informa¬ tion to this report but could not be personal¬ ly acknowledged here; they all have our thanks and appreciation. O Q Though few Colorado birders had the species on their short lists of the next Df\ species to occur in Colorado, an ad. female White-eared Hummingbird was nonetheless found and well documented by Allerton at her Durango, La Plata feeder on the evening of 19 Jun. It returned early the next morning but was not seen again in Jun. However, Allerton canvassed the neighborhood and was rewarded with the news that her neighbors, the Fishers, were hosting the bird a few doors down. The Bouriciuses banded the bird 17 Jul there, and a few days later it reap¬ peared at Allerton's feeder to spend the rest of its stay (until 7 Aug). Amazingly, Allerton received a phone call on 20 Jul from another Durango-area resident (R. Brown) some 48 km away reporting that he was hosting a female White¬ eared Hummingbird. Allerton visited the location and confirmed the identification. The bird was later photographed by Semo and was present through 21 Aug. This White-eared Hummingbird at La Plata, Colorado 30 July was one of two in the state in summer 2005. Photograph by Larry Semo. This territorial male Eastern Meadowlark in Bellevue, Colorado tipped its hand by singing and calling 22 June through at least 1 1 July 2005 (here). Photographs by Steve Messick. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 631 Great Basin Rick Fridell 3505 West 290 North Hurricane, Utah 84737 (rfridell@redrock.net) Following a stellar spring for binding in the Great Basin, the summer nesting season was rather uneventful. Fortu¬ nately, after six consecutive years of drought, favorable conditions throughout the Region provided a much-needed boost for breeding populations. Highlights for the breeding sea¬ son included potential nesting Zone-tailed Hawks in Nevada and Utah, successful nest¬ ing Least Bitterns in southern Nevada, and vagrant Common Ground-Dove, Magnolia Warbler, and Clay-colored Sparrow. Abbreviations: Antelope 1. (Antelope Island S.P. and Causeway, Davis, UT); Black Rock (Black Rock, Millard, UT); Corn Cr. (Corn Creek Unit, Desert N.W.R., Clark, NV); H.B.V.P (Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve, Clark, NV); Lytle (Lytle Ranch Preserve, Washington, UT); Miller’s R.A. (Miller’s Rest Area, Esmeralda, NV); Ouray (Ouray N.W.R., Uintah, UT); Red Hills (Red Hills G.C., St. George, Washington, UT); Zion (Zion N.P, Washington, UT). LOONS THROUGH WATERFOWL A Brown Pelican was a most unusual sight flying through the desert along SR- 160 near the Sandy Valley turnoff, Clark, NV 17 Jun (DB). A Green Heron observed 4 Jun near Black Rock (KW, PL, RF) was slightly n. of expected range. Long-tailed Ducks made un¬ expected summer showings in Utah, with a female lingering on the Hurricane (SR-9) Sewage Ponds, Washington 4 Apr-20 Jul (RF) and another photographed at Black Rock 4 Jun (KW, PL, RF). A male Ruddy Duck with black head (a rather rare plumage Zone-tailed Hawk sightings have increased in southern Nevada and southwestern Utah in recent years. This Zone-tailed Hawk was one of a pair attempting to nest near Laughlin in southern Clark County, Nevada. Photograph by Jim Boone. or morph) was also observed at Black Rock on 4 Jun (KW, PL, RF). Up to 13 California Condors spent the summer enthralling ob¬ servers around the Lava Pt. area of Zion. Least Bitterns are very rare breeders in s. Nevada, so a pair fledging at least 3 young at H.B.VP. was noteworthy (JBr, JHe). HAWKS THROUGH TERNS Zone-tailed Hawk sightings have increased in recent years in the s. portion of the Re¬ gion; however, successful nesting has not been confirmed as yet. A pair was observed for the 3rd consecutive summer in the Lava Pt. area of Zion 9 Jun-i- (ML, ph. LT, ph., tRF), but no nest could be found in the re¬ mote canyons. Surprisingly, a pair of Zone¬ tailed Hawks was also observed near Laugh- lin, in s. Clark, NV 5-12 Jun (ph., tJBo). The hawks here were defending a nest, but it is unknown whether they successfully fledged any young. There were a few noteworthy shorebird reports in the Region. A Black-bellied Plover was slightly early 23 Jul at Soda and Carson Lakes, Churchill, NV, as was a Solitary Sand¬ piper 23 Jul at Carson L. (MMe, GS). Cer¬ tainly the shorebird highlight of the summer was the Red Knot at Antelope I. 30 Jul (p.a., J&KB). A juv. Semipalmated Sandpiper was photographed at Carson L. 23 Jul (ph MMe, GS), and another was observed at H.B.VP. 27 Jul (JHe). The only Least Tern observed in the Region was an ad. at Black Rock 4 Jun (KW, PL, ph., tRF). DOVES THROUGH WARBLERS If accepted, a wayward Common Ground- Dove observed at Lytle 19 Jun (LT) would furnish just the 3rd record for Utah. The only Yellow-billed Cuckoos this summer were reported from Utah at Black Rock 4 Jun (KW, PL, RF) and River Lane, Springville, Utah 15 Jul (AS, MMo). Vagrant Eastern Kingbirds were reported from two Nevada locations: Bonham Ranch, Washoe 4Jun (ph. NB) and Las Vegas Wash, Clark 22 Jun (MMu). Red-eyed Vireos, always a surprise in the Region, were observed at Corn Cr. 9 Jun (M&JC) and Fort Buenaventura, Weber, UT 23 Jun (KP). A Winter Wren at Lava Pt., Zion 10 Jul (RF, LT) was noteworthy, as nest¬ ing has never been confirmed in s. Utah. Northbound Gray Catbirds were observed in Nevada 1 Jun at Indian Cr., Dyer, Esmeralda and 2 Jun at Miller’s R.A. (GS). Two catbirds, including an apparently territorial singing male, were found at Black Rock 4 Jun (KW, PL, RF). A Northern Mockingbird 21 Jun in North Reno, Washoe, NV (HP) was a bit n. of expected range. Surprisingly, Brown Thrash¬ ers were reported on the same day (25 Jun) from disparate residential locations in Neva¬ da: Reno, Washoe (FP) and Boulder City, Clark OK, BR). Northern Parulas were reported on 1 Jun from Corn Cr. (ph. JH et al.) and the Santa Clara R., near Baker, Washington, UT (LT). A female Magnolia Warbler was observed 2 Jun at the Circle L Ranch, Dyer, Esmeralda, NV (GS). Black-and-white Warblers were re¬ ported from Henderson, Clark, NV 5 Jun (TSu, fide JBr) and Boulder City, Clark, NV 18 Jun (JK, BR). American Redstarts were NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 632 found at two Esmeralda, NV locations: Ar- lemontc Ranch, Dyer 1 Jun (GS) and Miller’s R.A. 15-24 Jul (GS, DM). Utah’s 4th con¬ firmed Prothonotary Warbler was pho¬ tographed at Lytle 8-9 Jul (ph. , tLT, JJ). A singing Ovenbird at the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, Weber, UT was enjoyed by many ob¬ servers 18 Jul-12 Jul (tKP, ph. M&CS). Rounding out the summer warbler sightings was a female Hooded Warbler found 1 Jun at Sagehen Rd., Dyer, Esmeralda, NV (ph. GS). SPARROWS THROUGH FINCHES A singing Clay-colored Sparrow was a great find 4.5 km e. of Crystal Peak, Millard, UT 1 Jun (tTSa). The only Rose-breasted Gros¬ beak was a female at Sagehen Rd., Dyer, Es¬ meralda, NV 1 Jun (GS). Singing male Indi¬ go Buntings were reported from two seldom birded Garfield, UT locations: Paria River Ranch 1 Jun (RF, MMv) and Calf Creek R.A., Escalante N.M. 10-21 Jun (LT, PC, J&KB). A vagrant female Bobolink was at Miller’s R.A. 1 Jun (GS). Although Common Grackle sightings are increasing in n. Utah, a lone grackle at Perry, Box Elder , UT 16 Jun (BB) was noteworthy. An apparent hybrid Bul¬ lock’s Oriole x Baltimore Oriole hybrid was photographed 1 Jun at the Arlemonte Ranch, Dyer, Esmeralda, NV (GS). GREAT BASIN Contributors and cited observers: John & Gisela Anderson, Betsy Beneke, Joel & Kathy Beyer, Nancy Bish, Donn Blake, Jim Boone (JBo), Jo Anne Branca (JBr), Kristen Cornel¬ ia, Peyton Cook, Marian & James Cressman, Rick Fridell, Jim Healy (JFIe), Jim Holmes (JHo), Judy Jordan, Joe Kahl, Pam Larson, Marcus Lawson, Martin Meyers (MMe), Don Molde, Milton Moody (MMo), Megan Morvilius (MMv), Marian Murdoch (MMu), Fred Petersen, Harold Peterson, Kristin Pur¬ dy, Barbara Raulston, Terry Sadler (TSa), Greg Scyphers, Aaron Smith, Mort & Car¬ olyn Somer, Dale Stahllecker, Toby Sulenski (TSu), Larry Tripp, Kevin Wheeler. J Summer 2005 was marked by warm and dry weather, but generous precip¬ itation from both winter and spring re¬ sulted in healthy grasslands and recharged wetlands. Work on breeding birds proceeded on several fronts, and several rarities were found. Yet another species — Short-tailed Hawk — was verified in the state. Abbreviations: B.L.N.W.R. (Bitter Lake N.W.R.); Bosque (Bosque del Apache N.W.R.); E.B.L. (Elephant Butte L.); L.V.N.W.R. (Las Vegas N.W.R.); Maxwell (Maxwell N.W.R. and vicinity); N.R.T. (North Roosevelt migrant trap near Melrose); R.G.V. (Rio Grande Valley); R.S. (Rat¬ tlesnake Springs area, Eddy). GREBES THROUGH FALCONS Several pairs of both Western and Clark’s Grebes enjoyed an extended nesting season at Stubblefield L., with young of both seen on various dates 9Jun-20 Jul (ph. DC); far¬ ther s., a Clark’s pair with 4 chicks was at Bosque 9 Jul (CGL); both Western and Clark’s broods were noted there 17 Jul (CR), and a Clark’s with one chick was at Fort Craig 7 Jun (RD). High counts for lin¬ gering American White Pelicans were 38 at El Vado L. 1 1 Jun (DS) and 18 at Bosque 15 Jun (WW). Noteworthy for Colfax were sin¬ gle American Bitterns in the Maxwell/Stub¬ blefield area 3 (CB), 5 (KG), & 17 Jun (ph. DC). One to 2 Least Bitterns summered at Bosque 15 Jun (WW) and 9 Jul (JP) and at B.L.N.W.R. Jun-Jul (GW), where breeding was suspected; another was at Bitter Cr., Chaves 18 Jun (GW). An ad. Tricolored Heron was n. to Bosque 3 Jun (JP). An imm. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron at Maxwell 5 Jul (ph. PH) provided a Colfax first and New Mexico’s most northerly ever. An ad. White Ibis visited Bosque 24-29 Jul (CB et al., ph. JO). White-faced Ibis found favor¬ able conditions in the Stubblefield L. area, where at least 50 pairs nested in flooded saltcedar and willow; eggs were found 1 Raton Maxwell N.W.RT' Clayton* Portales Bitter Lake N.W.R. Elephant Butte L. or Consequences ICaballo L. ^Percha San Andres Hobbs S.P fr) N.W.R. Carlsbad Brantley L. A , . Holloman l. Cavem$ N_p Carlsbad .Deming 9*Las Cruces Guadalupe* Mtns ■ Rattlesnake Spgs .Columbus Jun, nestlings were present 17 Jun, fledg¬ lings were seen by 30 Jun, and late nests continued active through Jul (ph. DC). An imm. Roseate Spoonbill reached B.L.N.W.R. 20 Jul (ph. JO), marking the 4th consecutive year for this species in New Mexico. A Ruddy Shelduck was at Texico 27 Jul (JO), while a Bar-headed Goose con¬ tinued at Bosque Jun-Jul (m.ob, ph. CGL); although vagrancy is documented in both species, these were believed to be escapees. A Bufflehead was late at L.V.N.W.R. 4 Jun Sartor 0. Williams III Southwest Natural History Institute 1819Meadowview Drive NW Albuquerque, New Mexico 87104-251 1 (sunbittern@earthlink.net) VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 633 NEW MEXICO (WW). Hooded Mergansers again sum¬ mered at Bosque, where up to 3 were noted 1 & 27 Jul (]0). Of New Mexico’s 18 known Osprey terri¬ tories, 16 are in n. Rio Arriba , where 10 were successful, fledging 21 young in 2005 (DS). Likely related to favorable grassland condi¬ tions (and a year-long absence of cows?), 3-4 White-tailed Kites appeared in the Animas Valley 16-30 Jul (DK, JR, JP, ph. JO, ph. CGL). Mississippi Kites continued in evi¬ dence in the middle R.G.V., with a nest at Peralta 17 Jun (E. Nunez), 7 including 2 juvs. at Belen 28 Jul (DH), and one at Bosque 9 Jul (CGL), while n. to the Canadian R. drainage were 3 below Conchas Dam 26 Jun (WW), 3 s. of Mosquero 29-30 Jul (MM), and 5 on Parajito Cr. nw. of Tucumcari 28 Jun QO). Two of the three monitored Colfax Bald Eagle nests were successful, fledging 4 young by Jun (SOW). Favorable grass¬ land/marshland conditions encouraged widespread summering by Northern Harri¬ ers, including a nest with nestlings at Maxwell 22 Jun (PH) and a nest discovered in the former L. McMillan lakebed in Apr that produced 2 young by 6 Jun (RD); others in likely breeding areas during the Jun-early Jul period were at Springer L. (DC), below Conchas Dam (WW), near Clovis (CLH), near Floyd (BN), B.L.N.W.R. (GW), L. Aval¬ on (SW), s. of Whites City (SW), Hobbs (DH), Bosque (CGL) and the s. Animas Val¬ ley (DK, JR). Unusual was a pair of subad. Cooper’s Hawks that produced 2 young at Corrales 23 Jul (GG). Always a treat, single ad. Northern Goshawks were in the s. Sangre de Cristo (WW), Sandia (BN), s. Sacramento (WH), Peloncillo (CDL), and Animas GP JO) ranges. Gray Hawks again occupied up¬ per Guadalupe Canyon, with one to 2 ads. near the 2004 nest 8 & 31 Jul (ph. JO, JP, NM-C, CGL) and a juv. down canyon 8 Jul (ph. JO, JP). Maintaining the species’ pres¬ ence in the middle R.G.V. was a Common Black-Hawk pair at Isleta 1 & 14 Jun G- Smith). Zone-tailed Hawk was first found n. to the Canadian R. in 1957, but its occur¬ rence there since has been spotty; this year a pair nested in Mills Canyon and produced a fledgling by late Jul (ph. HS). A light-morph ad. Short-tailed Hawk, first noted in the An¬ imas Mts. in late May, was relocated and pho¬ tographed 28 Jun (ph. JD), providing first verification for the species in the state. Un¬ usual for the season were 2 Ferruginous Hawks in the s. Animas Valley 16 Jul (DK, JR). Very late was a probable Merlin seen chasing collared-doves at Socorro 4 Jun GS). GROUSE THROUGH TERNS A pair of White-tailed Ptarmigan was near Ji- carita Peak on the Santa Barbara Divide 26 Jun (CR, BN et al.), 17 Jul GO -JP et al.), and 20 Jul (ph. AR). Both Scaled Quail and Gam- bel’s Quail had excellent seasons wherever found, with large and multiple broods noted May-Jul (m.ob.). Six Northern Bobwhites s. of Mosquero 18 Jun (MM) provided a local first. Montezuma Quail have been unreport¬ ed from the Gallinas Mts. near Corona for at least 50 years, so encouraging were 2 at the Gallinas Peak firetower 5 Jun (L. Powell). Unexpected in midsummer were 3 Black- bellied Plovers at B.L.N.W.R. 6 Jul (GW). Snowy Plover numbers peaked at B.L.N.W.R. with 379 on 6 Jul (GW). A Killdeer was incubating only 2 m from busy train tracks at Socorro 15 Jun GS), where railroaders considerately unloaded trains elsewhere to avoid disturbance. Breeding Mountain Plovers were recorded in Colfax (DC), Union (CR), and Harding (LS, CLH) 4- 24 Jun. Noteworthy for the sw., a Black¬ necked Stilt pair produced 2 chicks at Dem- ing in Jun (LM). Also in the sw., an Ameri¬ can Avocet with 2 chicks in McKinney Flats 9 Jun (SOW) provided a breeding first for the well-studied Gray Ranch. Indicating the first significant pulse of “fall” migration, yel- lowlegs’ numbers increased markedly to 38 Greaters and 50 Lessers at B.L.N.W.R. 6 Jul (GW). Noteworthy for Cibola was a Willet at El Morro 28 Jun (CG). Evidence of Spotted Sandpipers breeding in the Pecos Valley was provided by 2 displaying at Sumner L. 11 Jun (WH) and a pair with a chick at B.L.N.W.R. 24 Jun (GW). The first south¬ bound Upland Sandpipers were 3 at B.L.N.W.R. 27 Jul (GW). Long-billed Curlews were found on 10 B.B.S. routes, in¬ cluding a high 23 near Pastura 1 1 Jun (WH) and 3 s. to Caprock 5 Jun (SOW); notewor¬ thy was a pair with 2 chicks s. to Milnesand 7 Jun (T. McDaniel). One to 4 early Marbled Godwits reached Stubblefield L. (DC), B.L.N.W.R. (S. Matherly), and Holloman L. (CGL) 30 Jun-2 Jul. Rare w. to the R.G.V., a White-rumped Sandpiper was at Bosque 4 Jun GP> JO, CGL); high count was 35 at B.L.N.W.R. 1 Jun (GW), while the last were singles at Brantley L. 9 Jun (SW) and B.L.N.W.R. 15 Jun (GW). A bright Short¬ billed Dowitcher was at B.L.N.W.R. 3 Jun (ph. JO). An ad. Laughing Gull made a brief appearance at Brantley L. 23 Jul (SC, NC, RB, RV). Some 15-25 California Gulls were at Eagle Nest L. 18 Jun-9 Jul GP DC), but no breeding was noted. Rare terns were a Caspi¬ an at E.B.L. 8 Jun (ph. JO) and 2 Commons at Brantley L. 13 Jun GO); a Forster’s was w. to Lordsburg 26 Jul (CGL). A record 14 Least Tern pairs nested at B.L.N.W.R., and 23 young were fledged GM); at Brantley L., however, where up to 8 ads. lingered 16 Jun-14 Jul GM, RD), high water plus distur¬ bance resulted in no nesting. DOVES THROUGH WOODPECKERS Having successfully invaded cities, towns, and villages essentially statewide, Eurasian Collared-Doves began moving into the mts., including 3 up to 2250 m w. of Mayhill 13 Jun (SW) and one flying with Band-tailed Pigeons at 2400 m in the Animas Mts. 26 Jun (NM-C, AC). Not to be left behind, 5 White-winged Doves were at 2650 m near Cloudcroft 24-25 Jun (WH). The most widespread breeding bird in New Mexico may be Mourning Dove; this season, 1939 were reported on 59 of 61 B.B.S. routes, more routes than any other species. Note¬ worthy was an Inca Dove nest in Guadalupe Canyon 8 Jul (NM-C). Common Ground- Doves were relatively conspicuous in Hidal¬ go, with one to 3 at three Animas Valley sites 25 Jun-30 Jul (m.ob.) and up to 4 in Guadalupe Canyon 8 & 31 Jul GR JO, NM- C, AC, CGL). Yellow-billed Cuckoo made a strong showing, especially in the e., with re¬ ports of one to 4 summering at 16 sites in Colfax, Harding, San Miguel, Quay, DeBaca, Roosevelt, and Chaves, plus 3 at Brantley L. 9 Jun (RD) and 3 near Lakewood 14 Jul (RD), singles on the Black R. and the Delaware R. 25 Jun (SW), and a high 8 at R.S. 29 Jun (SW); noteworthy for the sw. was one in the Animas Valley 7 Jul GP)- Barn Owl nests n. to Colfax were one with young in a cave on Cerrososo Cr. 20 Jun (ph. DC) and another in an abandoned house near Maxwell 20 Jun (ph. DC). A Whiskered Screech-Owl persisted e. to Indi¬ an Cr. Canyon, Animas Mts. 25 Jun (NM-C, AC, JP, JO). Single Northern Pygmy-Owls giving two-note calls were in the Peloncillo Mts. 18 Jul (DK) and Animas Mts. 26 Jun GO). Summering Long-eared Owls where rarely reported were singles at Ute Mt., Taos 25 Jun and 2 Jul (fide GG), Silver City 8 Jul (M. Zimmerman), and Clanton Canyon 24 Jun (CGL). Two Short-eared Owls persisted in a grassy field w. of Portales Jun-Jul (GK, JA), where they exhibited territorial behav¬ ior, including defending the area against in¬ truders, but no nest was found; an ad. Short-eared in potential breeding habitat was found dead in a fence near Farley, Col¬ fax 22 Jul (LS). One to 2 vocal Whip-poor- wills were n. to the Zuni Mts. in Hausner Canyon 18 Jun (CG) and Little Water Canyon 1 Jul G- Trochet), as well as in the Sandia Mts. 20 Jun (CB). Broad-billed Hummingbirds away from usual areas were singles in Cottonwood Canyon, Peloncillo Mts. 25 Jun GP JO) and along Double Adobe Cr., Animas Mts. 19 Jul (R. Jankowitz). A White-eared Humming¬ bird near Cloudcroft 29-30 Jun (ph. D. & G. Champion, ph. JO) provided a first for the Sacramento Mts. and for se. New Mexico; another White-eared was n. to Little Cr., s. Catron 15 Jun (WW). Magnificent Hum¬ mingbirds were well represented in s. Catron and Grant Jun-Jul (m.ob.), including one at 634 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS NEW MEXICO Tyrone 26 Jul (PT, fide EL); in the se., one was at Cloudcroft 24-25 Jun (WH), and an¬ other was near Cloudcroft 1 Jul (JP). A Blue- throated Hummingbird at L. Roberts 8-24 Jul (JP et al.) provided the only substantiat¬ ed report. Anna’s Hummingbirds went unre¬ ported in Jun; the earliest were singles in Clanton Canyon 6-7 Jul (JO, JP), Silver City 9 Jul (fide DB), and P.O. Canyon 10 Jul (CDL). A male Costa’s Hummingbird in Clanton Canyon 17 Jul (DK) furnished the lone report; a possible Costa’s Hummingbird x Anna’s Hummingbird hybrid was at L. Roberts 8 Jul (JD-M). Earliest Rufous Hum¬ mingbirds were singles at Maxwell (DC) and near L. Roberts (fide DB) 23 Jun, with re¬ ports of singles at seven additional sites 24- 30 Jun (m.ob.); 3 Allen’s were measured and banded at L. Roberts 14-17 Jul (JD-M). Far from expected range, an apparent female El¬ egant Trogon was described at N.R.T. 1 1 Jun (G. Parker). Very far n. was an Acorn Wood¬ pecker at Enbom L., Rio Arriba 29 Jun (DS). Noteworthy was a Gila Woodpecker in oak woodlands in Clanton Canyon 17 Jul (DK). A pair of American Three-toed Woodpeckers was s. to Sandia Crest Jun-Jul (CR, JP, ph. JO, CGL, CB). FLYCATCHERS THROUGH RAVENS Olive-sided Flycatchers where seldom found in summer were singing singles at Ojo Redondo, Zuni Mts. 24 Jun (HS), Gal- linas Mts. near Corona 17 Jun (HS), and San Francisco Mts., Catron 24 Jun (SOW). Unexpected in the Peloncillo Mts. was a singing Greater Pewee in Cottonwood Canyon 11 Jun (JO). Providing a breeding first for the Mimbres Valley was a Willow Flycatcher nest 8 Jun (RR). Hammond’s Flycatchers were conspicuous in the Zuni Mts., including 4-5 in Hausner Canyon 18 Jun (CG) and 3 in Sawyer Canyon 22 Jun (HS). A Gray Flycatcher in upper Dark Canyon, Eddy 23-24 Jun (SW) furnished a local first; statewide, 61 Grays were count¬ ed on 16 B.B.S. routes. Dusky Flycatchers nested e. to Sugarite S.P., where one was singing 10 Jul (CAH), and ads. with fledg¬ lings were seen 16 Jul (DC); far s. was one singing in upper Dark Canyon, Guadalupe Mts. 23-24 Jun (SW). Additional evidence of the northward advance of Black Phoebes was an ad. with fledglings on the Mora R. near Watrous 5 Jun (CR), a pair nesting on the Cimarron R. w. of Cimarron 2 Jun-18 Jul (DC), and a nest with nestlings else¬ where on the Cimarron R. 22 Jun (ph. DC). Eastern Phoebes suggestive of local breed¬ ing were 2 s. of Mosquero 17 Jun (MM) and one singing at Fort Sumner 2 Jun (SOW). On the n. and e. edges of the range, up to 3 Vermilion Flycatchers summered s. of Mos¬ quero 17 Jun (MM), and a pair at B.L.N.W.R. fledged young by 13 Jun, then initiated a 2nd clutch in the same nest (GW). A Great Kiskadee strayed to Eunice, Lea 1 Jul, where it remained through the season (ph. P. McCasland, R. Cates), fur¬ nishing New Mexico’s 7th well documented record. A Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher was in Guadalupe Canyon 8 Jul (JP, JO, P. Lehman), the 4th consecutive year for the species there. Unexpected but nicely de¬ scribed was a singing and calling Couch’s Kingbird at Conchas Dam 26 Jun (WW), providing the 3rd well-documented state record. Only one Thick-billed Kingbird was in New Mexico’s Guadalupe Canyon 8 (JP, JO, NM-C, AC) & 31 Jul (CGL); the species has declined there in recent years. Scissor- tailed Flycatchers continued to occur w. of usual, including 4 s. of Mosquero in e. San Miguel 18 Jun (MM), one at Newkirk, Guadalupe 27 Jun (JP), 2 at Yeso, DeBaca 21 Jul (JO), 2 near Fort Sumner 2 Jun (SOW), and a pair at B.L.N.W.R. that fledged young 2 Jul (GW). North in the R.G.V. were single Bell’s Vire- os at Bosque 4 Jun (CGL) and 22 Jul (CB) and 4 at San Marcial 7 Jun (RD); in the sw., 4 were at Rodeo 9 Jun (AC). Noteworthy Gray Vireos were one n. of Salt L., Catron 25 Jun (SOW) and a nest with young in the Os- cura Mts. 8 Jun (CGL), where up to 10 Grays were seen 28 Jul (CGL). Yellow- throated Vireos have a habit of appearing in New Mexico in Jun; this season found one in the Penasco Valley near Elk, Chaves 4 Jun (ph. JO) and one singing on the Mimbres R. near Mimbres 23 Jun (RR). Huttons Vireos e. to the Organ Mts. included fledglings there 2 Jun (D. Griffin) and 2 ads. 10 Jul (CGL). Single Red-eyed Vireos were seen and heard in the Sandia Mts. near San Anto¬ nio 28 Jul (CB), Veguita, Socorro 17 Jun (DH), and R.S. 29 Jun (SW), and 2 were at N.R.T. 8 Jun (RD). Nicely described was a singing ad. Yellow-green Vireo n. of Bernalillo, Sandoval 28 Jun (H. Walker), pro¬ viding the 6th credible state record. A good acorn crop in the Peloncillo Mts. encouraged Mexican Jay clans to produce 2nd broods by late Jul (CDL). Noteworthy for summer were 12 American Crows near El Morro 13 Jun (CG). Chihuahuan Ravens again nested in Colfax, where five nests near Abbott had nestlings 18 Jun (DC). SWALLOWS THROUGH TANAGERS Purple Martins were much in evidence in the Zuni, San Mateo, Mogollon, Pinos Altos, and Sacramento ranges, while in the recent¬ ly colonized Sangre de Cristo Mts., several were in Dillon Canyon w. of Raton 24 Jun and 25 Jul (ph. DC) and Crow Canyon near Koehler, Colfax 1 Jun (DC); noteworthy were 2-3 in the Bear Mts. n. of Magdalena 2 Jun (HS). A pair of Tree Swallows was feed¬ ing nestlings in a Wood Duck box at L. Mal- oya, Sugarite S.R 11 Jul (CAH); elsewhere, single pairs were feeding young on Ponil Cr. near Cimarron 28Jun-4 Jul (ph. DC) and at L.V.N.W.R. 26 Jun (WW). A small colony of Bank Swallows discovered near Zia Pueblo 3 Jun (GG) provided a new breeding locale. In Eddy , Cave Swallows were found expanding away from cave sites, including 12 active nests in a culvert s. of Whites City, plus nests in three additional culverts in the same area 28 Jun (SW) and up to 28 birds at two bridge sites at Carlsbad 29-30 Jun (SW). Farther e., 3 apparent juv. Caves were at Maddox L., Lea 3 Jul (ph. JO). Some 13 Mexican Chickadees, including two family groups, were in the Animas Mts. 26 Jun (NM-C et al.). Bushtits with black ears are unusual n. to Albuquerque, where 4 were banded in Jun (ph. SC). Certainly un¬ expected in cottonwood riparian habitat, a pair of Brown Creepers nested in Albu¬ querque’s South Valley, where they were tending 2 fledglings 9 Jun (DH). A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher pair with fledglings 26 Jun (NM-C, AC) provided a rare Animas Mts. breeding record; 4 Black-tailed Gnatcatchers were n. to Oscura Mt. foothills, Socorro 18 Jul (CGL). Veery went undetected at tradi¬ tional locales in the Sangre de Cristo Mts., but 2-3 were found at Chama 7 (WW) & 17 Jul (JO). A Gray Catbird pair with fledglings 9 Jul (CAH) was part of a healthy breeding population at Sugarite S.P.; far s. for summer were singles near Cliff 26 Jun (b., CF) and Davies Tank, Dona Ana 29 Jun (R. Meyer). Northern Mockingbirds were especially widespread and conspicuous, as evidenced by 2227 counted on 54 of 61 B.B.S. routes. Perhaps a first for Colfax was a Curve-billed Thrasher nest with eggs near Farley 18 Jun (ph. DC). Single Olive Warblers were n. to the Mag¬ dalena Mts. 4 Jun (ph. AR) and 17 Jul (fide JS); fledglings were at two Burro Mts. sites 5- 7 Jul (JD). Noteworthy for the Zuni Mts. were one or more Orange-crowned Warblers in Hausner Canyon 18 Jun (CG) and n. of RO. Flats 24 Jun (HS). East of normal range, a pair of Lucy’s Warblers at R.S. Apr-Jul (m.ob.) likely nested there. A singing North¬ ern Parula was s. of Mosquero 17 Jun (MM); a female Black-and-white Warbler was w. to Mimbres 14 Jul (RR). Two American Red¬ starts were together on Ponil Cr. near Cimar¬ ron 27 Jun-12 Jul (ph. DC); far w. was one banded near Cliff 12 Jun (CF). Once again, an Ovenbird was singing n. of El Rito 18 Jun (JO), but proof of breeding remained elu¬ sive. Providing a Colfax first was a Kentucky Warbler on the Cimarron R. w. of Cimarron 1 1 Jun (v.r. DC); single Hoodeds were a male banded near Cliff 26 Jun (PT, CF) and a fe¬ male at the Gila Bird Area 16 Jun (J. Batkin). Wilson’s Warblers in presumed breeding habitats were 4 at the Taos Ski Valley 20 Jun VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 635 ni J&DA juJiW njiil ilia mw jm CillllJ fied-bi/lorfT—, . . AmericanBirding ASS O <: I A T I O N APPLY TODAY FOR THE AMERICAN BIRDING ASSOCIATION VISA® PLATINUM CARD * No Annual Fee * Low Introductory Rate * No balance transfer fee for six months It's the only card that ensures a percentage of every purchase you make will go toward the American Birding Association, to help support a variety of activities and programs designed to inspire all people to enjoy and protect wild birds. Choose from two distinct designs: Red-billed Tropicbird or Rufous Hummingbird. To apply call 1-800-853-5576 ext. 8396 or apply online today www.americanbirding.org The creditor and issuer of the American Birding Association VISA Platinum Card is U.S. Bank National Association ND. NEW MEXICO (WW) and at least 7 singing below the San¬ ta Barbara Divide 26 Jun (CR et al.); late for the prairie was one at N.R.T. 8 Jun (RD). A Red-faced Warbler in the Peloncillo Mts. 30 Jul (CGL) was probably an early migrant. Rare n. to Taos , a Hepatic Tanager pair was w. of Lama in Jun ( fide JB); noteworthy for Bernalillo was a pair with begging fledglings in Otero Canyon 24 Jul (BV). Single Sum¬ mer Tanagers were n. to El Morro 8 Jul (CG) and Mills Canyon 23 Jun (LS), and 3 were s. of Mosquero 17 Jun (MM). The earliest fall migrant Western Tanager reached Radium Springs 8 Jul (MS). SPARROWS THROUGH FINCHES With 2405 individuals tallied on 34 routes, Cassins Sparrow was the most numerous species detected on New Mexico B.B.S. routes in 2005. In the middle Animas Valley, 66 Botteri’s Sparrow territories were mapped 4-7 Jul (SOW, R Mehlhop); in this area, the species appeared to benefit from removal of cattle and generous winter/spring rains. Very early, the first Brewers Sparrow reached Al¬ buquerque 9 Jul (WH). For the 2nd consec¬ utive year, Black-chinned Sparrows were found n. to La Jara Cr., Rio Arriba (fide JB). Lark Buntings were numerous and wide¬ spread in Colfax, Union, and Harding, in¬ cluding 81 near Maxwell 5 Jun (KG), 213 near Grenville 20 Jun (CR), and 218 at 30 Harding sites 16-24 Jun (LS); w. were 32, in¬ cluding at least two broods, at Caja del Rio near Santa Fe 11 Jun (MR). Some 70 Grasshopper Sparrows were in native and exotic grasslands on the caprock s. of San Jon 3 Jun (CR). Surveys found seven Yellow¬ eyed Junco territories in the Burro Mts. and documented breeding at four of them by 7 Jul (JD); of interest, a dorsalis Gray-headed Junco pair produced fledglings in the same area (JD), making this the only site where Yellow-eyed and Dark-eyed J uncos’ breeding ranges come into contact. In the Animas Mts., nine Yellow-eyed Junco territories were documented by 28 Jun, including four in seldom-visited upper Bear Canyon (JD). A male Northern Cardinal persisted in Al¬ buquerque’s South Valley late May-early Aug (DH). A Pyrrhuloxia nest with eggs at Escondida 18 Jun (D. Perry) established breeding n. to Socorro. Last of the numerous spring Rose-breasted Grosbeaks was a male at N.R.T. 2 Jun (SOW). Painted Buntings n. and e. of usual were a male s. of Mosquero 18 Jun (MM), a singing male e. of Conchas L. 26 Jun (WW), and a pair at Taiban 23 Jun (NC); fall migrants in the sw. included 2 at Rodeo 23 Jul (RW) and one near L. Roberts 29 Jul (fide DB). Dickcissels were notably conspicuous in Colfax (ph. DC, CAH), Union (LS), Harding (DC), San Miguel (MR, MM), DeBaca (SOW), Quay (ph. JO, CR), Curry (JO), and Eddy (RD), and many may have been breeders; high counts included 7 near Farley 18 Jun (DC), two pairs near Clayton 18 Jun (LS), 8 s. of Mosquero 18 Jun (MM), and 7 s. of San Jon 3 Jun (CR). Noteworthy at 2400 m was an Eastern Meadowlarks at Quemado L. 24 Jun (SOW). Early southbound Yellow-headed Blackbirds were 2 each near Dunkin, Chaves 10 Jul (SW) and Brantley L. 13 Jul (RD). Brewer’s Blackbirds summering s. to the Sacramento Mts. were 2 at Angus 13-14 Jun (SW) and 2 near Cloudcroft 25 Jun (WH). Far w. was a Common Grackle near La Plata 5 Jun (T. Reeves). Continuing a seemingly relentless expansion, Bronzed Cowbird pioneers in¬ cluded singles n. to Albuquerque 26 Jun (BV) and Conchas Dam 28 Jun (ph. JO), and e. to Oasis S.P. in Jun (GK,JA) and Hobbs 3 Jul (ph. JO). An Orchard Oriole was n. to Conchas Dam 26 Jun (WW); 3 at R.S. 29 Jul (RD) provided the only additional report. Pine Grosbeaks were prevalent in both the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo ranges (m.ob.), including some 15 found feasting on spruce budworms in the Apache Cr. area, Rio Arriba 18-19 Jul (ph. AR, WW). Red Crossbills were relatively scarce in Jun, with only scattered reports from the Sangre de Cristo, Zuni, Datil, and Magdalena ranges. Remnants of large wintering flocks, linger¬ ing Pine Siskins included several in P.O. Canyon 1-5 Jun (CDL), singles at B.L.N.W.R. 8 Jun (WH) and Socorro 10 Jun (JS), and 2 at Radium Springs 1-17 Jun (MS, JZ); early returnees were several at Silver City 18 Jul (fide DB) and one at Deming 28 Jul (LM). American Goldfinches in known breeding areas were 2 on the Cimarron R. w. of Cimarron 27 Jul (DC) and up to 5 on nearby Ponil Cr. by 18 Jul (DC); away from Colfax, apparently summering Americans were several at Chatna 7 Jul (WW), a pair at Taos 20 Jun (WW), one s. of Taos 18 Jun (JP), and two pairs at Belen Jun-Jul (DH). Initialed observers: Julian Avery, Ryan Beaulieu, Jason Beason, David Beatty, Ce- lestyn Brozek, David Cleary, Nancy Cox, Steve Cox, Alan Craig, Joan Day-Martin, John DeLong, Robert Doster, Carol Fugagli, Gail Garber, C. Grimes, David Hawksworth, Charles L. Hayes, Patty Hoban, William Howe, Charles A. Hundertmark, Gregory Keller, David Krueper, Eugene Lewis, Car- roll D. Littlefield, Carl G. Lundblad, Martin MacRoberts, Larry Malone, James Mont¬ gomery, Narca Moore-Craig, Bruce Neville, Jerry Oldenettel, John Parmeter, Ross Ras¬ mussen, Mary Ristow, Andrew Rominger, Christopher Rustay, Janet Ruth, Lawry Sager, Hart Schwarz, Marcy Scott, John Shipman, Dale Stahlecker, Patricia Taber, Raymond VanBuskirk, Brad Vaughn, Gordon Warrick, Richard Webster, Steve West, William West, S. O. Williams, James Zabriskie. O NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 636 The event of the season was the publi¬ cation of the Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas, a trove of information invalu¬ able to those interested in the avifauna of Arizona. Also making an Arizona debut was a Black Turnstone. Abetted by a hot July and the second-latest onset of monsoon rains ever — two weeks late — a record 270,000 hectares were burned in wildfires. Abbreviations: A.B.C. (Arizona Bird Com¬ mittee), A.VS.T.R (Avra Valley S.T.R), B.T.A. (Boyce Thompson Arboretum), L.C.R.V. (lower Colorado R. valley), H.R.P. (Has- sayampa R. Preserve), RL.S.P. (Patagonia L. S.R), RR.D. (Painted Rock Dam), S.C.L. (San Carlos L.), Sweetwater (Sweetwater Wet¬ lands, Tucson), S.P.R. (San Pedro R.), White- water (Whitewater Draw W.A.). LOONS THROUGH CARACARA Casual in summer, 2 Common Loons were on Horseshoe Res. 10Jun+ (R Dockens,/ide TC) and one was at Dateland 10Jun-4Jul (S. Olmstead, ph. HD). Present since spring, the Least Grebe at Sweetwater was observed nest-building on 11 Jul (JLD) but went un¬ reported after 23 Jul, continuing its pattern of intermittent absence. A small number of Western Grebes was present below RR.D., with nesting noted 4 Jul-i- (TC, TM, LP). At S.C.L., up to 700 Aechmophorus grebes were present 3 Jul, with a few nests of both species observed (DJ). Brown Pelicans wan¬ dered inland from the Sea of Cortez in above-average numbers beginning 1 Jul, with an estimated 65+ seen (m.ob.) Those farthest inland were singles at Willow L. 8 Jul (ph. W. Cooper, jide CST) and Roosevelt L. 21 Jul (A. Smith). The largest groups were 13 near Yuma 1 Jul (LP), 10 on L. Havasu 15 Jul (K. Blair), and 15 in the RR.D. area in late Jul (BG). Neotropic Cormorants away from more typical areas included one e. to Foun¬ tain Hills L. 2 Jul+ (KR) and up to 2 w. to RR.D. 4-17 Jul (TC, TM). Taking advantage of refilled reservoirs, Double-crested Cor¬ morants nested again below P.R.D. 4 Jul+ (TC, TM) and in several colonies at a new location, Horseshoe Res. (R Dockens, fide TC). Ardeids also took advantage of refilled reservoirs, with multiple species nesting be¬ low P.R.D. (TC, TM, PD) and along Horse¬ shoe Res. (R Dockens, fide TC). An imm. Reddish Egret at P.L.S.R 22-24 Jul was a first for Santa Cruz (D. Pratt, ph. M. Brown). Cat¬ tle Egrets were observed nesting below RR.D. 12 Jun+ (PD), with more than 200 pairs present 4 Jul (TC, TM); 20 were near S.C.L. 3 Jul (DJ), where nesting has not been reported previously. No fewer than five pairs of White-faced Ibis feeding young below RR.D. 20 Jul (TC, ph. LP) represented only the 2nd nesting record for Arizona. A Greater White-fronted Goose with a damaged wing summered at Fountain Hills Arizona Co lor( • Cameron Lake Havasu Prescott Springerville Parker Dam Theodore Roosevelt L. Phoenix^ San Carlos L. Dudleyville • an q Organ Pipe Cactus N.M. W Arivaca •Tucson Lee’s • • Lake Powell/Glen Canyon Ferry - Page Grand Canyon N.P • Many Farms Ganado ■^.•Willcox Portal •Sonoita Patagonia Sierra Vista • Nogales Whitewater California' Gulch Draw W.A. L. (KR). Partly grown Redheads below P.R.D. 4 Jul (TC, TM) represented only a 3rd Mari¬ copa nesting record. In Prescott, a Blue¬ winged Teal was a rare summer visitor 15 Jun (B. Thomen). A worn female-plumaged scaup at Dateland on 4 Jul (ph. KR), possi¬ bly a Greater, will be reviewed by the A.B.C. ; there are no summer records of the species for the L.C.R.V. At Glen Canyon Dam, 2 Common Goldeneyes were seen in Jul (J. Spence); the species has summered there re¬ cently. Two Osprey were below RR.D. 4 Jul+ (BG, PL); Osprey have recently nested as close by as the w. Phoenix valley. A White-tailed Kite at Picacho Res. 3 Jun (J. Cochran) and an ad. with 2 juvs. in the San Rafael Valley 31 Jul (JS) were the only ones reported. Three Mis¬ sissippi Kites were in St. David 22 Jul+ (M. Matson). Whether the recent colony will persist there bears watching. Northern Har¬ riers are opportunistic breeders in Arizona with few confirmed nests. The presence of 3 ad. female and 3 juv. harriers near Portal 5 Jul (RW) marked only their 2nd nesting in Mark M. Stevenson (Non-Passerines) 4201 East Monte Vista Dr #J207 Tucson, Arizona 85712-5554 (drbrdr@att.net) Gary H. Rosenberg (Passerines) P.0. Box 91856 Tucson, Arizona 85752-1856 (ghrosenberg@comcast.net) VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 637 Nearly unprecedented in Arizona in June, this Sabine's Gull was part of an array of surprises at Willcox between late May and early June 2005 (here 7 June). Photograph by Mark Stevenson. se. Arizona. A remarkable find was a single Short-tailed Hawk in the Pinal Mts. near Globe 17-18 Jun (J. Alcock et al., tD. Pear¬ son), well n. of their nearest prior docu¬ mented occurrence (in the Huachuca Mts.). Single Short-tailed Hawks were reported from Barfoot Park throughout the summer (RWr, JLD, rn.ob.) and in Carr Canyon 23 Jul+ (m.ob.). Two Crested Caracaras near Red Rock 25 Jul (RH) and one below Madera Canyon 27 Jul (M. McQuerrey) were e. of known nesting areas. RAILS THROUGH SAPSUCKERS Quite rare n. of the Mogollon Rim, a Com¬ mon Moorhen was at Long L. 12 Jun (EM). The lone summer Sandhill Crane was pres¬ ent again at Luna L. in Jun (PD et ah). A ba- sic-plumaged Marbled Godwit at Willcox 3-1 1 Jun (MMS, MP) may be considered ca¬ sual. A Black Turnstone was an exciting first state record at Willcox 2-5 Jun (R. Eastman, ph. MMS, R. Ditch, J. Estis). Although they are fairly common along the Sea of Cortez and rare but regular at the Salton Sea, the nearest record to Arizona was on the Cali¬ fornia side of L. Havasu in 1948. Single juv. Semipalmated Sandpipers were reported from Willcox 29-30 Jul (ph. DS) and Green Valley S.T.P 30 Jul (C. Cathers). A Short¬ billed Dowitcher heard at PR.D. 20 Jul (TC, LP) was the only one reported. Early south¬ bound shorebirds at Willcox included a Greater Yellowlegs 20 Jun (J. McCabe), 2 Marbled Godwits 3 Jul (DS), and single Sanderlings 18-19 (J. Coons) & 29 Jul (B. Schutsky). At Dateland, a Long-billed Dow¬ itcher 3-25 Jun (HD, PD) was early. Even by Arizona standards, it was a summer of few larids. Quite unexpected was a subad. Sabine’s Gull at Willcox 7-10 Jun (P. Pratt, ph. R.A. Rowlett et ah), furnishing one of very few Jun records statewide. Twelve Caspian Terns and 6 Forster’s Terns above PR.D. 12 Jun (PD) were unexpected away from the L.C.R.V in midsummer. A Black Tern at Willcox 25 Jun (ph. R. Shantz) was casual. Ruddy Ground-Doves, typically absent in summer, were present at a number of loca¬ tions. A late report was received of a pair at¬ tempting copulation at Rio Rico 14 May (G. Hentz, fide TC). Elsewhere, one was near Red Rock 14 Jun-8 Jul (MK), another was at Quigley W.A. 25 Jun (TM), and 4 were seen courting in the w. Phoenix valley 7-9 Jul (R. Jones), near where a pair apparently nested last year. The pair of Northern Saw- whet Owls present in Rustler Park in the spring was active again during the summer (m.ob.). The Buff-collared Nightjars near California Gulch were reported through 27 Jul (m.ob.); one or 2 heard in Brown Canyon 17 Sep (L. Liese et ah) indicated that they summered there again. White-eared Hummingbirds were far more numerous than usual. Most unusual was one at Columbine, Pinaleno Mts. on 9 Jul (S. Wethington), only the 2nd ever found in that range. Singles were in Madera Canyon 1-11 Jul (L. Calvo, G. West, ph. A. Tozier), while up to 4 were in the Portal area in late Jul (RW, S. Kennedy, T. Prestby). In their more regular eastside Huachuca Mt. haunts, up to 13 were reported, including an amazing 8 at Beatty’s in Miller Canyon 15 Jul (N. Aley, TB, JH, M. McQuerrey, R. Romea, M. Smith). At Ramsey Canyon, a female Berylline Hummingbird appeared 21 Jul+ (R Brodkin, tGB). Meanwhile, hybrid hum¬ mingbirds of apparent Berylline parentage summered in Ramsey Canyon and Miller Canyons again (m.ob.) Continuing their re¬ cent increase in numbers in eastside Huachuca Mt. canyons, up to 7 Violet- crowned Hummingbirds were reported (m.ob.), with 4 in a single yard (JH). In a re¬ peat of last year, one visited a feeder high in the Santa Catalina Mts. 6 Jul (MA). At least one nested in Portal (m.ob.), and an ad. was banded in Madera Canyon 27 Jul (G. West). Lucifer Hummingbirds also maintained their recent trends in the Huachuca Mts., with up to 5 in Ash Canyon (M. J. Ballator) and 4 more in nearby canyons (TB, B. Behrstock, JH). There was a female Lucifer at a feeder in Duquesne, Patagonia Mts. 8 Jul (JS). The first southbound Rufous Hummingbirds ar¬ rived in the Huachuca Mts. 27 Jun (M.J. Bal¬ lator, TB), at Sipe White Mountain W.A. 28 Jun (D. Roten), and in Flagstaff 30 Jun (J. Hildebrand). Allen’s Hummingbirds, rare migrants, were reported: 2 banded in Madera Canyon 1 1 Jul (G. West) and anoth¬ er banded there 27 Jul, and singles in Patag¬ onia 23 Jul (C. Lundblad), Portal 23 Jul (S. Kennedy), and Arivaca 26 Jul (G. West). No nests of Elegant Trogon have been discov¬ ered in the Patagonia Mts, but a juv. in Duquesne 25 Jun with 2 ads. (noted previ¬ ously) suggested breeding there (JS). Record early in se. Arizona, a Belted Kingfisher was along the S.P.R. near Hereford 10 Jul (M. Marsden), besting the local early arrival date by a month. Also very early was a south¬ bound juv. Williamsons Sapsucker in the Chiricahua Mts. 28-29 Jul (B. Bickel, RWr et al.); they seldom arrive in s. Arizona before mid-Aug. FLYCATCHERS THROUGH MIMIDS Greater Pewee is casual anywhere above the Mogollon Rim, so 2 at Coleman L. 8 Jun (EM, C. Holm) and one at Black Canyon (K. Penland) were of interest. Several Buff¬ breasted Flycatchers were reported from the Rincon Mts. during summer surveys (fide MA); this species has been found there again in recent years. A Dusky-capped Flycatcher in the Pinal Mts. 17 Jun (D. Pearson) was n. of usual breeding areas in the state. A Sul¬ phur-bellied Flycatcher at Rose Canyon, Santa Catalina Mts. 23-26 Jul (J. Danzenbak- er, MA) provided one of the few records ever of this species from n. of the Santa Rita Mts. Tropical Kingbirds were found nesting at a number of locations away from the Santa Cruz R. Valley, including three pairs at H.R.P 2 Jul (fide TC et al.) and a pair near Winkle- man 10 Jul OLD). Other locations of interest included ne. Tucson, Kino Springs, Rio Rico, and along the upper S.P.R. At least one Thick-billed Kingbird remained at H.R.P 2 Jul (TC) after 3 were found there during May; this location is well n. of previous known nesting areas in the state. An Eastern Kingbird, casual in the state during summer, was at Tunracacori 13 Jul (KK). Another species casual in Arizona during the sum- 638 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS mer, a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher was reported from Roll near Yuma 24Jun (B. Brochu,/ide HD). A Rose-throated Becard was first de¬ tected this summer at the Patagonia Road¬ side Rest Area 26 Jun (C. Cathers), and a pair was found nest-building there 15 Jul (JLD). Another singing male was found at the e. end of Patagonia L. 21 Jul (D. Pratt et al.) , and a worn female was found along Sonoita Cr. above Patagonia L. 5 Jul (WR). The stretch of Sonoita Cr. from Patagonia L. upstream to the Roadside Rest continues to be the stronghold for this species in the state. A pair of Bell’s Vireo nest-building at Page Springs 26 Jun (R. Radd) was away from usual breeding areas and at an unusu¬ ally high elevation. A Yellow-throated Vireo, casual in Arizona during summer, was in Carr Canyon 20-23 Jul (ph. B. L. Sullivan). A Red-eyed Vireo, also casual during the summer, was reported at Rio Rico 12 Jul (TT. Wheeker). A Western Scrub-Jay 3 km w. of Ruby 26 Jul (SH) was at least the 3rd report from this area in the past few years, sug¬ gesting a small population there. Scattered reports of Clark’s Nutcrackers from the Santa Catalina, Rincon, and Chiricahua Mts. from Jun-Jul were likely remnants from last winter’s mini-invasion that brought birds to s. Arizona (RW, MA, MK et al.). Two Pur¬ ple Martins found in California Gulch 21-26 Jul (DS, SH) were well s. and w. of known breed¬ ing areas in s. Arizona. Very early Tree Swallows included one at A.V.S.T.R 4 Jul (RWr), 2 there 8 Jul (P Kline), one at Saguaro N. P 9 Jul 0- Higgins) , and 4 at Mammoth 10 Jul (JLD). Also very early was a Bank Swallow at Green Valley 9 Jul (RWr, D. Smyth). At least one pair of Black-capped Gnat- catchers continued to be seen at P.L.S.R during the summer (RT, SH,JLD et al.). Another pair with young was reported from Montosa Canyon 15-29 Jul (MK, RH, N. Bent et al.), and a disheveled individual banded at Tumacacori 23 Jul (ph. L. Norris, GB et al.) was thought to be this species. An Aztec Thrush reported from S. Fork of Cave Cr. Canyon 30 Jun (IS. Cardinal, S. Durst) was very early for Arizona; most of the previous records come from Jul-Aug. A Gray Catbird summered 8 Jun+ at Rio de Flag, Flagstaff (CL), where casual. Two oth¬ ers remained in a Portal yard most of Jun (L. & T. Gates), and another was in Madera Canyon 10 Jul+ (J. Burns et al.); this species is casual in summer away from the White Mts. region. Unusually high for the species in Arizona, a Curve-billed Thrasher was at Rose Canyon in the Santa Catalina Mts. 23 Jul (PL). WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES Single Northern Parulas included a singing male at Granite Basin 25 Jun (CST) and a fe¬ male in the upper Verde Valley 11 Jul (J. Saar). A Townsend’s Warbler in the Santa Catalina Mts. 6 Jun (MA) was quite late for an Arizona spring migrant, whereas one also seen in the Santa Catalina Mts. 22 Jul (PL) was very early for a fall migrant. A Black- and-white Warbler, casual in summer, was reported from the San Manuel Crossing of the lower S.RR. 28 Jul (S. Stump, fide TC). Single American Redstarts were found at Cienega Cr. 25 Jun (J. & T. Brewer), in a Portal Yard 1-15 Jul (L. & T. Gates), and along the S.P.R. near Fairbank 1 Jul (G. Johnson). Also casual in summer were Pro- thonotary Warblers at B.T.A. 18-23 Jun (K. Anderson et al.), along the S.P.R. near Here¬ ford 1 Jun (M. Marsden), and at Black Canyon along the Mogollon Rim 28 Jun (K. Penland). An Ovenbird was found dead on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson 3 Jun ( fide T. Huels; *University of Arizona). Louisiana Waterthrushes tend to show up in Arizona during two distinct periods, late July and winter. This summer, 3 were found: one at Pena Blanca L. 20 Jul (S. Johnsen et al.), one near Hereford along the S.RR. 22-23 jul (tS. Schuette), and another at Agua Caliente Park, Tucson 22-24 Jul (D. Touret et al.). The only Hooded Warbler of the sea¬ son was a worn female at San Bernardino N.W.R. 20 Jul (RW). A “tattered” male Wil¬ son’s Warbler was at Sheeps Crossing, White Mts. 19 Jul (D. Roten), providing another summer report from that area; there are no breeding records for this species in Arizona. A Western Tanager in Sabino Canyon 13 Jun (WR) was likely a very late spring mi¬ grant. The pair of Flame-colored Tanagers that nested in Madera Canyon during the spring attempted another nesting in Jun but were not reported after 10 Jul (m.ob.). Two White-crowned Sparrows on Humphrey’s Peak near Flagstaff 30 Jun (CL) suggested local breeding there. At least 11 Rose-breast¬ ed Grosbeaks were reported across s. Ari¬ zona 5 Jun-31 Jul (m.ob.); this species has become rather numerous during the late spring and summer in Arizona in recent years. Another low-elevation report from Sabino Canyon was of a Black-headed Gros¬ beak 13 Jun (WR). A Lazuli Bunting on Mt. Hopkins Rd. 13 Jul OLD) was a bit early, but at least 50 (mostly ad. males) at Kino Springs 31 Jul-2 Aug QLD et al.) were more in line with this species’ pattern of staging in s. Arizona in late summer before continuing southward into Mexico for the winter. Of note were individual Indigo Buntings at Cow Springs L. 23 Jun (CL), at H.R.P. 2 Jul (TC), and at S. Fork of the Little Colorado R. 4 Jul Q. Videle); this species is a rare breeder across the Mogol¬ lon Rim region of cen. Arizona. Continuing a now well-estab¬ lished pattern of staging in s. Arizona in late Jul-early Aug, no fewer than 15-20 Painted Buntings were reported 14 Jul+ (m.ob.). Yellow-headed Black¬ birds were reported in greater numbers than usual this late summer at a variety of s. Ari¬ zona localities, suggesting po¬ tential nesting in the Region. A Streak-backed Oriole was re¬ ported from a Portal yard 15 Jun (tL. & T. Gates), while an¬ other was located along the Santa Cruz R. near Tumacacori 23 Jul+ (W. Leitner; ph. KK, GB), providing a first Santa Cruz record. A belated report of a Lawrence’s Goldfinch was received for the Nogales area 14 May (TC), a very late date for se. Arizona. Observers (subregional editors in boldface): Moez Ah, Tom Beatty, Gavin Bieber, Troy Corrnan, Henry Detwiler, Pierre Deviche, Jon L. Dunn, Bill Grossi, Stuart Healy, John Hirth, Rich Hoyer, Dougjeness, Keith Kam- per (Tucson RBA), Melody Kehl, Chuck LaRue, Paul E. Lehman, Tracy McCarthey, Elaine Morral, Lin Piest, Molly Pollock, Kurt Radamaker, Will Russell, Dave Stejskal, Mark M Stevenson, Joshua Stewart, Rick Taylor, Carl S. Tomoff (Prescott), Richard E. Webster, Janet Witzeman (Maricopa), Rick Wright. A rarity in Arizona at any season but most surprising in summer, a Yellow-throated Vireo in Carr Canyon 20 July 2005 was found during the American Birding Association convention, held at Tucson. Photograph by Brian L. Sullivan. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 639 Alaska CHUKCHI SEA . Barrow BEAUFORT SEA Prudhoe Bay Thede Tobish 2510 Foraker Drive Anchorage, Alaska 99517 (tgt@alaska.net) Following the mild and relatively storm-free spring, summer 2005 con¬ tinued fair and warm across the Re¬ gion. This years fire season was prolific, mainly across the breadth of the Interior, where thousands of lightning strikes started several very large fires. Most of these were in July and probably did not radically disrupt breeding success. As a result of the early breeding season, bird song trailed off earlier and more abruptly in late June than is nor¬ mal, and many species dispersed from breed¬ ing areas earlier than usual. Possibly also re¬ lated to the warm weather, southbound shorebird migration was missing the typical large concentrations at scattered coastal staging sites. It was a quiet rarity season, and waterbirds provided the few highlights. HERONS THROUGH GROUSE Although Great Blue Herons winter in small numbers in the Kodiak Archipelago, there were no summer records so far w. in the Re¬ gion until this season, when one lingered around Kodiak through 27 Jun (fide RAM). Observers identified a Short-tailed Shearwa¬ ter flying northward in a very low-salinity section of Upper Cook Inlet in Knik Arm 24 Jun (DE), a first for the upper inlet. Two Manx Shearwaters, photographed just off the beach at Middleton I. 3-24 Jul (ph. BG, NB), showed intriguing site tenacity at what could represent a suitable breeding area. The quality of the photographs allowed the Alas¬ ka Checklist Committee to elevate this casu¬ al summer visitor in the North Gulf to the formal Alaska list. Of the handful of summer Cackling Goose reports, which focused mainly on some late northbound migrants in South¬ east, a group of 9 in Gustavus 28 Jul (BP) was most unusual and likely nonbreeders from n. populations. A pair of Trumpeter Swans with 2 cygnets along a Traitor R. slough 27 Jul (PR, fide SCH) represented a first breeding pair from Revillagigedo I. and probably the 2nd documented nest from s. Southeast. A drake Cinnamon Teal injuneau 4 Jun (MB) was certainly a late migrant and provided the season’s only report. Other than Greater Scaup, Aythya are rare in Southeast in summer, so a male Redhead in Juneau 15 Jul (PS, GW) and a Ring-necked Duck pair in Ketchikan 11 Jun (AWP, SCH) were notable. Thirteen Greater Scaup were noted 10 Jun+ at Gambell (PEL), where they are scarce and usually earlier. A pair of ad. King Eiders mixed with local Commons at Kodiak 22 Jun (RAM); Kings are usually seen here in winter and are rare in summer. At least one stejnegeri White-winged Scoter was described off Gambells Northeast Pt. 10 Jun (tPEL), the site of most of the few Alas¬ ka records; this subspecies may be split (as . - . — Velvet Scoter) in the future. Also scarce off¬ shore in the n. Bering Sea were Common Goldeneyes in numbers at Gambell, with a maximum of 12 on 14 Jun (PEL). A subad. Bald Eagle was seen near Kivali- na n. of the Noatak R. Delta 13 Jul (GW). Although Bald Eagles are known to breed up the Bering Sea coast locally to at least the lower Noatak R. watershed, there are only occasional reports n. of there, especially along the immediate coastal fringe. Ketchikan observers were able to locate and further document Rock Ptarmigan in the alpine areas above town, with 2 males first noted 11 Jun (RN, ph. AM) and a female with a brood of 6 at Mahoney Ridge (elev. 750 m) 26 Jun (AWP, ph. SCH). This marks only the 2nd record of local nesting for the area, where access to higher-elevation alpine sites is limited. RAILS THROUGH NIGHTHAWKS Both extralimital rallids that surfaced in Gustavus this spring called from territories into midsummer: the Virginia Rail called from its favored sedge marsh 7 Jun-6 Jul (v.r. ND, PV, BP), while the local Sora also called from its spring location through 10 Jun (ND, PV). The Juneau Soras were also busy breed¬ ing, and an ad. attended 2 chicks in the Mendenhall Valley 11 Jun+ (GB). This marks the Region’s 2nd confirmed nesting of the species. A pair of Sandhill Cranes over muskeg near Ketchikan 1 1 Jun (AWP, SCH) was in an area where breeding has been sus¬ pected for years but has yet to be confirmed. It was an average season for wandering Asian shorebirds. In Jun-Jul, a handful typi¬ cally appear at the standard Bering Sea island sites as either late nonbreeding migrants or southbound birds. This season, these in¬ cluded a Lesser Sand-Plover at Gambell 13 Jun (vt. PEL), a Common Greenshank 11-12 Jun and a Common Sandpiper 17-18 Jun, both at Gambell, where not annual, and 2 Red-necked Stints, also lingering at Gambell 13-21 Jun (vt. PEL). Kodiak’s first Greater Yellowlegs nest was discovered at 420 m ele¬ vation above town 3 Jun (WD); few nests are known from that elevation in the Region. An aggregation of 85+ Hudsonian Godwits was at Juneau’s productive Eagle Beach 15 Jul (ph. PS), probably a record high count for Southeast. An ad. Stilt Sandpiper in Juneau 24-27 Jun was also rare for Southeast (PS ph., RJG). A Short-billed Dowitcher was re¬ ported from St. Paul 1. 3 Jun (ST. PAUL), where there are few Jun records. A group of 4 Red Phalaropes in Upper Cook Inlet’s Knik Arm 19 Jul (DE , fide TT), furnished Upper Cook Inlet’s 4th record. Casual in summer, a Franklin’s Gull near Ketchikan 2 Jul (AWP) provided the 3rd summer report there, the locale with most of the Region’s reports. Another ad. Franklins Gull reached Kodiak, where there a several 640 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS . . . . . — — . . . . . early summer records, 17 Jun (JBA, IM, MP). Also rare in midsummer were single imm. Ring-billed Gulls at Ketchikan 11 Jun (AWP, SCH) and Juneau 29 Jun-11 Jul (PS). Ring- billeds typically enter the Region in very small numbers in s. Southeast after early Aug. The ad. Lesser Black-backed Gull seen near Juneau 19 Jun was felt to be the same bird that has been attached to the Menden¬ hall gull colony and seen occasionally for the past decade (RJG). Imm. Black-legged Kittiwakes were drawn to nearshore estuar¬ ies from Haines (PEL et al.) to Juneau, with large flocks noted at least in the season’s first half, including a maximum 1500+ at Eagle Beach n. of Juneau for most of Jun (PS, GW). It has been suggested that these in¬ shore aggregations tend to happen in years when local North Gulf water temperatures are above average. Caspian Terns were well represented across the North Gulf, with the season’s peak of 39 birds found in Gustavus 19 Jul (ND). Historic high counts usually come from the Copper R. Delta/Cordova area. Thirteen Caspians in the Juneau area 20 Jun (PS) was an above-average count there. Surveys in several of Glacier Bay’s inlets produced ex¬ ceptional Aleutian Tern tallies, including 37 in Adams Inlet during the week of 12 Jun (YA , fide ND). At least four nests were sub¬ stantiated. Although there are historic Aleut¬ ian Tern nest records from Glacier Bay, these are exceptional contemporary numbers, which may be a result of habitat succession. USGS staff ran shipboard transects around the perimeter of Unalaska I. this season and counted an amazing 410 Kittlitz’s Murrelets in Jun (fide JP). Even without extrapolation, these numbers confirm this area as one of the species’ strongholds in the Region. Consider¬ able DNA sampling and analyses of this e. Aleutian population is beginning to provide evidence that Aleutian Kittlitz’s may be ge¬ netically distinct from Mainland birds from points farther e. in the North Gulf. USGS staff also located a Kittlitz’s nest with an egg in an alpine section of Agattu I. in late Jul, only the 2nd nest ever found in the Aleutians (fide GVB). The season’s most intriguing find was a pair of Black Guillemots seen consis¬ tently in Valdez Arm in e. Prince William Sound 17 Jul — 1 Aug+ (AB, TA & JG ph.) as¬ sociating with food-gathering Pigeon Guille¬ mots. Besides being a first ever for Prince William Sound and the e. North Pacific, the only known closest records comprise a few winter sightings from the se. Bering Sea in years when extreme winter pack ice ad¬ vances to the vicinity of the Pribilof Is. A Mourning Dove in Petersburg 15 Jun (RL) was rare in summer; the species is largely a fall straggler in Alaska. Three Com¬ mon Cuckoos (reported without details) ar¬ rived with a late storm at St. Paul 19-30 Jun (ST. PAUL), providing the season’s only re¬ port. An Oriental Cuckoo photographed at Gambell 23 Jun+ (HI, ph. GK) was ex¬ tremely late but within the range of most of the Regions recent reports. Juneau’s West¬ ern Screech-Owl pair bred for the 3rd con¬ secutive year near Douglas, where at least 3 young fledged in Jun (PS). The summer’s only Northern Pygmy-Owl report was a sin¬ gle near Ketchikan 12 Jun (SCH), where they are rare at this season. A displaying Common Nighthawk over the Juneau area 22-30 Jun (DR et al.) was an intriguing summer report away from known or sus¬ pected nesting sites in the Chilkat and Kel- sall watersheds. WOODPECKERS THROUGH WAXWINGS A mid-Jun follow-up visit to the w. White Mountain habitat that last summer pro¬ duced a discrete “colony” of breeding Yel¬ low-bellied Flycatchers again confirmed several pairs and nesting behavior (fide DDG). Access to similar habitats at points e. of there is limited or lacking, so it may take This Oriental Cuckoo at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska 23 June 2005 (here) and later was the only one reported in spring/summer 2005 and rather late. Photograph by Gerard Koonooka. a long time to establish and delineate the ex¬ tent of Yellow-bellied’s presence in the e. In¬ terior. The season’s only other Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was a singing bird outside Juneau 26-27 Jun (GW, SZ, PS). Least Flycatchers were also missing except for one in song at Ketchikan 5-15 Jun (ph. SCH), a local and offshore Southeast first, and one at Hyder 22 Jun (SCH), where there are several Jun records. Most unexpected offshore in the Bering Sea was a Say’s Phoebe at Gambell 10 Jun (vt. PEL). There are no previous offshore Bering Sea area records of this very local nester that breeds as close to the coast as the w. side of the Imuruk Basin in the vicinity of Teller. Considered annual but not actually recorded every summer, the season’s only Eastern Kingbird was seen just s. of Juneau Pt. Snettisham 12-13 Jul (ph. GB); most summer vagrants come from the Southeast Mainland river corridors. Alaska’s first Cassin’s Vireo nest was locat¬ ed in a riparian thicket e. of Haines along the Chilkat R. 4 Jun (ph. LD, ph. NH). The pair was actively tending to fairly advanced chicks on that date. Given the date and stage of this breeding record, the Regions earliest spring record (mid-May), previously consid¬ ered enigmatic and without precedent, now appears within what could be this species’s early-arrival range. The only other Cassin’s report was a singing bird 14 Jun in Juneau’s Mendenhall moraines (RJG), where several have been documented over the past decade. A first at least for the Kodiak population was a Northwestern Crow nest discovered on the ground on an offshore islet 5 Jun (IM, ph. RAM). Extralimital swallows included a juv. Tree Swallow way n. on the Bering Sea coast 13 Jul at Kivalina (GW), where they are not known to nest, at least 4 ad. Cliff Swallows attending nests attached to houses at Kivali- na 13 Jul (GW), and 2 white-bellied Barn Swallows around Gambell 21-22 Jun (vt. PEL), one of which hung around through 10 Jul (HI). When birders visit some of the more isolated or smaller Bering Sea coast vil¬ lages (e.g., Wales, Sheesalik, Kivalina, Pt. Hope) in Jun, they sometimes discover a few boreal forest nesters (e.g.. White-crowned Sparrow, swallows, American Robin) that may have reached the coast as overshoots or as pioneers and are then drawn to various artificial habitats. A few M uscicapa flycatchers were identi¬ fied by the observers from St. Paul I. after a mid-Jun storm event, including one Dark¬ sided Flycatcher and up to 6 Gray-streaked Flycatchers 19-22 Jun (ST. PAUL). The Pri- bilofs have produced several Old World fly¬ catchers in Jun over the past few years. Un¬ precedented in Southeast, and one of the lat¬ est Jun records for migrants away from the known Alaska breeding range, was an East¬ ern Yellow Wagtail in Juneau 20 Jun (GW); there are few extralimital reports from the Mainland, and most are from early fall. A pair of Bohemian Waxwings was unusual so far n. at Kiana 15 Jul (GW) on the lower Kobuk R. WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES Single Tennessee Warblers in Juneau 24 & 26 Jun (GW, GB) were late for spring mi¬ grants but were not detected after those dates. Tennessees are fairly common at adja¬ cent latitudes e. of there into the dry decid¬ uous foothills of the e. Coast Range. A Lin- V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 641 coin’s Sparrow singing near Nome 26 Jun (WP, PJB) was well w. of known breeding sites on the Seward Pen. Two juv. Golden- crowned Sparrows were discovered at 690 m elevation in the Mt. Roberts alpine zone above downtown Juneau 24 Jun (GW). Their presence at this date provided good evidence of local nesting farther s. and on the w. slope of the Coast Range than had been previously documented. Golden- crowneds are known to breed up to nearly 1200 m, mainly on the dry e. slopes and higher plateaus of the e. side of the Coast Range. A rare summer visit to King 1. pro¬ duced at least four pairs of territorial and probably nesting McKays Buntings 14-2 1 J ul (KN,/ide GW) well n. of known nesting ar¬ eas in the Bering Sea: breeding McKays are established only at St. Mathew and Hall Is., with infrequent nests located on St. Lawrence I. Ephemeral nesting attempts, of¬ ten with Snow Bunting mates, are occasion¬ al in the Pribilofs. Still casual for the Region in summer was a female Black-headed Grosbeak at a Juneau feeder 18-24 Jun (ph. PS, RJG); since the early 1990s, there has been a pattern of ap¬ parent overshoots reaching into the Region only in the s. half of Southeast in Jun; va¬ grants are also detected in early fall. Nice documentation was received of another imm. male Yellow-headed Blackbird from Anchorage’s Potter Marsh 26 Jul (ph. PE), which was relocated sporadically through about 10 Aug ( fide SS); this furnishes Upper Cook Inlet’s 3rd record. A pair of Brown¬ headed Cowbirds cavorted around the small pastures in Gustavus most of the summer (ND et al.). Although cowbirds occur peri¬ odically in late spring, usually on the South¬ east Mainland, they are rare this far n. and are typically singles, usually males. Gray- crowned Rosy-Finches (littorali s) are rarely detected in the remote alpine terrain of Southeast, so an ad. above Juneau 31 Jul (ph. RA) and 3 juvs. at Ketchikan 26 Jun (AWP, SCH) were excellent finds and confir¬ mation of local nestings. Because of difficul¬ ties in accessing many sites, the Southeast range of littoralis remains poorly delineated. Contributors and observers (subregional editors in boldface): Alaska Bird Observato¬ ry (N. DeWitt et al.), B. Alger, J. B. Allen, M. Anderson, M. Anthony, Y. Arimitsu, R. Arm¬ strong, T. Austad, P. J. Baicich, G. Baluss, Naomi Bargmann, A. Bauer, K. Bell, B. Ben- ter, S. Berns, A. Berry, M. Brooks, G. V. Byrd, L. Craig, P Davis, J. Dearborn, L. DeCicco (Interior), D. E Delap, A. DeMartini, B. Dit- trick, W. Donaldson, E. Drew, N. Drumheller, S. DuBois, L. Edfelt, P. Eldridge, D. Erickson, Q. Evenson, T. Fondell, R. M. Fowler, R. Fritz, C. Fultz, D. D. Gibson, R. J. Gordon, T. L. Goucher, J. Guthrie, B. Guzzetti, N. Haydukovich, K. Hart, S. C. Heinl, High Lonesome Tours (P. Davis, D. MacKay et al.), B. & L. Horn, P. Hunt, B. Hunter, H. Irrigoo, J. F. Koerner, G. Koonooka, A. Lang, P E. Lehman, J. Levi- son, M. Litzow, I., M. & R. A. Macintosh, D. MacPhail, J. Mason, John McDermott, R. McHenry, J. Metzler, R. Meyers, N. Mollett, A. Murray, K. Nelson, R. Neterer, L. J. Oak¬ ley, B. Paige, C. Palmer, St. Paul Tours (G. Bieber, R. Knight, B. K. Percival, D. Rudin et al.), W. Pawuk, W. Petersen, J. Piatt, A. W. Piston, P. Pourchot, G. H. Rosenberg, D. Rudis, K. Russell, J. Sauer, S. Savage, T. Schantz, R. L. Scher, M. A. Schultz, W. Schuster, M. Schwan, C. & M. Schwitters, D., R, & S. Senner, D. Shaw, D. W. Son- neborn, S. Studebaker, P. Suchanek, A. Swingley, M. E. Tedin, T. Tobish, University of Alaska Museum (D. W. Sonneborn et al.), R. Uhl, L. Vallie, G. Van Vliet, P Vanselow, M. L. Ward, Wilderness Bird Tours (B. Dit- trick et al.), Wings (Jon Dunn et al.), B. & D. Williams, E. White, M. A. Wood, K. Zervos, S. Zimmerman. Referenced details (t), spec¬ imens (*), photographs (ph.), videotape (vt.), and audiotape (v.r.) are on file at the University of Alaska Museum. British Columbia \ jr Atlin V Dease Lake* Fort 9 Nelson Mackenzie Masse' •Prince Rupert * Queen - Charlotte \ Islands \ Queen Charlotte City • Fort St. John • : bawson Creek 9 Prince George Williams Lake* Revelstoke Kamloops ^ • Vernon Tofino* \ Vancouver • Kelowna Vancouver Istand victoria Penticton Donald G. Cecile 7995 Wilson-Jackson Road Vernon, British Columbia VI B 3N5 (dcecile@telus.net) A westerly jet stream directed storms across southern British Columbia through most of June; in July, it moved northward, bringing mainly soggy weather to the northern half of the province while the south dried up. Floods and late-season snowstorms, however, were unreported, and so nesting success was assumed to be high. Rare species were well reported, including Manx Shearwater, White-winged Dove, Western Scrub-Jay, Northern Parula, Prothonotary Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, and Dickcissel. ALBATROSSES THROUGH SHOREBIRDS An observer aboard a cruise ship provided an impressive sample of pelagics 16 km wsw. of Carmanah Pt. 2 Jul: 1000+ Black¬ footed Albatross, 5000+ Sooty Shearwater, 5000+ Northern Fulmar, 500+ Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel, and one Laysan Albatross; another Laysan was 20-30 km w. of the Queen Charlotte Is. 27 Jun (BB). A Manx Shearwater was seen from shore along the West Coast Trail near Dare Pt. 2 Jun (tNH), furnishing a 6th record for the province. American White Pelicans are rare along the s. coast; 2 ads. flying nw. from Tsawwassen toward Vancouver 1. (RTo, Cl) were the only coastal ones re¬ ported. Other displaced White Pelicans in¬ cluded 112, a large count, on Swan L. in the Peace R. area 27 Jun (CC et al.). Brown Pelicans were again prevalent along the coast; most noteworthy were the sightings of single imms. in the Lower Mainland: White Rock Pier 9 Jul (GP et al.), Steve- ston Jetty Tip 10 Jul (JI, IS), and Iona and Sea Is. 16 Jul (MN et al.). A Eurasian Wigeon was exceptionally late at Forest Grove 20 Jun (TG). The Okanagan’s first mid-summer Broad-winged Hawk came from Naramata 6 Jul (RJC). Very rare in the s. interior, an ad. Ferruginous Hawk was seen gliding over the sage at Douglas Lake Ranch 26 Jun (RTo, Cl), a location where nesting has previously been suspected. Yellow Rails are extremely local in the province, known mostly from a few scattered locations in the Peace R. area; this season, 2 were reported at Valleyview, a new location, n. of Dawson Creek 15 Jun (JG). Pacific Golden-Plovers are very rare anywhere away from the coast, but one 642 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS such bird found its way to Dawson Creek on the odd date of 27 Jun (fide JG). The only report of Black-necked Stilts was of 6 from Little R. on Vancouver I. 20 Jul (NHu). Through the period, at least three pairs of American Avocets attempted to nest at Roundup L., n. of Riske Cr., with two pairs raising a total of 5 chicks to fledging (PR). This constitutes the most northerly breeding occurrence w. of the Rockies. Very rare in the interior, a Willet was at the Lavington Wetlands, East Kootenays 11 Jun (tDN et al.). Many Up¬ land Sandpipers were found in the Peace R. area this summer; the greatest concen¬ tration of five pairs was noted near Val- leyview 28 Jun (JG, MP). At a prime loca¬ tion for Hudsonian Godwit, the Fort St. John sewage ponds, observers were sur¬ prised to find a Marbled Godwit, as well as a White-rumped Sandpiper, 2 Jun (TT, GR). Almost annual in the Region, an ad. Red-necked Stint in alternate plumage was found on the Iona I. Sewage Ponds 2 Jul (ph. RTo). Of the now 23 records for the province, more than half are from late Jun-early Jul, a time when ads. are readily detectable. GULLS THROUGH FINCHES Mew Gulls are very rare in summer in the Peace R. area; a single was near Dawson Creek 13 Jul (JG). A record count of 657 Caspian Terns came from Tsawwassen 19 Jul (RS). Arctic Terns are casual in spring and fall along the Georgia Strait, where 2 ads. were seen from the Tsawwassen Ferry 30 Jul (GLM). A pair of Arctics was unex¬ pected at McQueen’s Slough 27 Jun (CC et al.). Very rare in the Region, 4 ad. Forster’s Terns were at Beaver Ranch Flats just n. of Merritt 26 Jun (RTo). Rare in the Koote¬ nays, a single Band-tailed Pigeon was at Kaslo 12-14 Jun (MS). A small established population of Eurasian Collared-Doves in Cawston may be the source for the follow¬ ing sightings: a single in Squamish 19 Jun (ph. GD, MD et al.) and a pair in Kelowna 7 Jul (CC). With an exploding continental population, it is not surprising that records of White-winged Dove are on the increase in the province, with the province’s 8th record from Stamp Falls P.P., Port Alberni 8-12 Jun (VG, ph. MY et al.); it is surpris¬ ing that seven of the province’s records of this species are from Vancouver I. A Barn Owl was captured near 150 Mile House and identified as a female with brood patch, suggesting it may have nest¬ ed in the area 31 Jul ( fide PR). A Long¬ eared Owl was a wonderful addition to a yard list in Nakusp 1 Jul (GSD). A Com¬ mon Poorwill, a species rarely encoun¬ tered in the Kootenays, was near Cran- brook 3-4 Jun (GR). Yellow-billed Cuck¬ oos are being seen with increasing fre¬ quency in recent years; a single was at the n. end of Osoyoos L. 3 Jul (JJ). A pair of White-headed Woodpeckers spent the summer on Anarchist Mt., e of Osoyoos, where they were suspected of nesting (fide RCa). Spring migrant Least Flycatchers, rare but regular along the s. coast, were reported at Pitt Meadows Nature Dyke 4 Jun (RTo, Cl), Brunswick Pt. 12-18 Jun (BG et al.), and Grant Narrows Nature Dyke Trail 9-12 Jul (lO). A Blue Jay was a very unexpected summer sighting in Manning PR 18 Jun (LC). While traveling along the Trans-Canada Hwy, a fortunate birder saw the province’s 8th Western Scrub-Jay fly by near Vancouver 23 Jul (tRTo). We received belated word of a Pinyon Jay, a provincial first, that re¬ mained at a feeder in Lister 1 1 Feb-5 Apr (ph. MD, KA). Common Ravens virtually never make the headlines, but 2 pure white juvs. (offspring of normally pig¬ mented ads.) at Brisco, Kootenays were seen throughout Jun (BM, ph. GS). In¬ creasingly rare in the s. Peace, a pair of Mountain Bluebirds were near Muskeg L. 9 Jun (JG). Almost annual in the Lower Mainland, a Veery was along the Grant Narrows Dyke Trail 2 Jun (JD); very rare in the Peace R. area, a single was near Boudreau L. 20 Jun (JG). An unprece¬ dented mini-invasion of Gray Catbirds took place in the Peace R. area, with at least 6 individuals, including singles near Pouce Coupe 10-24 Jun (MP) and w. of Chetwynd 19 Jun (CA, NK), and 2 near Clayhurst 19 Jun (SK, LL). Some of these catbirds remained into Jul, with 3 near Clayhurst 12 Jul (MB). Sage Thrashers were found in good numbers this year in the s. Okanagan; at least 8 ads. were not¬ ed among three locations. Three nests were discovered at White Lake; young successfully fledged from two of the nests by 28 Jul (RCa). Casual in the province, a Brown Thrasher was found at Johnson’s Landing 3 Jun (ph. GS). Very rare in the province, especially away from the s. inte¬ rior, a Loggerhead Shrike was at Sea I. 15 Jun (TP), and another was w. of Osoyoos 24 Jul (DB), a more expected location. There are only a dozen sightings for the Vancouver checklist area. A Tennessee Warbler was at MacIntyre L., Kootenays on the unusual date of 5 Jul (GSD, CS). An ad. male Northern Parula was heard singing in Tsawwassen 17 Jun (RTo, Cl) for a 7th provincial record; as is true on the U.S. West Coast, the period from late May through mid-Jun is typical¬ ly the best one for finding vagrant e. passerines. Magnolia Warblers are very lo¬ cal in the Kootenays; 3 singing males were at Summit L. 4 Jun-early Jul (GSD), and another male sang at Brouse 15 Jun-early Jul (GSD). Casual anywhere in the province, a basic-plumaged male Chest¬ nut-sided Warbler was at the Chearn Wet¬ lands 22-23 Jul (GG et al.). The province’s 4th Prothonotary Warbler was an ad. male in Creston 14 Jul (tTM); previous records are one each from 2002, 2003, and 2004. Connecticut Warblers showed signs of lo¬ cal increase, with 9 males singing at Feller’s Heights near Dawson Creek 7-23 Jun (MP). A male Yellow-breasted Chat re¬ mained on territory well n. and w. of its range in Williams Lake 2-26 Jul (PR), for a 3rd local record. Lazuli Buntings occasionally wander to the s. coast and have even nested on s. Vancouver I., but the first record for n. Vancouver I. was of a singing male e. of Nimpkish L. 12 Jun (MGS). This species has apparently responded rapidly to global climate change, as it continues to be found farther n. both on the island as well as in the interior. A male Scarlet Tanager was discovered on Bowen I. 30Jul-l Aug (PD, BD), providing the province with its 3rd record. Casual in the province, a male Dickcissel put on quite a show in the Bal¬ moral area just w. of Salmon Arm. The bird was a prolific singer and entertained bird¬ ers 14Jun-17Jul (ED, ph. DGC et al.) but was not seen following the cutting of the hayfield. Clay-colored Sparrows are very rare on the coast, yet one managed to make its way to Somenos Marsh, Duncan 19 Jun (CSa). A few wayward Rose-breast¬ ed Grosbeaks were noted on the w. coast, with singles at Carmanah Pt., Lightstation 26 Jun (JE) and at Port Alberni 17-19 Jun (vt. BJ et al.). Contributors (subregional editors in bold¬ face): David Allinson (Victoria), Cathy Antoniazzi, (c. interior), Kim Asquith, Mike Bentley, Jack Bowling (weather sum¬ mary), Doug Brown, Richard J. Cannings (s. Okanagan), Russell Cannings, Larry Cowan, Ed Dahl, Grant Danielson, Marcia Danielson, Gary S. Davidson (Kootenays), Joe Denham, Malcolm Dennington, Bob Dicer, Pam Dicer, Jerry Etzkorn, Jeremy Gatten, Gordie Gadsden, Valerie Geist, Barry Gibbs, Tom Godin, Nathan Hentze, Neil Hughes, John Ireland, Corina Isaac, Jukka Jantunen, Bill Joyce, Sandra Kinsey, Nancy Krueger, Laird Law, Thor Manson, Bob Mitchell, Guy L. Monty, Mike Newey, Dean Nicholson, Istvan Orosi, Glenn Pe¬ tersen, Mark Phinney (Peace River), Phil Ranson (Cariboo), Gary Rosenberg Greg Ross, Chris Saunders, Gabe Senger, Michael G. Shepard, Ian Sheppard, Gail Spitler, Marilyn Sturtz, Richard Swanston, Thede Tobish, Rick Toochin (Vancouver), Mike Yip. O VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 643 Oregon & Washington Caoe $an Juan ^VBellin9ham Flatlerv C® ^ Samish Flats Htty □ , a , *~Skagit W.M.A. ^ 7 ^Port Angeles _ 3 ^ .01 Olympic N.P , -t^Vp|verett # SWijiNw* No Point * Jo X Ocean ^fi^^racc Shores. , Grays Olympia Westporf^^a^or LeadbetterXf'llaPa Point K°SL Wenatchee a -Y o. $ cj’ Vantage? -5 ^ Priest Rapid: •Yakimi •Othello Po/nf £ Seasidfte V Ridgefield Sat/we /■■ 3 John Day < oauvie ir 1 _ _ Dam-*^-r-, „ ^ - “C— ^VcoUin’ /•Tillamook •Portland The Dalles Boiler1 f Bay* ‘Salem Newport jt Corvallis Def"/f ^ ™s * | Florence! - •Eu9ene f * Fern -v k~— Ridge ; ^ Res. Richland Umatilla Walla Walla ,ihi“ K River Delta Pullman. s>ThW\_ •Walla Walla • Prineville Coos Bay t^Cape Bianco • Brookings Summer Lake • Medford M - • Klamath Falls .Burns ■ Malheur N.W.R. • Fields Steven Mlodinow 4819 Gardner Avenue Everett, Washington 98203 (SGMIod@aol.com) David Irons 2690 Adams Street Eugene, Oregon 97405 (llsdirons@msn.com) The summer was exceptionally odd. Most dramatic was a host of changes wrought by an overly warm Pacific Ocean (see S.A.). However, there was a plethora of peculiar finds: eastside birds gone west, westside birds gone east, a di¬ verse array of lingerers from spring, late northbound shorebirds, early southbound shorebirds, and a few mega-rarities. It is hard to conceive of a single factor that would unite these disparate trends. The weather was also odd. June’s rainfall was a mosaic varying from extreme drought to near del¬ uge. July was more uniformly dry, with much of the Region receiving less than half of normal rainfall. Temperatures were unre¬ markable. Bill Tweit P.0. Box 1271 Olympia, Washington 98507 (Sebnabgill@aol.com) Abbreviations: F.R.R. (Fern Ridge Res., Lane, OR); Malheur (Malheur N.W.R. , Har¬ ney, OR); N.S.C.B. (N. Spit Coos Bay, Coos, OR); O.S. (Ocean Shores, Grays Harbor, WA); P.S.B. (Port Susan Bay, Snohomish, WA); Ridgefield (Ridgefield N.W.R., Clark, WA); W.V. (Willamette Valley, OR), W.W.R.D. (Walla Walla R. delta, Walla Wal¬ la, WA.). Eastside and westside indicate east and west of the Cascade crest, respectively. . - . . I !■ I . LOONS THROUGH CRANES Red-throated Loon migration usually sub¬ sides by mid-May, so 52 flying northward past Cape Flattery, Clallam 4Jun were note¬ worthy (SM, DSc). Utterly inexplicable was a build-up of mostly alternate-plumaged Pa¬ cific Loons at Dungeness Bay, Clallam that began during late Jun and peaked at 300 birds 29 Jul (J. Mullaly, RR); such numbers typically do not arrive until Sep, and unusu¬ al numbers were not noted elsewhere. A Yel¬ low-billed Loon inhabited Yaquina Bay, Lin¬ coln 25 Jun+, furnishing the Region’s 8th summer record during the past decade (K. & D. Cawthon). Single Eared Grebes, not an¬ nual during summer on the westside, visited N.S.C.B. 7-10 Jun (TR) and Bellingham, Whatcom 11 Jul (DD, SP). The drawdown of FR.R. for dam reconstruction caused Aech- mophorus grebes to abandon their only west- side breeding colony for the first time since it was established in 1993. Echoing the sum¬ mer of 2001 (and unrelated to events at ER.R.), Vancouver L., Clark again hosted nonbreeding Aechmophorus grebes, with 162 Western and 28 Clark’s Grebes there 5 Jul (WC); Westerns typically avoid fresh water during summer in w. Washington, and the Clark’s count was w. Washington’s highest ever. A Clark’s on Port Gardner Bay, Sno- homish 12 Jun furnished w. Washington’s first summer record away from Vancouver L. (SM), while a surprising 3 were detected along the Oregon coast. A Laysan Albatross, very rare during sum¬ mer, cruised off Westport 25 Jun (SMi). Per¬ haps related to the warm seas, a Black-foot¬ ed Albatross approached Cape Flattery, Clal¬ lam 24 Jul (SM); it was Washington’s first from shore and came within a km or so of being the first for the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Rarer yet was the Region’s 2nd summer record of Short-tailed Albatross since 1889, a subad. over Heceta Bank 14 Jul (D. Ain- ley). A Flesh-footed Shearwater was over Heceta Bank 14 Jul (D. Ainley), and a Short¬ tailed Shearwater was off Coos Bay 8 Jul (R Pyle); neither is annual during summer. This summer’s haul of Manx Shearwaters includ¬ ed one about 35 km w. of Pt. Grenville, Grays Harbor 5 Jun (SMi), another about 70 km off La Push, Clallam 1 Jun (SMi), and one off Westport 23 Jul (B. LaBar). Anom¬ alous for this summer was a goodly count of 400 Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels 10 km off Newport 2 Jul (RL). American White Peli¬ cans flooded w. Oregon, with 90+ noted, in¬ cluding maxima of 30 at Baskett Slough, Polk 26 Jun+ (C. Karlen) and 46 at FR.R. 31 Jul (TM); 6 others were detected on Oregon’s outer coast and in w. Washington, where still rare. A congregation of 1185+ ad. Great Blue Herons on Padilla Bay, Skagit 25 Jun was likely a Washington record (SM). Three Black-crowned Night-Herons at Ridgefield 22 Jul (P&RS) and 2+ at ER.R 4 Jul+ (Dl, J. 644 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS — Ocean conditions were highly abnormal this year. Indeed, they resembled those of a strong El Nino event— except there was no El Nino. Wind-driven upwelling, responsible for gener- D n ating most of the biological productivity in our coastal currents, was absent from early spring until midsummer. No upwelling meant little phytoplankton and unusually warm surface waters, resulting in poor fish runs and high mortality among piscivores, reflected by extremely large numbers of beached birds. A record 181 ad. murres, all starved, were encountered along 7.5 km of beach near Newport in Jul (RL), and in s. Washington, counts of dead murres were four- to six-fold the five-year average (J. Parrish). Dead Brandt's Cormorant totals in s. Washington were 50 to 80 times those of previous years. Oregon's murres did not reproduce at all (RL). Even in Washington, where some breeding did take place, patterns were disrupted. Murres on Tatoosh I., Clallam initiated breeding nearly a month late, the longest delay in 15+ years (J. Parrish). Undoubtedly, 6000 Common Murres flying n. past Tatoosh 1. 4 Jun— a number approximately equal to the entire Washington breeding population— were related to breeding failures farther s. (SM, DSc). Typically, alcids with a more inshore distribution, such as Marbled Murrelet, do not fare as poorly during warm water events. However, only 3 Marbleds were encountered during surveys in the Coast Range near Salem, where 40-60 is the norm (6. Licata). The warm ocean's effects were evidenced by pelagic trip results (G. Gillson, BT). Northern Fulmars and Pink-footed Shearwaters averaged fewer than 100 per trip, and Fork-tailed Storm-Pe¬ trels about 30 per trip, well below long-term and recent norms. Leach's Storm-Petrel, a warmer water species, was slightly more numerous than typical, with over 50 per trip. Excepting an un¬ remarkable 7 South Polar Skuas, Stercorarius were almost absent offshore, with 4 Pomarines off Westport 9 Jul the only report. Totals of Cassin's Auklets (20 per trip) and Rhinocerous Auklet (40 per trip) were also well below average. On the other hand, Washington's first Jun record of Xantus's Murrelet was supplied by 2 scrippsi off Westport 25 Jun (tSMi); almost all records are mid- Aug-mid-Oct. Warm waters off our coast often push birds into the more consistently productive Puget Trough. This year was no exception. Four Brown Pelicans were detected there 8 Jul+; the first typi¬ cally appear in mi '-Aug. Jaegers are not found most summers in the Puget Trough. This year, a Pomarine at Dungeness Bay, Clallam 23 Jul provided the Puget Trough's 3rd summer record (SM). A Parasitic Jaeger, detected about every other year here, was at Penn Cove, Island 27 Jul (SE). Three other jaegers remained unidentified. Similarly, a juv. Sabine's Gull at Nisqually 23-26 Jul furnished an extremely rare summer Puget Trough record (tE. Kraig); most Sabine's Gulls away from the outer coast are found early Sep-early Oct, and Regonwide juvs. do not usually appear before mid-Aug. Another early juv. was on the coast at Seaside, Clatsop 23 Jul+ (N. Maine). Ancient Murrelets, not annual during summer in the Puget Trough, were off Dungeness Spit 1 5 Jul (NB) and near Vashon I., King 1 6 Jul (BSW). A Cassin's Auklet, not annual at any time in the Puget Trough, was off Dungeness Spit 9 Jun (RR). Finally, a pair of Brown Boobies may well have been related to the warm seas, with singles at Bellingham Bay, Whatcom 9-1 2 Jul (tH. Flores) and one 30 km off Reedsport, Douglas 24 Jul (tC. Hinman). Washington has three previous records and Oregon one; all but one have been from Oct. Abernathy) added to speculation that they breed on the westside. Stray White-faced Ibis were widely scattered, with up to 2 at Iowa Beef, Walla Walla 2-12Jun (M&MLD), one at Nisqually 15 Jun (B. Sundstrom, P. Hicks), another near George, Grant 19 Jun (DSc), and a late bird at Potholes Res., Grant 17 Jul (A. Martin). Four Greater White-fronted Geese, a species not annual in summer, summered on the westside. Washington’s 5th summer Snow Goose lingered at Soap L., Grant through 11 Jun (DSc, BSc). A Ross’s Goose at Burns, Harney through 7 Jun was the Region’s 4th during the last seven summers (RCH). A Trum¬ peter Swan visited Crocker L., Jef¬ ferson 4 Jun (BN), and perhaps the same bird graced nearby Foul- weather Bluff, Kitsap 15-16 Jun (BSW, D. Watkins); Washington has but two prior summer records, excluding released birds. Almost as rare was a Tundra Swan at We- nas L., Yakima 9 Jun (P&RS). Three pairs of Mandarin Ducks plus a lone male inhabited Kent, King this spring, leading to a fe¬ male with brood at Kent/Auburn 21 Jun-6 Jul (M. Breece); this species could easily become estab¬ lished in the Region. Gadwall continue to conquer the westside. A summer-record 360 ads. were at P.S.B. 12 Jun (SM), and a brood at South Bend furnished Pacific's first breed¬ ing record (SM, ST, MF). The Breeding Birds of Washington State (1997) shows no nesting records for the outer coast, but Gadwall have bred in neighboring Grays Harbor since at least 2001 (P&RS). A Eurasian Wigeon at Bay City, Tillamook 11 Jun was only the Re¬ gion’s 4th during summer (K. Owen); amaz¬ ingly the three antecedent records were all from the eastside. Both Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, scarce westside breed¬ ers, raised broods at PS.B. (SM). The Com¬ mon Teal x Green-winged Teal hybrid at PS.B. 1-25 Jun yielded only the Region’s 2nd summer record and may have been the same bird present there last summer (SM). For the 5th consecutive summer, several pairs of Redheads inhabited FR.R. and likely bred (LM); elsewhere on the westside, where not annual after early Jun, 4 summered at Ridge¬ field (WC), as did 4 at Vanport Wetlands, Multnomah (IT). Clark’s first nesting Ring¬ necked Ducks inhabited Post Office L. (SM, MF, ST), while four broods were raised at N.S.C.B. (TR). Six Greater Scaup at Priest Rapids Pool 18 Jun were on the eastside, where rare but increasingly regular during summer (SM, CB). Seven broods of Lesser Scaup, another scarce westside breeder, were detected in Island and Snohomish (SM, TA), while two broods at South Bend, Pacific pro¬ vided the outer coast’s first breed¬ ing record (SM). Two Harlequin Ducks at Moses L., Grant 5 Jun furnished what was likely the 2nd eastside summer record away from the mts. (DSc); their appearance coincided with male post-breeding dispersal. A female-type Harlequin on the Columbia R. near Carson, Skamania through 9 Jun was equally odd (J. & T. Anderson), while 221 Harlequins between Port Angeles and Klachopis Pt. , Clallam 3 Jun was probably a Re¬ gional record (SM, DSc). A Red¬ breasted Merganser at Paterson Slough, Benton 4 Jul furnished the eastside’s 3rd summer record (BL, NL). The Olympic Pen.’s 2nd White¬ tailed Kite visited Sequim, Clallam 18 Jul (tS. Abella). An ad. White¬ tailed Kite with 3 young was near Reedsport, Douglas (W. Hoffman); there are still pre¬ cious few Oregon nesting records. A Swain- son’s Hawk over Portland 21 Jun was only the 4th ever during summer on the westside (WG). Even rarer was the Region’s 4th sum¬ mer Rough-legged Hawk near Hampton, These Wilson's Phalaropes, with a Long-billed Dowitcher, were two of at least 16 raised at Port Susan Bay, Snohomish County, Washington (here July 30 2005). Wilson's Phalarope is one of a cadre of "interior" species expanding their ranges into western Oregon and Wash¬ ington. Photograph by Steven Mlodinow. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 645 J- - OREGON & WASHINGTON Lake 5 Jul ( fide D. Tracy). An apparently ter¬ ritorial Merlin in n.-cen. Garfield 9 Jun pro¬ vided additional tantalizing evidence of nesting in the Blue/Wallowa Mts. (M&MLD). In the Puget Trough, Merlins have started utilizing suburban habitats for breeding; the first such nest was in Belling¬ ham, Whatcom in 2001, and B. Anderson re¬ ported nests this year in Skagit (Mt. Vernon, Cedro Woolley, and Anacortes) and Sno¬ homish (L. Stevens and Marysville). Two California Quail, extremely rare on the out¬ er coast n. of Coos, were at Newport 15 Jun (RL). Utterly baffling were 2 Sandhill Cranes flying northward at 3000 m near Lillian Falls, Kittitas 14 Jul (L. Schwitters); these birds were well away from and high above any known breeding sites. PLOVERS THROUGH WOODPECKERS An American Golden-Plover at Potholes Res., Grant 17 Jul was about six weeks early for the eastside and only the 3rd ever there during summer (tDSc). Rarer yet was the eastside’s 3rd Pacific Golden-Plover at Pot¬ holes Res. 13 Jul (tDSc); the two previous such records were from early Sep. Far more typical were single Pacifies at Seaside, Clat¬ sop 28 Jul (MP) and N.S.C.B. 30 Jul (TR). Oregon’s 4th Lesser Sand-Plover, and the first since 1986, adorned Seaside/Gearhart, 16-18 Jul (DMa); it was of the expected nominate subspecies. Black-necked Stilts continued to cement their bridgehead in the W.V., breeding at F.R.R. (LM), Baskett Slough, Polk (RG), and Hunsaker Rd., Mar¬ ion (RG). The last northbound Greater Yel- lowlegs were 5 at P.S.B. 10 Jun (SM), while the first southbound bird was at Iowa Beef, Walla Walla 15 Jun (P&RS); 4 near Trout- dale, Multnomah 12 Jun could have been north- or southbound (IT). A late Lesser Yellowlegs was at P.S.B. 1 Jun (SM, DSc), while the first southbound bird was detect¬ ed there 16 Jun (SM); careful coverage of small isolated patches of shorebird habitat, such as P.S.B. and Iowa Beef, are providing a better understanding of shorebird migration dates. A Solitary Sandpiper at Kent, King 28 Jun was three weeks early (D. Swayne); 5 more 24Jul+, all in Washington, represent¬ ed a typical summer’s yield. A Willet sum¬ mered at Tokeland, Pacific (TA); they are not annual during Jun. Three Whimbrel at Baskett Slough 10 Jul provided the W.V.’s first summer record (E. Knight). Showing well, 4 Long-billed Curlews were detected on the westside away from the outer coast 6 Jul+; one or 2 is typical. An apparently late northbound Marbled Godwit was at Twin, Clallam 3 Jun (DSc, SM), while apparently summering birds included one at Ft. Canby, Pacific 16 Jun (TA) and 9 at Astoria, Clatsop 13 Jun (MP). On the eastside, where rare, apparently very early southbound birds in¬ cluded one at Hatfield L., Deschutes 18 Jun (C&MM) and 2 at W.W.R.D. 24 Jun (P&RS); less unexpected were singles at Summer L., Lake 25 Jul (R. Ettinger) and W.W.R.D. 10 Jul (M&MLD). The eastside’s 2nd summer Ruddy Turnstone visited at Othello 24 Jul (BF). Two Red Knots at P.S.B. 10 Jun were ap¬ parently extremely late northbound mi¬ grants (SM), while a basic-plumaged knot at Dungeness Bay 2-4 Jun was also note¬ worthy (SM, DSc). A total of 5 Sanderlings visited Potholes Res. 16-26 Jul (DSc); the eastside averages a Sanderling every other summer. An astonishing 195 Semipalmated Sandpipers included 178 in Washington and 17 in Oregon, with 166 on the westside and 29 on the east. The first was discovered at N.S.C.B. 22 Jun (TR). Ad. passage peaked 2 Jul, when 24 were noted in Island and Snohomish (SM), while peak juv. pas¬ sage included a Washington-record 44 at P.S.B. 21 Jul (SM, SP, DD) and, in Oregon, 8 in Curry 24 Jul (TR). Washington’s first ful¬ ly documented Red-necked Stint adorned Dungeness Bay 28 Jul-2 Aug (tB. Boekel- heide); all previous Regional records are of ads., mostly late Jun-mid-Jul. An early Least Sandpiper stopped at W.W.R.D. 15 Jun (P&RS). Washington’s 4th White- rumped Sandpiper graced Iowa Beef 18-19 Jun (tSM, CB, tP&RS); previous Regional records have been from late May and early Jul. Southbound Baird’s Sandpipers were unusually numerous, with 13 in Washing¬ ton and 4 in Oregon 15 Jul+. The Region’s only northbound Pectoral Sandpiper of 2005 was a late bird at RS.B. 1-4 Jun (SM, DSc); 5 southbound ads. in Washington and 4 in Oregon included 2 early individu¬ als over the open ocean off Coos Bay 8 Jul (R Pyle). The latest northbound Dunlin, at RS.B. 4 Jun, was about two weeks late (SM, DSc). Two southbound Dunlins were again noted about two months ahead of “sched¬ ule”: one at PS.B. 25-26 Jun and a 2nd bird there 26 Jun (SM). This seemingly regular early pulse has been almost entirely late Jun-mid-Jul. A very rare summer Stilt Sandpiper visited N.S.C.B. 20 Jul (TR); few¬ er than 10 percent of Oregon’s Stilt Sand¬ piper records are of ads. Oregon’s first sum¬ mer Ruff adorned Bandon, Coos 18 Jul (KC, DL); the previous early fall date was 11 Aug. A Long-billed Dowitcher at N.S.C.B. 12 Jun was presumably late heading north¬ ward (TR). For the 3rd consecutive year, Wilson’s Phalaropes bred at w. Washington’s only known nesting site, PS.B., with 10 ter¬ ritorial males fledging 17+ young (TA, SM); they also continued to breed at several W.V. locations. A Red-necked Phalarope at W.W.R.D. 17 Jun was late for a northbound migrant and early for a southbound one (P&RS); there are very few mid-Jun Re¬ gional records. Utterly unprecedented were 49 South Po¬ lar Skuas between about La Push and the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Clallam 5-12 Jun (SMi); all were within 100 km of shore but near the shelf edge or beyond. Skuas usually do not appear before mid-Jul. Franklin’s Gulls lingered near Wallula through 25 Jun, when the maximum of 13 was recorded (P&RS). Another stopped there 13 Jul (M&MLD). Much rarer was a westside bird at Bellingham, Whatcom 23 Jun (V Burgett). A Mew Gull at Pt. Whitney, Jefferson 16 Jun furnished a very rare Jun record (RR), while an unprecedented 31 were near Megler, Pacific 3 Jul (SM, MF, ST); the first “fall” arrivals usually appear as sin¬ gles in early or mid-Jul, and this flock may well have summered. Not annual during summer, a Herring Gull visited the Elwha R. mouth, Clallam 3 Jun (SM, DSc). The Re¬ gion’s 4th and 5th summer Thayer’s Gulls graced Keystone, Island and Dungeness Bay, both 2 Jun (SM, DSc). A Western Gull at W.W.R.D. 10-13 Jul was apparently a first for the eastside during summer (tM&MLD). Five Glaucous-winged Gulls were found in the Columbia Basin, where not annual dur¬ ing summer. About 20 Arctic Terns were confirmed nesting on Dungeness Spit, Clallam County, Washington (here 24 July 2005); the species was also reported there last year. Prior to the discovery of this colony, the only Washington breeders had been in Everett, where the intermittent colony nested in an industrial area. Photograph by George Gerdts. — 646 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS " — - — - 1 . - . — . ■■■— . - . — . . . - . . . . . . . . - . . . Two Caspian Terns were again flying over Snoqualmie Pass, elevation 1000 m, 11 Jun (J. Meyer); their occurrence over this alpine habitat remains unexplained. A Common Tern, very rare during summer on the east- side, visited Summer L., Lake 28 Jun (C&MM). After last year’s rumored nesting, approximately 20 pairs of Arctic Terns in¬ habited Dungeness Spit this summer, with two confirmed nests and 3+ fledged young (NB, G. Gerdts); one won¬ ders if this is the Everett colony relocated to more serene environs. A Forster’s Tern was at Bybee L., Mult¬ nomah 3 Jun (A. Frank), and 10 visited Baskett Slough, Polk 24 Jun (L. Fink); Forster’s are rare during summer on the westside, especially after early Jun. Oregon’s 12th (and Coos’s first) Feast Tern stopped at Bandon 25 Jun (KC, DF); most Regional records are coastal, late May-mid-Aug. Black Terns managed to nest successful¬ ly at FR.R. despite the low water levels (D. Farrar) but did not breed at Ridgefield, where the spring’s aggrega¬ tion of 9 dwindled to only one in Jul (SM, JE). Re¬ searchers off the w. Olympic Pen. again encountered An¬ cient Murrelets. This year, 19 ads. without young were detected at nine locations 30+ km offshore of Jefferson and Clallam 5-11 Jun (SMi). Additionally, an ad. with 2 chicks was near Lopez 1., Island 12 Jun (ph. R. Baird). Washington’s first Horned Puffin since 2002 was about 75 km off Little Hogsback, Grays Harbor 5 Jun (SMi); most of the Region’s summer records are from nearshore waters. Rare on the eastside, a Band-tailed Pigeon visited Bend 30 Jun (C&MM), and 13 flew over Trout L., Klickitat 11 Jul (SJ). Washing¬ ton’s 6th Eurasian Collared-Dove remained at Washtucna, Adams through 3 Jul, while additional birds were near Issaquah, King in early Jun (ph. F Trousdale), on San Juan 1. 10Jun-9Jul (ph. B. Jensen), at Horn Rapids, Benton 4-7 Jul (tDR), and Vantage, Kittitas 11 Jul (tEH). Singles in Oregon at Malheur 2 Jun (M. Lovell) and near Salem, Marion 14 Jun (J. Carrothers) brought that state’s total to about 30. A White-winged Dove visiting Newport 7 Jun furnished Oregon’s 9th record and the 4th since 2000 (ph. R. Filby); most are from Aug-Oct. The summer’s Yel¬ low-billed Cuckoo was at Fields, Harney 2 Jun (TR). Great Gray Owls were found in the Blue Mts. of Walla Walla and Asotin (MD, MLD, P. Tan); the first nesting record from the Blues was in 2002, but active searching has revealed that this species is more nu¬ merous there than previously realized. A widespread increase in westside Common Nighthawk reports suggested recoloniza¬ tion, especially in the W.V. An Annas Hummingbird at Hyak 21 Jul, just e. of Snoqualmie Pass, was probably a first for the Washington Cascades (D. Harvill). A Costa’s Hummingbird on Little Groundhog Mt., Lane (elevation 1700 m) 19 Jun was utterly without precedent (TM, A. Mickel); Costa’s are found about every other summer in Oregon, mostly on the eastside at lower elevations. Multiple Calliope Hum¬ mingbirds again inhabited Saddle Mt., Clat¬ sop, which suggests that they breed in Ore¬ gon’s Coast Range (MP). Washington’s 4th Broad-tailed Hummingbird remained at Dix¬ ie, Walla Walla until 9 Jul (ph. R Murray). In Oregon, Broad-taileds have yet to be con¬ firmed as breeders, but 2 males at Adel, Lake 29 Jun — a location that has hosted this species before — suggests they breed nearby (RG). A Lewis’s Woodpecker at Ridgefield 22 Jul was only w. Washington’s 2nd during summer since 1980 (P&RS). Black-backed Woodpeckers nested successfully at Takhlakh L., Skamania (elevation 1500 m) 4-8 Jul, while a single American Three-toed Wood¬ pecker was also present 4 Jul (M. Roening); neither species is detected annually in w. Washington, but both may be resident in small numbers in Skamania. For the 4th con¬ secutive summer, a Yellow-shafted Flicker x Red-shafted Flicker integrade graced the Re¬ gion, with one in Everett 19 Jun (CB). FLYCATCHERS THROUGH FINCHES Fifteen Least Flycatchers was supranormal, even for recent years; noteworthy records in¬ cluded a singing bird at Conboy N.W.R. 12-19 Jun (K. Glueckert) and a very rare westside bird at Ankeny N.W.R. 28 Jun (JW). Returning territorial birds at Dixie, Walla Walla 3 Jul (M&MLD) and Cold Springs N.W.R., Umatilla 17 Jun (C. Corder) were well away from this species’ usual sum¬ mer range. A Gray Fly¬ catcher, extremely rare dur¬ ing summer on the west- side, visited Waldo L., Lane 24 Jun (R. Robb). A Dusky Flycatcher at Sun Lakes, Grant 3 Jul was apparently a lost mid-summer wander¬ er (DSc, BSc). A count of 52 Pacific-slope Flycatchers between South Bend and Lebam, Pacific 12 Jun was exceptional (J. Paulios). Still rare during summer in the W.V., single Black Phoebes graced Eugene 10 Jul (R. Robb) and Sauvie I. 22 Jul (J. Crowell). W. Washington’s first and 2nd summer Say’s Phoebes vis¬ ited Morse Cr. Bluffs, Clal¬ lam 1 Jun (J. Mullaly) and O.S. 26 Jul (CW). A stun¬ ning 7 Ash-throated Fly¬ catchers were detected in nw. Oregon, while Ash- throateds at Marymoor Park, King 15-16 Jun (M. Hobbs, ph. H. Flo¬ res) and Seattle 19 Jun (tj. Bragg) added to 16 previous w. Washington records. A Loggerhead Shrike at Cape Arago, Coos 22 Jul was virtually unprecedented for sum¬ mer on the westside (JW). A Plumbeous Vireo adorned Malheur 7 Jun (tRCH); this species is nearly annual in se. Oregon late May-mid-Jun. A Hutton’s Vireo, extremely rare in e. Washington, was at Trout L., Klick¬ itat 11 Jul (SJ), where also recorded in Apr 2005. An early southbound Warbling Vireo at Horn Rapids, Benton 9 Jul illustrated how quickly some w. molt-migrants depart their breeding grounds (NL, BL). A Blue Jay near Langley, Island 9-20 Jun yielded Washing¬ ton’s 4th summer record and the first since 1996 ( fide SE). A Black-billed Magpie at Ridgefield was w. Washington’s first since 1980 (C. Ledford, B. Clemons), while 2 oth¬ ers inhabited Portland 21 Jun+ (B. Burley). Two Purple Martins at Ellensburg, Kittitas 1 Jun (BF), plus singles at Toppenish, Yakima 15 Jun (P&RS) and Moses L., Grant 20-21 Jun (DSc, BSc), added to only four previous e. Washington records away from the Bingen vicinity; could this surge in eastside records be related to the booming westside popula- This Eurasian Collared-Dove furnished Washington's sixth record when found in May (here 30 June) 2005 at Washtucna, Adams County. By summer's end, the state had ten records, one of which was this bird's compan¬ ion, which arrived in August. Photograph by Denny Granstrand. — VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 647 — H t N G T O N tion? A highly atypical montane Purple Mar¬ tin colony using natural snags persisted at Goose L., Skamania 21 Jul, with at 8 birds occupying two or more nests (P&RS). Bank Swallows continue to colonize the westside. New colonies were located along the Nisqually R., Thurston 14 Jun (K. McAllis¬ ter) and near Stillwater, King 5 Jun (EH), while a westside-record 200+ inhabited a colony near Concrete, Skagit 30 Jun (TA). A Canyon Wren, very rare on the westside, was at Beacon Rock, Skamania 15 Jul (N. Pul- cinella), while 2 were on Wind Mt., Skamania 14 Jul (SJ); both sites have harbored this species before, suggesting that Canyon Wrens may be resident in small numbers in Skama¬ nia. A Bewick’s Wren near Oroville, Okanogan 6 Jul was e. Washingtons northernmost ever and only about 10 km from interior British Columbia, which has no records (TA) ! A pair of Western Bluebirds, Islands first, successful¬ ly nested during Jul near Coupeville (SE). Two Veeries were at their only westside breeding location. County Line Ponds, Whatcom 15 Jun+ (G. Heleker). Douglas's first Gray Catbird, rare on the westside, turned up at Canyonville 4 Jul (K. Sands). Five Oregon Northern Mock¬ ingbirds included 3 at Olex, Gilliam 23 Jun (A. Ahlgrim). In Washington, one visited Seattle 7 Jun (M. Egger), and a pair fledged 2-3 young at Horn Rapids, Benton during Jul (DR); Washington had but four previous breeding records. An utterly lost Sage Thrasher at Hosmer L., Deschutes (elevation about 1300 m) 17 Jul was in the Douglas-fir zone (WG)! A very early American Pipit stopped at Dungeness Spit, Clallam 13 Jul (NB); the first lowland sightings are usually in mid-Aug. A true jaw-dropper was the Brewster’s Warbler banded near Provolt, Josephine 11 Jul (DV); the Region had only four Golden-winged and three Blue-winged Warbler records and none of hybrids. A territorial Nashville Warbler near Crow, Lane 11 Jun was n. of that species’ known breeding range in the Coast Range (DI). A tally of 106 Yellow Warblers along Coppei Cr., Walla Walla 19 Jun was unprecedented for Washington (SM, CB). Chestnut-sided Warblers appeared at Tierra del Mar, Tilla¬ mook 12 Jun (W. Gross), New R., Coos 13 Jun (TR), and Corvallis 16 Jun (J. Simmons); Chestnut-sideds seem more prone than oth¬ er “eastern” vagrants to occur in such pulses. Washington’s 6th summer Myrtle Warbler visited Sentinel Bluffs, Grant 1 Jun (SM, DSc); this subspecies has now been found in (our consecutive summers. Oregon’s 10th Black-throated Green Warbler adorned Plush, Lake 7 Jun, fitting the pattern of late- spring occurrences in se. Oregon (tB. Proeb- sting). A Black-and-white Warbler, barely an¬ nual in Washington, visited Quartz Creek Campground, Kittitas 11 Jun (fide DG); 5 were located in Oregon, which averages one or 2 per summer, including a pair near Sis¬ ters, Deschutes 18 Jun+ (Paul Sullivan, J. Meredith). The American Redstart’s core breeding range in the Region is in ne. Wash¬ ington. However, an isolated, well-estab¬ lished colony at County Line Ponds, What¬ com/Skagit contained 7+ ads (TA), and 5 ads. (and one nest) were at the recently discov¬ ered and even more distant breeding site at Trout L., Klickitat (SJ, K. Glueckert). Addi¬ tional apparently lone territorial males were scattered across the Region. The only Oven- bird was at Malheur 1 1 Jun (RCH). The core range of Northern Waterthrush is ne. Wash¬ ington, though a small population has per¬ sisted in s.-cen. Oregon since the 1970s, and breeding has been suspected in ne. Oregon. This summer, 2 singing Northern Water- Washington's fourth Broad-tailed Hummingbird remained near Dixie, Walla Walla County 28 May through 9 July (here) 2005, leading to speculation that it nested nearby. Photograph by Peter Murray. thrushes at Trout L. 29 May-19 Jun were well away from established sites (SJ, P Moy¬ er), and 2 were in ne. Oregon near Troy, Wal¬ lowa 1 Jul (SE). None, however, were found in s.-cen. Oregon (TM). A tally of 116 Com¬ mon Yellowthroats at Kent, King 26 Jun ap¬ proached the Washington record (CW). Continuing the upward trend, 3 Yellow¬ breasted Chats were noted in w. Washington. Two Clay-colored Sparrows at their tradi¬ tional Spokane site 28 Jun yielded the sum¬ mer’s only sighting (M. Woodruff). Multnom¬ ah's first Black-chinned Sparrow appeared in a Portland yard 11 Jun (J. Gilligan); there are only about 10 prior Oregon records and only one away from Klamath/Jackson, a bird in Clackamas in Jun 1999. A Black-throated Sparrow, rare and irregular in Washington, was at the Hanford Site, Benton 20 Jun (fide H. Newsome). A concentration of 155 Sa¬ vannah Sparrows at Ridgefield 3 Jul was most unusual for summer (SM, MF, ST). The Re¬ gion’s first summer Slate-colored Junco near Frenchglen, Harney 7 Jun was about six weeks late (V. Arnold). Rose-breasted Gros¬ beaks showed well again this summer, con¬ tinuing a Regional trend that began in 2000: 3 were in nw. Washington, 6 in w. Oregon, and 2 in e. Oregon. The summer’s Indigo Bunting visited Denman W.M.A., Jackson 3-12 Jun (J. Hostick). The only Tricolored Blackbird detected in Washington was at Washtunca, Adams 12 Jun (DG). Washing¬ ton’s 3rd Orchard Oriole was found at Sen¬ tinel Bluffs, Grant 18 Jun (tSM), while that state’s 5th Hooded Oriole visited Seattle 13 Jun (tC. Conolly, tR. Brown); all Washing¬ ton records of Hooded are from the period late Apr-late Jul. The only eastside Great¬ tailed Grackle visited Malheur 3 Jun (T. Bray), but 3 at Lakeside 22 May-17 Jun was a Coos first and exceptionally rare for the outer coast (fide TR). Two Cassin’s Finches near Mt. Hardy, Skagit 12-18 Jul were on the w. slope of the Cascades, where rare (K. Kemper, B. Kuntz, G. Bletsch), but one w. of the mts. in Portland 29 Jun was virtually un¬ precedented for summer (WG). Addendum: An apparent Pink-sided Junco x Oregon Junco intergrade fre¬ quented a Moses L., Grant feeder late Dec 2004-Mar 2005 (ph. DSc); Pink¬ sided Junco and integrades with other Dark-eyed Juncos were previously un¬ recorded in the Region. Initialed observers (subregional editors in boldface): Kevin Aanerud, Tom Aver- sa (Washington), Nigel Ball, Casey Beachell, Wilson Cady, Kathy Castelein, Mike & Merry Lynn Denny (M&MLD), Dennis Duffy, Steve Ellis, Joe Engler (Clark), Mike Fleming, Chuck Gates (Crook), Roy Gerig (Marion and Polk), Den¬ ny Granstrand (Yakima), Wink Gross, Mark Houston, Rich Hoyer (RCH), Eugene Hunn, Stuart Johnston (Klickitat), Bill LaFram- boise (Columbia Basin), Nancy LaFram- boise, David Lauten, Roy Lowe, Larry Mc¬ Queen, Tom Mickel (Lane), Craig & Mari¬ lyn Miller (C&MM), Scott Mills (SMi), Harry Nehls (Oregon), Vic Nelson, Bob Norton (Olympic Pen.), Michael Patterson, Jason Paulios, Steve Pink, Dennis Rockwell, Tim Rodenkirk (Coos and Curry), Russell Rogers, Barbara Schonewald (BSc), Doug Schonewald (DSc), Noah Strycker, Patrick & Ruth Sullivan (P&RS), Sam Terry, Iain Tomlinson, Dennis Vroman (Josephine), Jan Wiggers, Keith Wiggers, Brad Waggoner (BSW), Jay Withgott, Charlie Wright. NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 648 — Weather onshore drew little com¬ ment, although an unusually cool and wet June in Humboldt County was blamed for failed breeding at¬ tempts by swallows and bluebirds. Offshore, the situation was apparently much bleaker, with widespread reproductive failure of many seabirds, especially alcids and cor¬ morants, and many birds not breeding at all or abandoning their nesting attempts in mid-season. The cause was apparently a lack of wind-induced upwelling, and the re¬ sult was more severe breeding failure than observed during El Nino events. Abbreviations: C.B.R.C. (California B.R.C.); C.R.R (Cosumnes River Preserve, Sacramento ); C.V. (Central Valley); FT. (Southeast Farallon I., San Francisco ); RR.B.O. (Pt. Reyes B.O.); S.F (San Francis¬ co, not State Forest). Reports of exceptional vagrants submitted without documentation are not published. Documentation for C.B.R.C. review species will be forwarded to Guy McCaskie, Secretary, RO. Box 275, Im¬ perial Beach, California 91933. Birds band¬ ed on FI. should be credited to Point Reyes Bird Observatory (P.R.B.O.), and those banded at Big Sur R. mouth to the Big Sur Ornithology Fab (B.S.O.F.) of the Ventana Wilderness Society. LOONS THROUGH WATERFOWL An alternate-plumaged Red-throated Foon migrating northward past Pigeon Pt., San Mateo 15 Jun (RSTh) was on the late side. Red-necked Grebes are relatively scarce dur¬ ing the summer months, thus individuals at King Salmon, Humboldt 1-17 Jun (MWa), at Bodega Bay, Sonoma 9 Jun-12 Jul (FHg), and at Table Rock, Santa Cruz 2 Jul (DFSu) were noteworthy. An imm. Short-tailed Al¬ batross was w. of Middle Farallon I., S.F. 26 Jul (ph. Ben Saenz, Jason D. Yakich). A Flesh-footed Shearwater off Cordell Bank, Marin 30 Jul (SBT, RS et al.) was the only one reported. The only Black-vented Shear¬ water reported was one off Pescadero S.B., San Mateo 26 Jul (RSTh). Ten Wilson’s Storm-Petrels were off Cordell Bank, Marin/Sonoma 30 Jul (RS et al.). This area has by far the most records of this species in the n. Pacific. Present off and on last fall and winter, the Pelagic Cormorant again visited Shoreline F., Santa Clara 8 Jun (FV, KPa). A Brown Booby was reported without details from Pt. Reyes N.S., Marin in early Jul. A booming American Bittern at the Paynes Cr. Wetlands 12-19 Jun (BED) sug¬ gested possible breeding in Tehama, where George lCrescent Klamath Basin Refuges Redding <%■<* Lake A l manor Honey 4 Lake ■iV. Fort Bragg Point Arena . Clear \Lake • Chico ■ Sacramento ,1 /alley Refuges Bodega Ba' Cordell Bank , TAHOE X Sacramento /{/ Xb. Pt. Reyes San Francisco1 • Stockton • Modesto S.E. Farallon ls.\ \ Mono 'j \ Yosemite NP •>San Joaquin k Valley Refuges Santa Cruz Monterey Bay Monterey ? Salinas'*5, Big SuiA Davidson Seamount Kings Fresno# Canyon ) NP Sequoia ) NP Tulare Lake Basin the species is hard to find. The only Feast Bittern reported was a single bird at C.R.P. 12 Jul (JTr). Ad. Fittle Blue Herons were seen at the Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey 13 Jun (Mike Tyner, ph. BHl), at Solano’s Salt Pond 1A 21 Jun (Kate Goodenough, Fouie Terrazas), and twice in Santa Clara: over Artesian Slough 24 Jun and at Guadalupe Slough 14 Jul (both EFe). The latter two records likely pertain to the same individual. Fittle Blue Herons bred sporadically in the Alviso heronry between 1980 and 1998, but since the abandonment of the heronry in 1999, they have been found much less frequently in s. S.F Bay, and only during a short period from late Jun-early Aug; formerly, the species was present from late Apr-Sep or early Oct (fide WGB). A summering Cattle Egret 20 Jun+ at Moonglow Dairy, Monterey (RF et al.) was unexpected. A flyby imm. night-heron thought to be a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron was seen at Terrace Pt. 19 Jun (tSGe); it would be Santa Cruz’s first if ac¬ cepted by the C.B.R.C. One thousand White-faced Ibis at the San Joaquin River N.W.R. 16 Jul included nesting birds, appar¬ ently providing the first breeding record for Staiuslaus (JHG, m.ob.). White-faced Ibis from coastal counties consisted of one e. of Willits, Mendocino 1 Jun (John Ranlett), up to 2 at the Mountain View Forebay, Santa Clara through 14 Jun (Dotty Calabrese, m.ob.), and one at the Salinas R. mouth, Monterey 17 Jul (Faird Henkel). Michael M. Rogers (Herons to Shorebirds) 499 Novato Avenue Sunnyvale, California 94086 (m.m.rogers@comcast.net) Steven A. Glover (Doves to Wrentit) 6526 Conestoga Lane Dublin, California 94568 (countylines@sbcglobal.net) Luke W. Cole (Thrashers to Finches) 561 Hill Street San Francisco, California 94114 (luke@igc.org) Scott B. Terrill (Loons to Frigatebirds, Larids to Alcids) H.T. Harvey & Associates 3150 Almaden Expressway, Suite 145 San Jose, California 95118 (sterrill@harveyecology.com) VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 649 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA r t The Sonoma Common Black-Hawk continued to frequent I l the Laguna de Santa Rosa through October, spending most of its time on private land n. of Sebastopol (ph. Stan Moore, Don Jackson, JW). Interestingly, the landowner was able to recognize the bird by its calls and felt that the vocal black-hawk had been present, at least in¬ termittently, for perhaps as long as four years. Remarkably, a Common Black-Hawk was reported from this same area on 14 Oct 2000 (LHg). The unprecedented nature of this n. California sighting at the opposite time of year from the two prior state records from Riverside, combined with the fact that the bird was eating a meadowlark rather than the aquatic prey normally eaten by this species, resulted in the record not being accepted by the C.B.R.C. More extensive observation of the bird this season suggested that it was feeding primarily on crayfish (Stan Moore). There is no overlap in dates to suggest that more than one Common Black-Hawk has been present in n. California, and it seems quite likely that this individual is the same one that wintered in Stock- ton, San Joaquin for the past two winters. In an effort to better track this bird's movements, an attempt to band it was made in Jun, but the attempt was not successful (JW). A Common Black-Hawk spent much of the year (here 24 May 2005) on private land north of Sebastopol, Sonoma County. It was very vocal and displayed regularly, attracting the ire resident Red¬ shouldered Hawks (left). Photograph by Stan Moore. A Tundra Swan at Shollenberger Park, Sonoma 3 Jun (PLv) was unseasonal. A fe¬ male Gadwall at the Ukiah S.T.P. 1 Jun (CEV) was the first documented summer record for Mendocino. A female American Wigeon with 6 young at Redwood Shores 21 Jun-24 Jul (RSTh et al.) marked the first breeding record for San Mateo and one of very few for the S.E Bay area. Two fe- male-plumaged Northern Pintails at Borax L. 19 Jul (BJMcl) constituted the first sum¬ mer record for Lake. A count of 26 young pintails at Redwood Shores 26 Jun (RSTh) indicated better-than-average breeding success in San Mateo. Above-average num¬ bers of Greater Scaup lingered on s. S.E Bay, including 43 at Belmont Slough, San Mateo 5 Jun (RSTh). The resident male Harlequin Duck at Coyote Pt., Scut Mateo , present now for a 4th summer, was joined by a female on 16 Jul (KrO). Two others were noted in Monterey: a female at Mon¬ terey harbor through the period (m.ob.) and a male at the Big Sur R. mouth 19 Jun (Mike Tyner). White- winged Scoters s. of Humboldt were at Bodega Harbor, Sonoma 15 Jul (LHg) and Pescadero Beach, San Mateo 22 Jul (RSTh). The only Black Scot¬ er reports were from San Mateo: one at Pacifica 5 Jun (Judy Spitler) and 2 at Princeton Harbor 29 Jun (RSTh, AJ). The lone Long-tailed Duck reported was at Double Rock, S.E 14-19 Jul (KMcK, Michelle Brodie). Breeding Buffleheads continue to be found s. of their historical¬ ly known range, with broods found in Plumas , Placer (first or 2nd county breed¬ ing record), and Alpine in late Jul. The only Common Goldeneye reported was a fe¬ male at the mouth of the Russian R., Sono¬ ma 15 Jul (LHg). An imm. male Hooded Merganser at Foster City 20 Jun was only the 3rd summer record for San Mateo (RSTh). Common Mergansers at Coyote Pt. 20 Jul (RSTh) and at the Millbrae BART Station the same day (Judy Spitler) provid¬ ed the first summer records for the bay- lands of San Mateo. A Red-breasted Mer¬ ganser at Crowley L., Mono 22 Jun-13 Jul (RS, m.ob.) was unusual both for the in¬ land location and the time of year. RAPTORS THROUGH CRANES Ospreys bred successfully at multiple loca¬ tions in Santa Cruz again. This increasing population was thought to be responsible for a record number of summer sightings in nearby Santa Clara. Successful nesting by Bald Eagles was reported from Humboldt , San Benito , and two new locations in Mono. An inexplicable surprise were recently fledged Swainson’s Hawks in urban Santa Clara 1 & 17 Jul; these birds were both brought to the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley from areas where Swainson’s Hawks have never been reported and where no suitable breeding habitat exists. Reports of coastal Crested Caracaras continue, with an ad. found at Ft. Dick, Del Norte 9-12 Jul (ph. ADB, RbF) and another (or the same) bird at the confluence of the Eel R. and Van Duzen R., Humboldt 19 Jul (STu, KBu). Yel¬ low Rails were once again reported from Mt. Shasta, Siskiyou 23 Jun-23 Jul (AWgh, RLeb et al.) and Surprise Valley Rd., Modoc 2 Jun-27 Jul (JCS, DEQ). Two Sandhill Cranes “undoubtedly breeding” at Logan L., Shasta 14 Jun (B&CY) were the first report¬ ed on a local breeding bird count since its inception in 1973. SHOREBIRDS Humboldt' s 2nd Lesser Sand-Plover was an ad. at Clam Beach 10 Jul (Zach Nelson, ph. KGR, SMcA et al.). A pair of Black Oyster- catchers nesting at Oyster Cove 1 Jul (Mary Betlack) marked the first breeding along the bayside of San Mateo. A pair of Black¬ necked Stilts successfully fledged 2 young at the Ukiah S.T.P. 1 Jun+ (CEV, m.ob.) for the first Mendocino breeding record. A Soli¬ tary Sandpiper at the Davis Wetlands 24 Jun (JKn) was the first Jun record for Yolo and is also the first Jun record in our note¬ books; fall migrants were noted at the con¬ fluence of the Klamath R. and Blue Cr., Humboldt 22 Jul (DFx) and at C.R.P 24-28 Jul (JTr). A displaying Willet at Deer Cr. Meadows 26 Jun (RoS) suggested possible breeding in Tehama. A lingering Wandering Tattler was noted at Pigeon Pt., San Mateo 4 Jun (RSTh); the first southbound bird was at Davenport Landing, Santa Cruz 8 Jul (DLSu). We also received a belated report of El Dorado's first Wandering Tattler, at s. Lake Tahoe 20-22 May (ph. TEa, TS, Fritz Steurer, WRi). A lingering Red Knot was at the Salinas W.T.P, Monterey 4 Jun (MtB, RyT, SRv). Adding to the fewer than 20 Jun records in our notebooks, 3 Sanderlings were at the Redwood Cr. mouth, Humboldt 28 Jun (Heather Brown). Eighteen Semi- palmated Sandpipers were reported 4 Jul+, with the first juvs. noted 22 Jul. More Western Sandpipers lingered into Jun than usual, with 3 at the Salinas W.T.P., Monterey 3-4 Jun (RF, DR) and 10+ at the San Fran- cisquito Cr. Delta, San Mateo 4 Jun (MMR); the first returning fall migrants were noted 24 Jun. A record-early juv. Least Sandpiper at Pescadero Marsh, San Mateo 22 Jul (RSTh) was upstaged by one even earlier at Areata Marsh, Humboldt 20 Jul (DFx, JCP); previously the earliest date in our note¬ books was 23 Jul. Three Bairds Sandpipers were reported 22 Jul+. A Pectoral Sand¬ piper at Younger Lagoon 15 Jun (tSGe) was the first summer record for Santa Cruz and only the 3rd Jun record for the Region, following last year’s bird in Kings; the only other one reported was an ad. at the Struve Rd. pond, Monterey 25 Jul (ELb, CKf). Summer Dunlins included one at Mad Riv¬ er C.P, Humboldt 1 Jul (JEH) and an alter- nate-plumaged ad. at Natural Bridges S.B., Santa Cruz 29 Jul (ph. Larry Selman). An ad. Wilsons Snipe protecting young with a distraction display at C.R.P 16 Jun (JTr) provided the first breeding confirmation for Sacramento. LARIDS THROUGH ALCIDS An ad. Laughing Gull was at Elkhorn Slough, Monterey 30 Jun+ (Carol Nichols, ph. Melinda Nakagawa et al.). Seventy Franklin’s Gulls at Tide L., Siskiyou/Modoc 24 Jun (RLeb, AWgh) was a very high num¬ ber for the Region. Elegant Terns were wide¬ ly reported as arriving relatively late in the Region and as being in substantially re¬ duced numbers relative to recent years. 650 NORTH AMERICAN BIRD Most summers bring at least one Scissor-tailed Flycatcher to northern California, but few are photographed as well as this one that stayed near Little Valley, Lassen County 27 (here 29) June through 4 July 2005. Photograph by Bob Yutzy. Least Terns are quite rare in the n. C.V., thus 2-3 at the Davis Wetlands 20-22 Jun (ph. Oscar Johnson, C1H et al.) were a prise and only the 2nd record for Yolo. In the s. C.V., a pair again at¬ tempted to nest near Kettleman City, Kings but did not arrive until Jun and nesting failed (JSy). Coastal migrants were in Monterey at Moss Landing 10 Jun (Bud Fox) and Elkhorn Slough 23 Jul (TAm). Six ad. with 3 young Black Skim¬ mers at Redwood City, San Mateo 26 Jul (PJM) likely nested there. Although this species has nested in small numbers in the South Bay for over a decade, this would repre¬ sent a new nesting location for this expanding species. In the far n. portion of the Region, a 2nd Black Skimmer for Humboldt was at Clam Beach 19 Jul (KGR). Santa Cruz represents the s. limit of the Marbled Murrelet breeding range. Concern for this apparently de¬ creasing population continues, and this year activity at inland nest sites continued to be very low and the incidence of below-canopy flights (indicative of active nest¬ ing) was especially reduced, sug¬ gesting few murrelets attempted to nest this season (DLSu). Quite scarce in summer, an Ancient Mur¬ relet was in Monterey harbor, Mon¬ terey 17 Jul (RT et al.). DOVES THROUGH THRASHERS San Mateo’s first Eurasian Collared- Dove nesting was confirmed 8 Jun at Pescadero (GrH). We received a flurry of Yellow-billed Cuckoo reports. Presumed mi¬ grants included a rare Mono sighting at Rush Cr. 9 Jun (CMc), a first for heavily birded Areata Marsh, Humboldt 19-20 Jun (EE, SWH, RbF et al.), one at Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey 16 Jul (b.; B.S.O.L.), and one on EL 28 Jul (PR.B.O.). A singing Yellow-billed at the Eel R., Humboldt 6 Jun-6 Jul (ph. SMcA, JTz) was at a spot where the species was detected 2000-2002; others were de¬ tected in the C.V. along Putah Cr. 22 Jun and Cache Cr. 23 Jul (both Yolo; Ron Mel- cer, Ryan Phillips, SCH), Todd Is., Tehama 22 Jul (KBu), and along the Sacramento R., Butte 23 Jul (2 males; JHS). Flammulated Owls are true C.V rarities, but one at Carmichael, Sacramento was more noteworthy for its presence on the ear¬ ly date of 22 Jul (tSPa); the bulk of histori¬ cal records are from fall. Two Lesser Nighthawks at Camp Far West Res. 1 Jul provided a very rare Yuba record (MiF); the species was noted several times during the Clearlake, Lake 6 Jun (Jeanette Knight) were left unidentified, though the dates are suggestive of migrant Commons. Sacramen¬ to’s Sierra foothill Commons continued through 18 Aug, with at least 5 birds pres¬ ent (JTr, m.ob.). A pair of Black Swifts was suspected of nesting at the traditional site at Ano Nuevo S.R., San Mateo (GJS), but an¬ other determined effort to confirm nesting at historical Santa Cruz sites went unre¬ warded ( fide DLSu). A male Costa’s Hummingbird at Rush Cr. Jul may have been the first to sum¬ mer in the Mono Basin, Mono (CMc). An apparent pair of Costas visiting a feeder at Little Valley, Lassen throughout Jun was in an area from which they are virtually unknown (Ken Able). An ad. male Calliope Hummingbird visiting a feeder at Lakeport, Lake 3 Jun pro¬ vided a very rare “summer” record for the Regions lowlands (DvW). An ad. male Rufous Hummingbird along Road A6, Shasta 7 Jun was likely already southbound (JTz). A Belted Kingfisher 18 Jun was a summer rarity for San Francisco, S.E (DSg). An Acorn Woodpecker 7 Jul was the just the 2nd noted by the observer in Capitola, Santa Cruz in 20 years (DLSu). A Nut- tail’s Woodpecker 23-30 Jul at Par¬ adise provided a very rare Mono record (DHo). A typical smattering of Willow Flycatchers, primarily coastal, was detected during the first two weeks of Jun; 13 on 8 Jun at the Big Sur R. mouth (9 banded) was a particularly impressive showing (B.S.O.L.). An Eastern Kingbird 26 Jul near Scott Cr., San¬ ta Cruz fits a pattern of mid-sum¬ mer coastal records (DLSu). A Western Kingbird nest with young at Corralitos 3-10 Jul provided just the 3rd modern nesting confir¬ mation for Santa Cruz (Wayne & Sylvia Macon). Three Scissor-tailed Flycatchers graced the Region: 22 Jun at Lincoln Park, S.E (first city record; tDvA), 24-25 Jun at EL (PR.B.O.), and 27 Jun-4 Jul along Little Valley Rd., an apparent first for Lassen (Ken Able, ph. BY, m.ob.). A singing Bell’s Vireo reported at the L. Solano Diversion Dam, Solano 25 Jun (Brent Campos) was outdone by a pair at the San Joaquin River N.W.R., Stanislaus that appar¬ ently produced two broods (Kim Forrest, fide JHG). This constitutes the first con- Russell Bradley and Pete Warzybok of PR.B.O. Conservation Science tendered the following summary of the complete Oil breeding failure of Cassin's Auklets in our Region this season: "Breeding by Cassin's Auklets on Southeast Farallon I. has been continuously monitored for over 35 years as part of interdisciplinary, long-term research on seabirds as ecological indicators. The 2005 breeding season was a unique one for auklets, at least in the context of this study. For most of the spring and early summer, there was a lack of upwelling winds, anomalously high sea surface temperatures, and a virtual absence of krill — the auklets' primary prey. Breeding propensity and success were both reduced by about 90% compared to 2004. Mean timing of breeding was delayed by several weeks, with massive egg abandonment observed among the birds that did breed. Productivity in our main study sample, which is used for inter-annual comparisons, was zero. This level of reduced pro¬ ductivity and egg abandonment is unprecedented in our multi-decadal studies of this species, even when compared to ex¬ treme El Nino events. Future analysis of the links between the uniquely poor oceanographic conditions in this non-El Nino year and the seabird response are planned." VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 651 firmed nesting in the Region since 1997. A singing Yellow-throated Vireo 1-3 Jun at Loch Lomond R.A. was the first ever found in Santa Cruz (tDLSu, RgW). Once nearly unknown in the Region, spring Yellow- throateds have been detected annually in re¬ cent years. A stunning find was a singing Philadelphia Vireo at McGee Cr., Mono 30 Jun-13 Jul, the first to ever be found sum¬ mering in California (v.r., ph. CMc, m.ob.). Normally less than annual in the Region in summer, 3 Red-eyed Vireos were detected: 1 Jun-3 Jul at Loch Lomond R.A., Santa Cruz (LGo, JPo, MSc, DLSu), 3 Jul near Se- bastapol, Sonoma (Mike Bumgardner, Fritz Steurer), and 12-13 Jul at Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey (b.; B.S.O.L.). A Ruby-crowned Kinglet near Winters, Yolo 7 Jul may be un¬ precedented in summer on the C.V. floor (Ryan Phillips). The nesting Western Blue¬ birds in the Presidio, S.F. successfully fledged a 2nd brood 30 Jul (Stefanie Arthur). A Townsend's Solitaire 7 Jul at Jacks Peak, Monterey was anomalous, as solitaires are unknown to breed in the Coast Ranges s. of Colusa (tBMth). A singing Wood Thrush on Chalk Mountain Rd. 16 Jun was a first for Santa Cruz and the Re¬ gion’s first since 1996 (t, v.r. DLSu). San Mateo had a Gray Catbird 4 Jun at Gazos Cr. (RSTh), and S.F. had 2: 25 Jun at FT. (P.R.B.O.) and 3-5 Jul at Mt. Lake Park (Matt Zlatunich, HuC, PSar, AdW). A Sage Thrasher 3 Jun near Covelo furnished Men¬ docino's 2nd summer record (GEC, CEV). WARBLERS The 22 species of warblers reported includ¬ ed some significant records. A Blue-winged Warbler photographed 7 Jul near Hayfork was Trinity’s first (ph. Josee Rousseau, Lau¬ ren Outhisack-Morgan). A whopping 14 Northern Parulas were along the coast from Monterey (5) to Humboldt (3, including the county’s 3rd confirmed nesting pair, at Area¬ ta 27 Jun-27 Jul; K1 et al.); 2 more were in¬ land in Mono. Yellow Warblers breeding in unusual locales included a pair at Areata Marsh, Humboldt 19-25 Jun (RbF, ScC) and ads. feeding young at San Luis N.W.R., Merced 24 Jun (Renee Cormier). Four Chestnut-sided Warblers were in Humboldt ; another was along Putah Cr. near Winters, Solano 12 Jul (Brent Campos, Mary Chambers). A Magnolia Warbler was found dead along a Marin beach 24 Jun (LHg), and a male graced Strybing Arboretum, S.F. 3 Jul (Ginny Marshall, DvA). The first Black- throated Gray Warblers to be confirmed nesting in Mono were found in the Bodie Hills (P.R.B.O.). Two Blackburnians includ¬ ed one 13 Jun at Sacramento County Buffer- lands, Sacramento (tCCo) and a female at Russian Gulch, Sonoma 31 Jul (DgSh). A singing male Prairie Warbler spent 7 Jun-8 Jul at Mono Lake C.P, Mono (TDHo, m.ob.). A singing male Palm Warbler was at Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey 12 Jun (Mike Tyner). Fairhaven, Humboldt hosted a Blackpoll Warbler 21 Jun (Gary Davidson, fide GSL). Six Black-and-white Warblers included 3 in Mono and a singing male in Yosemite Valley, Mariposa 3 Jul (tAndy Zdon). Single male Prothonotary Warblers were at Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey 1 Jun (RF) and Soquel Cr., Santa Cruz 10 Jun (DLSu). Ovenbirds in¬ cluded singles 5 Jun at Hearst, Mendocino (Kate Marianchild) and 22 Jun at Rush Cr., Mono (P.R.B.O.). A Northern Waterthrush was at FL 25 Jun (P.R.B.O.). Seven Hooded Warblers were along the coast: one singing along Skyline Boulevard 2 Jun (GrH) was Santa Clara's 6th, and a male at Butano S.P 15 Jun-8 Jul observed with a female carry¬ ing food 2 Jul confirmed nesting in San Ma¬ teo (tDLSu). Two different males were in¬ land at C.R.P. 20 & 23 Jun (Sasha Auer, Kirsten Lindquist, JTr, m.ob.). TANAGERS THROUGH FINCHES Summer Tanagers were at FL 31 May-1 Jun (PR.B.O.) and Natural Bridges S.B., Santa Cniz 24 Jun (tSGe). A Field Sparrow along the Mad R. at Blue L. 11-17 Jul (KBu, STu, ph., tRbF) was Humboldt’s first and just the 3rd for the Region, the first since 1994. A Black-throated Sparrow at Frazier Canyon, Mono 3 Jul was at an unusually high eleva¬ tion (MWE). A White-throated Sparrow 3 Jun at Carmel (CHo) was Monterey’s latest spring migrant by a week; even more sur¬ prising was one 11 Jun at McKinleyville, Humboldt (GSL). A Golden-crowned Spar¬ row in Pacific Grove, Monterey 19-27 Jun provided a rare summer record (ph. DR, RC). A remarkable 37 Rose-breasted Gros¬ beaks bested our 1998 summer record of 33 and included Modoc’s first, 2 Jun at New Pine Cr. (JCS), another at Smithneck Cr., Sierra 27 Jun (Phil Gordon), and strong showings from coastal counties: 10 in Santa Cruz, 9 in Monterey, and 7 in Humboldt, set¬ ting the single-season county record there (fide DFx). An Indigo Bunting x Lazuli Bunting hybrid was at Blue L., Humboldt 11 Jul (JEH). Indigo Buntings included one 27 May-7 Jun on Ice House Rd., El Dorado (TS, CLu, LLu, WEH); 2 on FT. 20-26 Jun (PR.B.O.); one at Blue L., Humboldt 23 Jun (BS); and a singing male with a female Lazuli 2-14 Jul at Salyer, Trinity (RoS, ph. SAG, KBu et al.). Great-tailed Grackles continue their ex¬ pansion, reaching the last C.V. county with¬ out a record: a male 2 Jun at Payne’s Cr. Wet¬ lands (tPAH) was the first for Tehama; the 2nd was a male 14 Jun along 1-5 near Red Bluff (EP). A female Orchard Oriole was along Higgins Creek Rd., San Mateo 19 Jun (RSTh). A pair of Hooded Orioles 26-30 Jun at Cameron Park provided just the 2nd nest¬ ing record for El Dorado (ph. Oscar Johnson, ClH, TS). We received four reports of male Baltimore Orioles: 4-5 Jun at Big Sur R. mouth, Monterey (RyT, ph. DR, ph. SRv); 12 Jun at Half Moon Bay, San Mateo (RSTh); and 2 in Humboldt: 15 Jun at Trinidad (BS) and 1 Jul at Areata (SWH, RbF). Red Cross¬ bills were widespread along the coast and nested at the Presidio, S.F (ASH). Cited observers (county coordinators in boldface): Tim Amaral, David Armstrong, Alan D. Barron, William G. Bousman ( San¬ ta Clara), Matthew Brady, Adam Brown (EL), Ken Burton, Scott Carey, Rita Carratel- lo, George E. Chaniot, Luke W. Cole (Kings), Chris Conard (Sacramento and Yolo), Hugh Cotter, Jeff N. Davis (Madera), Bruce E. Deuel (n. C.V. counties), Todd Easterla, Mark W. Eaton (San Francisco), Ray Ekstrom (Siskiyou), Elias Elias, Mike Feighner, Eric Feuss, David Fix (Humboldt), Rick Fournier (RF), Rob Fowler (RbF), James H. Gain (Stanislaus), Steve Gerow, Steve A. Glover (Contra Costa), Lois Gold- frank, Steve C. Hampton, W. Edward Harp¬ er, Stanley W. Harris, Garth Harwood, Cliff Hawley, Pablo A. Herrera, Bill Hill, Craig Ho- henberger, Alan S. Hopkins, Debbie House, Lisa Hug, John E. Hunter (Trinity), Ken Ir¬ win, Alvaro Jaramillo, Robert J. Keiffer (Mendocino), Clay Kempf, Jon King, Rick Lebaudour, Earl Lebow, Robin L. C. Leong (Napa and Solano), Gary S. Lester, Peter Lev- eque, Cindy Lieurance, Leslie Lieurance, Blake Matheson, Sean McAllister, J. Mac Mc¬ Cormick (Plumas and Sierra), Chris Mc- Creedy, Bryan J. McIntosh, Kevin McK- ereghan, Peter J. Metropulos (Son Mateo), Kristie N. Nelson (Mono), Kris Olson, Steve Pagliughi, Ed Pandolfino (Placer), Kathy Parker, Jeff Poklen, Jude C. Power (Hum¬ boldt), David E. Quady, Will Richardson, Robert J. Richmond (Alameda), Don Rober¬ son (Monterey), Michael M. Rogers, Kerry G. Ross, Steve Rovell, Ruth A. Rudesill (Sono¬ ma), Rob Santry, Paul Saraceni, Barry Sauppe, Michelle Scott, Jeff Seay, Doug Shaw, Daniel Singer, Jim H. Snowden, Rich Stall- cup, John C. Sterling (Modoc, Alpine, and Calaveras), Tim Steurer (Amador and El Do¬ rado), Gary J. Strachan, David L. Suddjian (Santa Cruz), Richard Temullo (RT), Ryan Terrill (RyT), Scott B. Terrill, Ronald S. Thorn (RSTh), Jim Tietz, John Trochet, Steve Tucker, Steve Umland (Tuolumne), Chuck E. Vaughn, Kent Van Vuren (Merced and San Benito ), David Vander Pluym (Mariposa), Frank Vanslager, Matt Wachs, Jerry R. White (Lake), Alan Wight, Adam Winer, Jon Winter, Roger Wolfe, Dave Woodward, Bob & Carol Yutzy (Shasta). Many more observers are not specifically cit¬ ed; all are appreciated. O 652 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS A first North American (and second Northern Hemisphere) record must surely be singled out as the highlight of the season: in this case it was a Ringed Storm-Petrel ( Oceanodroma hornbyi), also called Hornby’s Storm-Petrel, seen and pho¬ tographed off Santa Rosa Island on 2 August. Another seabird of note was a subadult Short-tailed Albatross at Santa Cruz Island. Exceptionally rare shorebirds included a Wilson’s Plover and a Red-necked Stint. An interesting development this summer was the presence of several Southwestern (or “Madrean”) montane species in the moun¬ tains: Greater Pewee, Red-faced Warbler, Painted Redstart, and Hepatic Tanager were all found in the mountains of San Diego County. As always, birds pay no attention to our artificial seasonal cut-off dates, so many of the records noted in the present report are simply a continuation of late spring va¬ grancy that began in May. Abbreviations: B.S. (Butterbredt Spring, s. end of the Sierra Nevada above Cantil, e. Kern); C.L. (China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station, extreme ne. Kern); E.A.FB. (Ed¬ wards A.F.B., se. Kern); F.C.R. (Furnace Creek Ranch, Death Valley N.P, Inyo); G.H.P. (Galileo Hill Park, extreme e. Kem); N.E.S.S. (n. end of the Salton Sea, Riverside); PR (Piute Ponds, Edwards A.EB., ne. Los An¬ geles); S.C.R.E. (Santa Clara R. Estuary near Ventura, Ventura); S.E.S.S. (s. end of the Salton Sea, Imperial); S.EK.R.R (South Fork Kern River Preserve near Weldon, Kern); VA.EB. (Vandenberg A.EB., nw. Santa Bar¬ bara); V.C.G.R (Ventura County Game Pre¬ serve near Pt. Mugu Naval Air Station, Ven¬ tura). Museum collections abbreviated in the text are: LACM (Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County) and SDNHM (San Diego Natural History Museum). Because virtually all rarities in s. California are seen by many observers, only the observer(s) ini¬ tially finding and identifying the bird are in¬ cluded. Documentation for species on the California B.R.C. (C.B.R.C.) review list is forwarded to the Secretary and archived at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zool¬ ogy in Camarillo. LOONS THROUGH WATERFOWL A Common Loon at F.C.R. 6-11 Jun (C&RH) was a late spring migrant at an un¬ usual location. A subad. Short-tailed Alba¬ tross was photographed at Prisoner’s Harbor on Santa Cruz I. 6 Jul (JMcM, SWS); this is the 3rd to be seen in s. California waters in the past five years. A Northern Fulmar at Pt. Pt. LomaX Tijuana R. Valley) Guy McCaskie 954 Grove Avenue Imperial Beach, California 91932 (guymcc@pacbell.net) Kimball L. Garrett Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County 900 Exposition Boulevard Los Angeles, California 90007 (kgarrett@nhm.org) Vicente, Los Angeles 9 Jul (KGL) was the only one reported this summer. Up to 20 Cook’s Petrels 80 km s. of San Clemente I. 31 Jul-2 Aug (WW) were in an area where undoubtedly regular. A Wilson’s Storm-Pe¬ trel, rare in s. California waters, was 80 km s. of San Clemente 1. 31 Jul (WW). Totally unexpected was a Ringed Storm-Petrel ( Oceanodroma hornbyi) well photographed about 40 km ssw. of Santa Rosa I. 2 Aug (PPy, CO); this is not only the first of this Humboldt Current species to be recorded in North America but also only the second in the Northern Hemisphere. A Red-billed Tropicbird seen from San Clemente I. 4Jul (SWS) was the only one re¬ ported. A Brown Booby at Scorpion Harbor on Santa Cruz 1. 6 Jul (SWS) and another near Pt. Piedras Blancas, San Luis Obispo 22 Apr-i- (RAR) add 2 more to the ever-increas¬ ing number found off the coast of s. Califor¬ nia. A major movement of Brown Pelicans from the Gulf of California into se. Califor¬ nia in late Jun placed hundreds on the Salton Sea, along with smaller numbers scattered across the deserts to the n., such as 10-12 over Corona, Riverside 3 Jul (MG) and single birds near Blythe, Riverside 13 Jul (RH), in the East Mojave National Scenic Area, San Bernardino 17 Jun (DB), and at Halloran Summit e. of Baker, San Bernardino 17 Jun (SGo); one on Baldwin L. in the San Bernardino Mts. 10 Jul (DK) was at a high elevation. Although Least Bitterns are relatively common in the s. portion of this Region, they are much scarcer to the n., so confirmed breeding near Bishop, Inyo (J&DP) and at Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo (BW) is note¬ worthy. A Little Blue Heron in Goleta, Santa VOLUME 59 (2005) NUMBER 4 653 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HHHHH RAPTORS THROUGH SHOREBIRDS A pair of White-tailed Kites, rare breeders in the Salton Sink, successfully fledged one young from a nest near Seeley, Imperial in May (GMcC). A pair of Bald Eagles at L. Hemet, Riverside 4 Jun (TAB) was at a loca¬ tion where this species bred last year, and birds near Harmony, San Luis Obispo 27 Jul (GPS) were suspected to have nested locally. A Zone-tailed Hawk at Bonita, San Diego 28 Jul (CR) provided an exceptionally early date for the coastal lowlands. Calling Black This confiding subadult Short-tailed Albatross was only a short distance off the pier at Prisoner's Harbor on Santa Cruz Island, California 6 July 2005. Photograph by Jimmy McMorran. Barbara 13 Jul+ (DMC) and another on Up¬ per Newport Bay, Orange 15 Jun (NK) were the only ones found away from San Diego. Reports of Reddish Egrets included one at Point Mugu, Ventura 31 Jul (DP), 3 in coastal Orange 9 Jul+ (BED, LRH, LW), and single birds on s. San Diego Bay, San Diego 22 Jul (JBa) and 29 Jul+ (MC). Two subad. Yellow-crowned Night-Herons remained in Imperial Beach, San Diego 27 Jun+ (LW-L, MJB, MS); this species is a casual straggler to California from w. Mexico. Two ad. Glossy Ibis were found in the Imperial Valley, Impe¬ rial, with one near Calipatria 16-17 Jul (PEL, JF) and the other near Westmorland 29 Jul (CC); this brings the total number now recorded in California to eight. A Tundra Swan remaining in California City, Kern through the period (K&BK) is one of a very few known to have summered in California. Apart from Redheads, Aythya ducks are rare in s. California in summer. Five Canvasbacks — one at N.E.S.S. 6 Jun (GMcC), 2 at Mystic L., Riverside 12 Jun (BM), and 2 in the Prado Basin, Riverside 12 Jun+ (JEP) — were thus of note, as were 2-3 Ring-necked Ducks at O so Flaco L., San Luis Obispo 19 Jun-11 Jul (MLS) and singles in Orange, Orange 28 Jun-6 Jul (RAH), Cali¬ fornia City 21-24 Jun (K&BK), and N.E.S.S. 14 Jun-2 Jul (CMcG). A Bufflehead near Bishop all summer (J&DP), a Black Scoter at Playa del Rey, Los Angeles 25 Jun (BJ), and a Common Goldeneye near Blythe 25 Jun (RH) were also unusual. Rails were at two locations through the summer in the Imperial Valley, Imperial, where this secretive bird undoubtedly nests (GMcC). The presence of an ad. Sora with 4 chicks in Goleta, Santa Barbara 12 May (KB) provides one of a very few modern records for nesting in s. California. A stunning Pacific Golden- Plover was in Coronado, San Diego 22 Jun (MS), one of a very few found anywhere in California in Jun. A Wilsons Plover, remarkably scarce as a vagrant to California giv¬ en that it breeds only 120 km away in the Colorado River delta, re¬ mained at Batiquitos Lagoon, San Diego 2 Jun-1 Jul (SMW, MJB, MS). Because signifi¬ cant numbers of some of the larger and medi- One of two subadult Yellow-crowned Night-Herons present in Imperial Beach, San Diego County, California after 27 June 2005, this bird was photographed on 28 August 2005. Photograph by Thomas A. Blackman. um-sized shorebirds remain through the summer, it is difficult to determine arrival dates for fall migrants. A Greater Yellowlegs at Hansen Dam, Los Angeles 10 Jun (KLG) would be remarkably early if a fall migrant, but alternate-plumaged Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs at E.A.F.B. 22 Jun (MSanM) were clearly new arrivals. An exception¬ ally early Solitary Sandpiper was at E.A.EB 30 Jun (SGr); the next ar¬ rivals came at C.L. 18 Jul (SS), near Lancaster, Los Angeles 21 Jul (JF), and at Tinemaha Res. near Big Pine, Inyo 23 Jul (T&JH). A Wandering Tattler on Point Loma, San Diego 7 Jun (PPr) was be¬ lieved to be summering locally. A few nonbreeding tattlers are prob¬ ably present along the coast every summer, but they are rarely reported; one at South Laguna, Orange 5 Jul (KLP) was prob¬ ably an early fall migrant. An early fall mi¬ grant Black Turnstone at Cachuma L., Santa Barbara 15 Jun (HP) was inland. A Surfbird in Coronado 11 Jun (MJB) was either an ex¬ ceptionally late spring migrant or summer¬ ing locally. A Red Knot at S.E.S.S. 21 Jun (MTH) was probably summering locally; one inland near Lancaster 20 Jul (MSanM) was a fall migrant. An ad. Semipalmated Sandpiper at C.L. 22 Jun (SS) established the earliest date for a fall migrant in California; 3 on the Los Angeles R. in Long Beach, Los Angeles 26 Jul (KGL) were the first of the juvs. Fall mi¬ grant Western and Least Sandpipers ap¬ peared to return early, with the first Westerns at S.E.S.S. 21 Jun (MTH, GMcC) and the first Leasts a week later (GMcC), and the first juvs. of both species at Bolsa Chica, Orange 24 Jul (BED). It is anyone’s guess whether the Red-necked Stint at C.L. 13 Jun (SS) was a late spring or early fall vagrant; it establish¬ es the 10th record for California. A Stilt Sandpiper at S.E.S.S. 10 Jun (GMcC) pro¬ vides one of a very few records for California in summer; one in Long Beach 19-20 Jul (RB) was on the coast, where rare. A male Ruff at S.E.S.S. 31 Jul (RHD) remained into the winter. SKUAS THROUGH FLYATCHERS A South Polar Skua was seen from San Clemente I. 10 Jun (JMcM). Late spring mi¬ grant Franklin’s Gulls were at N.E.S.S. 8 Jun (MSanM), in Santa Barbara 14 Jun (JMG), and near Lancaster 20 Jun (MSanM); one at S.E.S.S. 29 Jul (GMcC) was a hatch-year bird recently arrived. Five Heermann’s Gulls, rare inland, were found at S.E.S.S. between 26 Jun and 3 Jul (JFG, GMcC, HBK). Gull¬ billed Terns had a highly successful season at S.E.S.S., with over 180 pairs fledging at least 150 young at a single colony at Rock Hill; over 250 pairs of Caspian Terns also nested at Rock Hill and Mullet I., with many young fledged from the former site (KCM). Two El¬ egant Terns were inland at S.E.S.S. 25 Jun (JFG), another was there 2 Jul (MTH, These young Reddish Egrets at Bolsa Chica in late July 2005 were two of three present in coastal Orange County, California, at that time. Photograph by Paul Roa. 654 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS One of two Glossy Ibis seen in the Imperial Valley in July, this one (right) was photographed with a White-faced Ibis and a Cattle Egret near Calipatria, Imperial County, California on 17 July 2005. Photograph by Oscar Johnson. GMcC), and one more was at N.E.S.S. 2-3 Jul (CMcG, JFG, HBK). Small numbers of Least Terns are now found on the Salton Sea every summer, with up to 4 at S.E.S.S. 2-29 Jul (MTH, GMcC) and 2 at N.E.S.S. 3 Jul (HBK); however, 2 elsewhere inland at the Prado Basin, San Bernardino 25 Jun (DVP), one near Lancaster 24 Jun (LS), and another on Tinemaha Res. 16 Jun OLD) were far more noteworthy. Numbers of Common Terns at Coronado increased from one on 20 Jun to 40+ at the end of the period (MS); this species was much more numerous through¬ out California in the 1970s but has de¬ creased dramatically since that time. About six pairs of Forster’s Terns nested this year at S.E.S.S. (KCM). Black Skimmers had their first successful season at the Salton Sea since 2001, with over 500 pairs fledging at least 200+ young (KCM); 2 in the Prado Basin 28 Jun-1 Jul (JEP) provide one of a very few records for this species in San Bernardino. Up to 5 Pigeon Guillemots off Pt. Vicente be¬ tween 12 Jun and 9 Jul (KGL) and one off South Laguna 19 Jul (KLP) were unusual for this far s.; 4 at San Clemente I. 10 Jul (JMcM) were exceptional. A Tufted Puffin, rare off s. California, was near Santa Cruz 1. 5 Jun (KLG). A recently dead Yellow-billed Cuckoo re¬ covered at the Santa Margarita R. mouth, San Diego 25 Jun (BEF; *SDNHM) and another seen on Point Loma, San Diego 5 Jul (EA) were on the coast, where rarely recorded. Eurasian Collared-Doves continue to push westward, as indicated by the presence of single birds on San Clemente I. 3 Jun (JPJ) and 8 Jul (SWS). The presence of a Short¬ eared Owl near Imperial Beach 13 Jul (Arnold Grassi, fide RAP) suggests local nesting, though the species is believed gone from s. California as a breeding bird. A Northern Saw-whet Owl at S.EK.R.P 23-24 Jun (MMcQ) was in an unexpected area. Two White-throated Swifts seen entering a hole in a large highway sign at Salton City, Imperial in Mar and Apr (BM) were thought to be a breeding pair and if so would estab¬ lish the first record for nesting in the Salton Sink. An ad. male Allen’s Hummingbird was well photographed in El Centro, Imperial 29 Jun (KZK) to substantiate the 3rd fall record at the Salton Sink. A Gila Woodpecker at Corn Springs near Desert Center, Riverside 4 Jun (JFG, CMcG) was well away from any known area of normal occurrence. This young Tundra Swan, photographed on 7 March 2005, remained through the summer in California City, Kern County, California. Photograph by Ken Kyle. A singing Greater Pewee in the Laguna Mts., San Diego 11 Jun-3 Jul (MM) was the first of this species to be found in summer in California; all previously accepted state records are from mid-Sep-mid-Apr in the lowlands. For the 3rd year in a row, a Least Flycatcher was found summer¬ ing at S.EK.R.P, with one there 30 May-27 Jun (AS). A Dusky Flycatcher in Long Beach 4 Jun (KGL) was an exceptionally late spring migrant. Juv. Say’s Phoebes in early Jul at Madrona Marsh in Torrance, Los Angeles suggested local nesting (DM), and a nest with young was found in Long Beach on 4 Jun (KLG); one at Bolsa Chica 3 Jun (LRH) was exceptional in sum¬ mer for coastal Orange. Unsea- sonal coastal Vermilion Fly¬ catchers were at Madrona Marsh 2Jun-7Jul (DM) and in Irvine 29 Jun (GM); in the inland valleys, a male continued through 11 Jun at Hidden Valley Wildlife Area, Riverside (LLaP), but a May nesting at¬ tempt in San Bernardino failed (TAB). Four to five pairs of Vermilions were at Ridge¬ crest, four pairs were at S.EK.R.P. (JCW), and a pair raised young at Mojave Narrows Regional Park, San Bernardino this summer (SJM). Numbers of nesting Brown-crested Flycatchers at S.EK.R.P. were down to six to eight pairs this summer (BB). SHRIKES THROUGH WARBLERS Dismal numbers of Loggerhead Shrikes on the coastal slope, including a near absence from Orange (DRW), suggest that recovery efforts lavished on San Clemente I. (mearn- si ) populations of this species might also be directed to the mainland (as well as to the critically endangered anthonyi subspecies of the remaining Channel Islands). More up¬ beat is the current situation with Least Bell’s Vireos (subspecies pusillus), which continue to recover their former range; one on the Salinas R. n. of Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo 2 Jul (PB, TR) suggests local nesting. The Yellow-throated Vireo on San Clemente I. was present through 2 Jun (SWS). A Plumbeous Vireo in Los Angeles 12 Jun (JF) was quite late for the coastal lowlands; a singing bird in Fawnskin in the San Bernardino Mts. (MF) was slightly w. of pre¬ viously known sites in this range. The song of a Warbling Vireo in Irvine 12 Jun (BED) suggested the e. gilvus group, as yet undocu¬ mented in California. Late vagrant Red-eyed Vireos (not noted in the spring season’s re¬ port) were on San Clemente I. 2 Jun (SWS), in Long Beach 19 Jun (KGL), and at Horsethief Spring, San Bernardino 9 Jun (AH). Away from the Tehachapi Mts,. Purple Martins hang on in the Region primarily in Santa Barbara, where 10-14 pairs were at two sites near Solvang 29 Jun (JMG); an ear¬ ly fall migrant was at Playa del Rey 31 Jul (KGL). A Violet-green Swallow at Dana Point 14 May-26 Jun (PC) was unseasonal lor the iteSjJL tgt *«• In Coronado, San Diego County, California, this stunning Pacific Golden-Plover was present for one day, 22 June 2005. Photograph by Matt Sadowski. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 655 — i CALIFORNIA immediate coast of Orange. Over 40 Bank Swallows at Tinemaha Res., Inyo through Jun (T&JH) were in an area with no known colonies. A White-breasted Nuthatch at Hart Park in Bakersfield, Kent 28 Jun (K&BK) was a very early migrant. A Hermit Thrush on Pt. Loma 7 Jun (SES) was an exceptional¬ ly late migrant. A Brown Thrasher in Bor¬ rego Springs, San Diego late May+ (John Rudley; PJ) was one of the few ever to summer in California. A Bendire’s Thrasher feeding fledglings in the Kelso Valley, Kern 27 May (DL) was at the ex¬ treme w. edge of the species’ range. A Lucy’s Warbler was at Harbor Re¬ gional Park near San Pedro, Los Angeles on the odd date of 22 Jun (RAH). In ad¬ dition to the 21 Northern Parulas noted in the spring report, 8 were on the coastal slope 5 Jun-2 Jul, and another was in Blythe, Riverside 13 Jul (RH). Late migrant Yellow Warblers were near Seeley, Imperial 10 Jun (GMcC) and at California City, Ken t 21 Jun (K&BK). A Yellow-rumped Warbler at Castaic Lagoon, Los Angeles 11 Jun was exceptionally late for the lowlands. Other late spring vagrants included a Chest¬ nut-sided Warbler on Pt. Loma 7 Jun (JWo), a Blackburnian Warbler there 5-6 Jun (MJB), and a Yellow-throated Warbler in Bishop 17 Jun (J&DP). A Palm Warbler on Pt. Loma 5 Jul (EA) was unseasonal, as were Black-and-white Warblers in the Santa Ynez Mts., Santa Barbara 1 5 Jul (MAH), in Fuller¬ ton, Orange 17 Jul (RAE), and w. of Bakers¬ field 26 Jul (WM). Five American Redstarts on the coastal slope 2-28 Jun augment num¬ bers reported in the spring report. A Pro- thonotary Warbler was in Vista, San Diego 18 Jun (KM). An Ovenbird on Palomar Mt. 18Jun-9 Jul (MMcC) was presumed to be the same individual found last summer. Two territorial MacGillivray’s Warblers were on Palo¬ mar Mtn. 5 Jun (PU); there are no con¬ firmed nestings for San Diego. A singing MacGillivray’s in Irwindale, Los Angeles remained in an area well below breeding habitat until 26 Jun (AL). Two Painted Redstarts in the Laguna Mts. 12Jun-17 Jul (TM, MJB) were thought to be a pair; another pair summered at Fawnskin, with fledged young seen on 9 Jul (CJ, C- TL). A Red-faced Warbler at William Heise Regional Park near Julian 6-12 Aug (PAG, MS) was likely present through the summer, a seasonal first for San Diego. TANAGERS THROUGH FINCHES Adding to the list of sw. montane species found in the Laguna Mts. this season, a male Hepatic Tanager was present there 16-28 Jun (GMcC). At least three pairs were in the Rose Mine/Arrastre Cr. area of the e. San Bernardino Mts. 10-24 Jun (HvanO, AEK). A juv. Black-throated Sparrow at Playa del Rey 24 Jul (KGL) was a very early vagrant to the coast. One of the few significant Grasshopper Sparrow populations in the greater Los Angeles area is at Rancho Sierra Vista near Newbury Park, Ventura, where 6-9 territorial males and several juvs. were This male Wilson's Plover spent the month of June 3005 (here 4 June) among nesting Least Terns at Batiquitos Lagoon, San Diego County, California. Photograph by Matt Sadowski. found 16-18 Jun (WW). A rostratus Savan¬ nah Sparrow at Bolsa Chica 2 Jul (BED) was an early fall arrival. A Lincolns Sparrow was in the Laguna Mts. 26 Jun (MJI); nesting is not documented for Sun Diego. A female Northern Cardinal in Blythe 5 Jun (RH) was one of the few reported re¬ cently on the California side of the Colorado R. The late spring push of vagrant Rose¬ breasted Grosbeaks barely subsides during the summer season; 4 were noted w. of the deserts 4 Jun-9 Jul, and others were n. of Bishop 19 Jun (J&DP), at Chiriaco Summit e. of Indio 4 Jun (JFG, CMcG), and in Blythe 22 Jul (RH). An early fall migrant Black¬ headed Grosbeak was near El Centro 9 Jul (KZK), and a Lazuli Bunting at the same lo¬ cality 5 Jul (KZK) was the earliest fall record for the Salton Sink. A scattering of Indigo Buntings through the Region included up to 2 singing males in the Laguna Mts. 11-26 Jun (TM, MJI). An Orange-breasted Bunting ( Passerina leclancherii ) was singing in Mis¬ sion Viejo, Orange 17 Jun (BED), clearly an escapee. An ad. male Tricolored Blackbird in Bish¬ op 18-24 Jun (J&DP) was slightly out of range. Yellow-headed Blackbirds in Goleta 1-7 Jun (WTF) and at L. Cachuma 17 Jul (JBe, HP) were among the few found in sum¬ mer in Santa Barbara in the past 40 years. A Scott’s Oriole was observed carrying food in Santiago Canyon e. of Irvine 20 Jun (RAE); breeding was previously undocumented in Orange. Pine Siskins lingered into Jun from the winter invasion in the mts. of San Diego, but nesting attempts failed, and the species was absent after 28 Jun (PU, JWi). A Lawrence’s Goldfinch, casual in Inyo, was at Mahogany Flat Camp¬ ground 11 Jun (SES). Cited observers (county coordinators in boldface): Eitan Altman, Bob Barnes, Joe Barth (JBa), Richard Barth, Joe Beck (JBe), Thomas A. Benson, Mark J. Billings, Donn Blake, Pete Bloom, Kyle Braunger, Mary Claypool, Peyton Cook, Cameron Cox, David M. Compton ( San¬ ta Barbara), Brian E. Daniels, Robert H. Dester, Jon L. Dunn, Tom M. Edell (San Luis Obispo ), Richard A. Erickson, Jon Feenstra, Brian E. Foster, Mary Freeman, Wes T. Fritz, Kimball L. Garrett (Los Angeles), Shawn Goodchild (SGo), Stanley Gray (SGr), James M. Greaves, John F. Green (Riverside), Mike Gurbada, Robert A. Hamilton, Loren R. Hays, Tom & Jo Heindel (Inyo), Matthew T. Heindel, Roger Higson, Mark A. Holmgren, Chris and Rosie Howard (C&RH), Marshall J. Iliff, Barbara Johnson, Jillian P. Johnston, Carole Jones, Paul Jorgensen, Douglas Kar- alun, Brad Keitt, Nancy Kenyon, Howard B. King, Alexander E. Koonce (San Bernardi¬ no), Kenneth Z. Kurland, Ken and Brenda Kyle (K&BK), Denise LaBerteaux, Larry LaPre, Kevin G. Larson, Andrew Lee, Cin-Ty Lee, Paul E. Lehman, Michele Matson, Guy McCaskie (Imperial), Mike McClintock, Chet McGaugh, Jimmy Mc- Morran (San Clemente Island), Michael McQuerrey, Gary Meredith, Kurt Mi- ethke. Bob Miller, William Moffatt, Kathy C. Molina, David Moody, Bill Moramar- co, Tom Myers, Cornelia Oedekoven, Jim and Debby Parker (J&DP), Robert A. Patten, Halli Pedersen, Dhann V. Pelle¬ grini, David Pereksta, Kaaren L. Perry, James E. Pike, Philip Pryde (PPr), Peter Pyle (PPy), Tom Roberts, Colleen Rock, Richard A. Rowlett, Matt Sadowski, Mike San Miguel, Larry Sansone, Gregory P Smith, Maggie L. Smith, Susan E. Smith, Su¬ san Steele, Sam W. Stuart, Ashley Sutton, Phil Unitt, Herman van Oosten, Lisa Weaver, Walter Wehtje (Ventura), Lorena Warner- Lara, Bert Warren, Douglas R. Willick (Or¬ ange), Jim Wilson (JWi), John C. Wilson (Kern), Shauna M. Wolf, Joseph Worley (JWo). An additional 35+ observers who could not be individually acknowledged sub¬ mitted reports this season; all have our thanks, t© A Tufted Puffin was the highlight of a trip off Santa Cruz Island, Santa Barbara County, California on 5 June 2005. Photograph by Steve Sosensky. 656 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS — — Baja California Peninsula Ensenada lsjas Tijuana / Mexicali Todos ^ yCerro Prieto Santos^' lower Rid Santo Tomas A San Maneadero P/a/n^T Quintin El Rosario * Islas San Benitos, Isla Cedros - ' ^ Leyes de Reforma % .(San Felipe vCatavina Bahia de ' Los Angeles Vizcaino Peninsula San Jose del Cabo With coverage of some interesting areas that are under-birded dur¬ ing the breeding season — espe¬ cially the saltworks at Guerrero Negro — the summer period produced a smattering of highlights, including a Greater White-front¬ ed Goose in Tijuana, a Common Goldeneye in Baja California Sur, and Mexico’s first summering Glaucous Gull near Ensenada. LOONS THROUGH TERNS Three Pacific Loons were found on saline im¬ poundments this season: a very worn imm. at Cerro Prieto geothermal ponds (hereafter, C.PG.P.) 2 Jun (KLG, KCM) was seen again 9 Jul (KAR, CR) and found dead 29 Aug (ph. MS, MJB, MJI); an ad. was there 9 Jul (ph. KAR, CR); and one was at the Guerrero Ne¬ gro saltworks 28 Jul (AC, NA). A Common Loon was at the latter location 28 Jun (RC, AC). At the n. extent of their range on the peninsula, Least Grebes have been found at San Ignacio for over 10 years; but a pair with a full-grown juv. 27 Jul (MSM, TMcG) con¬ firmed nesting there for the first time in more than 70 years. Clark’s Grebes nested for the 3rd consecutive year at C.PG.P. (occupied nest 20 May, nest with 3 eggs 29 Aug) and were joined by Western Grebes this year (nest building 20 May) (MJI et al.). Among the birds observed on a seven- hour boat trip off Bahia de Los Angeles 26 Jul were a Sooty and 25 Black-vented Shear¬ waters, 15 Black and 100+ Least Storm-Pe¬ trels, one ad. and one juv. Red-billed Trop- iebird, 35 Brown and 75 Blue-footed Boo¬ bies, and 25 Magnificent Frigatebirds (MSM, TMcG). As was true in much of the sw. Unit¬ ed States this season, Brown Pelicans were found in greater numbers than normal in the Mexicali Valley. Peak numbers (mostly juvs.) were recorded 29 Aug: 16 at two locations in Mexicali, 28 at C.PG.P., and 2 at Campo Mosqueda (MJB, MJI, MS). One was at San Ignacio 27 Jul (MSM, TMcG). Two Least Bitterns at Parque de la Amistad, Tijuana 28 Aug (MJB) were at a new locality, and 12 at San Ignacio 27 Jul included many juvs. (MSM, TMcG). The imm. Greater White-fronted Goose found in Tijuana in Feb was still present 2-28 Aug (ph. MJB), repre¬ senting the first summer record for the Re¬ gion. Two Brant remained at the Guerrero Ne¬ gro saltworks 29 Jun (RC, AC), and 4 Wood Ducks were at the Mexicali Zoo 29 Aug (MJB, MJI, MS). In nw. Baja California, nesting ducks were found at traditional locations: El Descanso (Ruddy Duck), Rio Guadalupe es¬ tuary (Gadwall, Mallard), La Salma (Gad- wall), and Lagunita El Cipres (Gadwall, Cin¬ namon Teal, Redhead) (MJB, RAE, MJI). A male Northern Pintail at Estero Punta Banda 21 Jun-28 Jul (RAE, MJB, MJI) was unsea- sonal, and a Common Goldeneye at the Guerrero Negro saltworks 29 Jun (RC, AC) was Baja California Sur’s first in summer. Robert A. Hamilton 34 Rivo Alto Canal Long Beach, California 90803 (robb@rahamilton.com) Richard A. Erickson LSA Associates 20 Executive Park, Suite 200 Irvine, California 92614 (richard.erickson@lsa-assoc.com) Four Red-shouldered Hawks were at San Ignacio 27 Jul (MSM, TMcG), but the species remains unconfirmed as a breeder in Baja California Sur. In the s. Gulf of Califor¬ nia, a Wandering Tattler was at 1. San Jose 1 Jun, and 2 Black Turnstones were there 30 May (RC, LS). The Guerrero Negro salt¬ works hosted numerous phalaropes: 84 Wil¬ son’s and 1100 Red-necked 29 Jun (RC, AC) and one Wilson’s and 30,000 Red-necked 28 Jul (AC, NA). At C.PG.P, 2000 Red-necked Eduardo Palacios Ecologia, Centro de Investigation Cientifica y Education Superior de Ensenada Miraflores 334, Fracc. Bella Vista La Paz, Baja California Sur 23050, Mexico U.S. mailing address: P.0. Box 434844 San Diego, California 92143-4844 (epa!acio@cicese.mx) Roberto Carmona Departamento de Biologia Marina Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Sur Apartado Postal 19-B La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico (beauty@uabcs.mx) • NUMBER 4 VOLUME 59 (2005) 657 . . — , , . . . . . — . . . . I . . - . Harry Carter, Darrell Whitworth, Josh Koepke, Frank Gress, Eduardo Palacios, Laurie Harvey, and others conducted seabird monitoring for the Cali- , Ft fornia Institute of Environmental Studies (funded by ChevronTexaco de Mexico) Mar-Oct 2005 on the Islas Los Coronados of Baja California. Among other interesting observations, on the afternoon of 23 Mar they saw a Cory's Shearwater flying by, landing on, and attending an empty nest. The per¬ sonnel searching the se. side of Middle Rock for crevice-nesting birds saw and heard this bird at close range; at about 20 minutes before dusk, they watched it land on an empty Brandt's Cormorant nest on the e. side, where it remained until dusk. The bird was not detected again until 18 Apr at 1 1 :00 a.m., when it was noted sitting just below two boulders on the edge of a cliff on the e. side. When approached, the bird flushed, circled, and passed close by several times while vocalizing, before landing in the same area after observers moved away. On 2, 16, & 17 May, it circled and passed close by observers on the s., e„ or n. sides of the rock but was not observed on land. On 2 May, it was first photographed, and on 1 7 May it joined a feeding flock that formed around a fishing boat. The only shipboard observation was on the morning of 20 May, when the bird was seen roosting with 5 Brandt's Cormorants on the e. side of the rock, before later flying by at close range and landing in the water. After being missed during shore visits to the rock on 30 May, 19-20 Jun, 19 Jul, and 21 Aug, it was found on the afternoon of 19 Sep, sitting on an empty nest (a loose pile of dried iceplant and grasses) about 1-1.5 m deep within a large crevice under the two boulders where observed on 1 8 Apr. After evading our attempt to capture it, the bird flew past the e. side several times, vocalizing. Personnel had searched this crevice repeatedly between 23 Mar and 20 Jun without detecting this nest, so it was certainly constructed between late Jun and 19 Sep. On the afternoon of 19 Oct, the bird was observed in the same crevice sitting on a better-constructed (but still empty) nest bowl. After evading attempts to capture it again, the bird circled and passed by the cliffs on the e. and s. sides of the rock several times with little vocalizing before departing. The bird's behavior over at least seven months strongly resembled pre-nesting colony attendance, but the observers suspect that only one bird was present in 2005. Nesting would be far outside the range of this North Atlantic/Mediterranean species. Isolated records of Cory's Shearwaters in California in 2004 [NAB. 58: 136, 175) may re¬ flect meanderings of this individual from a home base at the Coronado Islands, but multiple birds may be involved. There is an older (1934) record from New Zealand. This Cory's Shearwater was observed repeatedly in the Coronado Islands of Baja California from March through October 2005 (here 2 May 2005). It represents the third record of the species in the Pacific. Photograph by D. Whitworth. were seen 29 Aug (MJB, MJI, MS). Following the Mexicali Valleys first reports in Apr and May, 2 ad. Heermann’s Gulls were at C.RG.P. 9 Jul (ph. KAR, CR). A first-summer Glau¬ cous Gull among 1500 Western Gulls con¬ gregating at El Sauzal 28 Jul (tMJl, ph. MJB, RAE) provided the first summer record for Mexico. At the Guerrero Negro saltworks, 40 Black Terns on 29 Jun (RC, AC) and 53 on 28 Jul (AC, NA) seemed impressive, but 75 were there in Jul 1996 ( Monographs in Field Ornithology 3: 218). WOODPECKERS THROUGH FINCHES A male Downy Woodpecker at Playas de Ti¬ juana 27 Aug (tMJB) was at a new locality and was the first reported in the Region since Mar 2003. A Western Kingbird at Villa Jesus Maria in s. Baja California 26 Jul (MSM, TMcG) was at a location where nesting was confirmed in 1995 ( Monographs in Field Or¬ nithology 3: 73, 104). In addition to a small, disjunct breeding population on the Vizcaino Peninsula in Baja California Sur ( Monographs in Field Ornithology 3: 104), Bell’s Vireos breed regularly along n. Baja California’s riparian corridors. A singing male on the Maneadero Plain 21 Jun (RAE, MJB) was the first report¬ ed from that area. At Santa Ines — the known s. limit of the Baja California component of the range — a mile-long segment of arroyo held 19 birds on 3 Apr, but the presence of 3 singing males just s. of Punta Prieta on the same date (all KLW) suggests that the breed¬ ing range in Baja California may extend at least 100 km farther south. One of 2 Barn Swallows seen at the mouth of the Rio Des- canso 28 Jul carried a feather — possibly lining for a nest — farther down the coast (RAE, MJB, MJI). Additional late-spring and summer records, these in Baja California Sur, include one flying n. at Bahia Asuncion 24 May (OJ) and 4 at San Ignacio 27 Jul (MSM, TMcG). This swallow’s known breeding range extends south along the coast almost to the interna¬ tional border, and in San Diego County, CA, spring migrants have been recorded as late as 23 May, fall migrants as early as 2 Jul (P Unitt, 2004, San Diego County Bird Atlas). The species has been found nesting on Islas Los Coronados (Western Birds 8: 99; Monographs in Field Ornithology 3: 184), but confirmation from the mainland seems overdue. Yellow¬ breasted Chats breed locally on the peninsula s. to the n. Cape District; a singing bird at Mulege on 6 Apr (KLW) was presumed to be on territory. At San Ignacio, records of a singing chat on 4 Apr (KLW) followed by 4 on 27 Jul (MSM, TMcG) suggest that the species’ local status has changed little since Griffing Bancroft considered it to be a “rare” breeder there in 1928 (Condor 32: 43). Several n. Baja California breeders were found either nesting or potentially nesting at new locations. Rufous-crowned Sparrows are resident locally in Baja California Sur, as well as on the coastal slope of nw. Baja Cali¬ fornia, where the southernmost published record is from Isla San Martin at 30°30’ N (j. Grinnell, 1928, A Distributional Summation of the Ornithology of Lower California ); thus a pair at Arroyo Hondo (30° 12’ N, ca. 18 km n. of El Rosario) in Apr (KLW) represents an extension of the known range, albeit a mod¬ est and unsurprising one. The last confirmed breeding of Brewer’s Sparrow in the Region was substantiated by a series of 3 ads. and 3 juvs. collected in the Sierra San Pedro Martir 9-15 Jul 1905 (Auk 59: 317); the 19 May ob¬ servation of two pairs in an expanse of Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) 7 km s. of El Condor (e. of Tecate) suggests that the species probably continues to nest in pock¬ ets of suitable habitat in the n. mountains (RAE, DSC, MJI). A pond 18 km s. of El Condor held 25 pairs of Tricolored Blackbirds 19 May (DSC, RAE, MJI), and unprecedented numbers of Yellow-headed Blackbirds were found nesting in the ne.: 10 singing in cattails at Mexicali Country Club 4 Apr (MJI) were followed 9 May by ca. 100 pairs nesting at a golf course east of Mexicali and another estimated 100 pairs nesting 10 km w. of Algodones n. of Hwy. 8 (both DSC). A Western Meadowlark at the Guerrero Negro saltworks 17 May (OJ) was far s. of known breeding areas, but note the 12 Jun 1991 record of one even farther s. at Ciudad Insurgentes and speculation of nesting in the expanding agricultural zone of the mid-peninsula (Western Birds 23: 161). Up to 3 American Goldfinches were seen 2- 16 Apr at Parque Morelos, Tijuana (ph. MJB), where the species was confirmed nesting in 2000 (Monographs in Field Ornithology 3: 153), but none could be found there on 2 Aug after part of the park burned (MJB). Farther s., one was on the Maneadero Plain 21 Jun (RAE, MJB), and another was at Playas de Ti¬ juana 27 Aug (MJB). NON-NATIVE SPECIES At least 6 Spotted Doves were at Rosarito — the Regional stronghold for the species — on 21 Jun, and on that same day, fledgling Eurasian Collared-Doves at two locations on the Maneadero Plain provided the first con¬ firmed nestings in Baja California (MJB, RAE). A Red-crowned Parrot at Bajamar, BC 25 Jul (MSM, TMcG) furnished the first Re¬ gional report of which we are aware. Contributors: Nallely Arce, Mark J. Billings, Roberto Carmona, Harry R. Carter, Andrea Cuellar, Daniel S. Cooper, Richard A. Erick¬ son, Kimball L. Garrett, Ted Goshulak, Anto¬ nio Gutierrez- Aguilar, Marshall J. Iliff, Oscar Johnson, Todd McGrath, Kathy C. Molina, Cindy Radamaker, Kurt A. Radamaker, Matt Sadowski, Mike San Miguel, Luis Saurna, Michael B. Trotta, Kenneth L. Weaver, Dar¬ rell Whitworth. © 658 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Mexico NORTHERN MEXICO GREBES THROUGH OWLS An active nest of Pied-billed Grebes on the Canon de Fernandez on the Nazas R., Dgo. 13 Jul was the first nesting record from the area (EH, MC). Also on that date, a family of Wood Ducks including 6 young were seen on the Canon de Fernandez (EH, MC). There were 15+ Mexican Ducks in pairs and family groups along watercourses n. of Cuidad Obregon, Son. 27 Jul (MDC et ah). An Osprey and a juv. Gray Hawk were at Canon de Fernandez 4 Jun (AVJ), and an ad. Gray Hawk there 13 Jul (EH, MC). A White¬ tailed Kite was near Agua Nueva, ca. 15 km s. of Saltillo 23 Jul (MDC et al.). Thirty-eight Mountain Plovers with at least 2 juvs. were seen at La Soledad, near Hediondilla, N.L. 26Jun (LS, MG). A Snowy Plover was at a pool at a Pemex Station on Hwy. 16 near General Trias [Santa Isabel], about 30 km w. of Chihuahua City, Chih. 30 Jul (JC, MDC et al.). A Greater Yellowlegs was recorded at Canon de Fernandez 19 Jun (WB, FVP); the earliest previous records of this shorebird in the Nazas R. are in Aug (FVP). At the n. limit of the species’ range on the Pacific slope, a Mangrove Cuckoo was heard on Hwy. 16 about 100 km e. of Hermosillo, Son. 25 Jul, and one was seen on the Obregon-Yecora road 28 Jul (MDC et al.). Small groups of Maroon-fronted Parrots j were seen flying over Ejido La Encantada, ! Sierra Pena Nevada, N.L. 11-17 Jun (JM, GC). Two ads. and a fledgling Stygian Owl were found by EB in Casa de Piedra, above Alta Cima (and photographed by FC 17 Jun), the first records for Tamps. HUMMINGBIRDS THROUGH SPARROWS On agaves at and near Cuauhtemoc, Chih., there were a Lucifer, an ad. male Rufous, and an ad. male Allen’s Hummingbirds, plus 3-5 Rufous/Allen’s 24 Jul (MDC et al.). A Moun¬ tain Trogon was seen at Ejido La Encantada in mid-Jun (JM, GC). Two female Spot- crowned Woodcreepers with brood patches were mistnetted in Ejido La Encantada 11-17 Jun; one of them was later seen taking food to a nest (JM, GC). A White-striped Wood- creeper was near Yecora 28 Jul. A Yellow- green Vireo was on Hwy. 16 about 100 km e. of Hermosillo 25 Jul. An American Robin was seen on the grounds of Tecnologico de Laguna in Torreon 19 Jul, an unusual sum¬ mer record (AVJ). Western Tanagers seen in late Jul included a female/imm. near Her¬ mosillo 26 Jul, 3 females/imms. in willows alongside a golf course pond 27 Jul, single males in two locations on the Obregon-Yeco¬ ra Hwy. 28 Jul, and a female/imm. near Madera, Chih. 30Jul (MDC et al.). A Rufous- capped Brush Finch near Yecora 27 Jul was at the n. limit of range. A male Bullock’s Ori¬ ole was at Canon de Fernandez 4 Jun (AVJ). Five Worthen’s Sparrows were seen at El Uno, San Rafael 26 Jun (MG). Contributors (area compilers in boldface): Hector Gomez de Silva Xola 314-E 03100 Mexico, D.F. Mexico (hgomez@miranda.ecologia.unam.mx) William Beatty, Esteban Berrones, Michael D. Carmody, Gabriela Castaneda, Fernando Cerra, Maribel Cortes, Javier Cruz, Manuel Grosselet, Eduardo Hernandez, John Mc¬ Cormack, Laura Scott, Francisco Valdes Peresgasga, Alfredo Villalobos Jauregui. CENTRAL MEXICO HERONS THROUGH HUMMINGBIRDS A Least Grebe was seen at Tlahuac, D.E 18 Jul (RW, AM). Two American White Pelicans summered at Parque Ecologico Xochimilco, D.E (hereafter, P.E.X.) through the period (RW, HGdS, MG). A juv. Brown Pelican was inland at a roadside pond 55 km s. of Acayu- can, Ver. 16 Jun (MDC et al.). A Tricolored Heron was at RE.X. 23 Jul (MG). Around 10 White-faced Ibis were at P.E.X. 23 Jul (MG). At least 3 large Cinnamon Teal ducklings were at RE.X. 23 Jun (RW), and 2 ads. were at Tlahuac 18 Jul (RW, AM). Two Hook¬ billed Kites were seen in the UNAM botani¬ cal garden, D.E 18 Jun (MG, ph. AD), the first confirmed summer record. Two North¬ ern Bobwhites were heard in Anenecuilco, a suburb of Cuautla, Mor. 9 Jul (HGdS, MG, AD). Probably summering at Tlahuac were 14 Semipalmated and 5 Snowy Plovers, as well as around 30 Least and 3 Baird’s Sand¬ pipers, all noted 18 Jul (RW, AM). There were 3 Baird’s Sandpipers at P.E.X. 2 Jun (HGdS, RW) and still one there 11 Jun (RW). Two pairs of Gull-billed Terns discovered at RE.X. in late May were sitting on eggs 2 Jun VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 659 SOUTHERN MEXICO (RW, HGdS); the 4 ads. and 2 juvs. were there 23 Jun (RW), with 2 ads. and 2 juvs. still there 30 Jun (RW, AM). Two Black Swifts and at least 5 White-naped Swifts were over the UNAM botanical garden, D.E 24 Jun (HGdS, MG, tn.ob.). At least 2 male Broad¬ tailed Hummingbirds were heard at Cerro de La Estrella, D.E 11 Jun (HGdS, LASG), and one was heard at Lomas de Bezares, D.E 10 Jun (MG). A belated report of a male Amethyst-throated Hummingbird mist-net¬ ted in fir forest in the Parque Nacional De- sierto de los Leones 17 Dec 2004 (SA) con¬ stitutes the first confirmed record for D.E CORVIDS THROUGH FINCHES A Western Scrub-Jay was at its nest in a Ca- suarina tree at the UNAM botanical garden, D.E 24 Jun (HGdS, MG, m.ob.). A Slaty Vireo and a Bridled Titmouse were seen along the hwy. to Cuernavaca at La Pera, Mor. 9 Jul (HGdS, MG, AD). Two juv. European Star¬ lings were at Cerro de La Estrella, D.E 1 1 Jun (HGdS, LASG). A female and 2 male North¬ ern Cardinals were at the UNAM botanical garden 24 Jun (HGdS, MG, m.ob.). Three Rusty Sparrows were seen and heard at La Pera 9 Jul (HGdS, MG). Three Grassland Yel¬ low-Finches were at Anenecuilco 9 Jul (HGdS, MG). Four Cinnamon-bellied Flower- piercers were seen at the UNAM botanical gar¬ den 24 Jun (HGdS, MG, m.ob.). A pair of Brown-headed Cowbirds was seen at P.E.X. 2 Jun (HGdS, RW), and a male was there 23 Jul (MG). A fledgling Brown-headed Cowbird was being fed by a Chipping Sparrow at the UNAM botanical garden 24 Jun (HGdS, MG, m.ob.). A female and an imm. male Black- backed Oriole were at Bosque de Aragon 9 Jun (HGdS, MPV), and a pair was being followed by a begging fledgling Bronzed Cowbird at Rafael Donde, D.E 15 Jun (HGdS). An Elegant Euphonia was glimpsed near the Instituto de Biologia, UNAM 24 Jun (HGdS). Contributors (area compilers in boldface): Sofia Arenas, Michael D. Carmody, Alec Davis, Hector Gomez de Silva, Manuel Grosselet, Alejandro Melendez, Monica Perez Villafaha, Luis Antonio Sanchez Gonzalez, Richard Wilson. SOUTHERN MEXICO Carmody reports that rainy conditions in mid-June contrasted with dry conditions in late May/early June, with many more hum¬ mingbirds in evidence toward the end of the season. Records are from Oaxaca unless oth¬ erwise stated. A pair of Hook-billed Kites in the UNAM botanical garden in Mexico City found 4 June 2005 (here) furnished the first summer record of this species in the subregion, which until recently had not been recorded at any season (with the exception of old records). Photograph by Alec Davis. Abbreviations: P.A.D. (Piedra Azul Dam near Teotitlan del Valle); T.S.P. (Tlacolula Sewage Pond); S.EP (San Felipe Park); C.V. (Cuatro Venados). BOOBIES THROUGH FINCHES An ad. Blue-footed Booby was flying over the large rock islet off Los Coloradas, s. of Bahias de Huatulco 23 Jun (MDC et al.). About 40 Cattle Egrets (both breeding and non-breeding plumage; none obviously downy) were seen at T.S.P. 28 Jun (JF). A light-morph Short-tailed Hawk was at the Santo Domingo botanical garden, Oax. 26 Jun (MG, EdV, HC). Single ad. Cooper’s Hawks were above Teotitlan del Valle 1 1 Jun and on the La Guacamaya road 12 Jun (MDC et al.); and 3 just-fledged juvs. were at Etla, Oax. 26 jun (MG, EdV). An Ornate Hawk-Eagle was seen at km 90 above Valle Nacional 14 Jun (MDC et al.). A male High¬ land Guan responded to tape playback of its wing flaps at Sumidero Canyon N.P., Chis. 17 & 18 Jun (RR, MDC et al.). A covey of 4 Northern Bobwhites 20 Jun was high at 2500 m elevation near San Cristobal de las Casas, Chis. on the Ocosingo Hwy. about 3 km e. of the intersection with Hwy. 190 (MDC et al.). A Gray-necked Wood-Rail was high at 1250 m near the 2nd overlook at Sumidero Canyon N.P 18 Jun (MDC et al.). Four Double-striped Thick-knees were at Ignacio Ramirez, e. of Arriaga, Chis. 23 Jun, where 3 were seen 30 May (MDC et al.). A Killdeer was at Puerto Arista, Chis. 22 Jun, as was a Red-necked Phalarope in alternate plumage (MDC et al.). Two Sandwich Terns and an Elegant Tern were among a group of 50+ roosting terns at Ignacio Ramirez 23 Jun (MDC et al.). A flock of 40+ Lilac-crowned Parrots were at Bahias de Huatulco 24 Jun (MDC et al.). Six Black Swifts were at Huayapan 25 Jun (MG), and 7 Great Swallow-tailed Swifts were at 775 m elevation above La Sepultura Reserve n. of Arriaga 21 Jun (RR, MDC et al.). A Violet-crowned Hummingbird (but bill all dark above) was seen at PA.D. 7 Jun (JF). A female Garnet-throated Humming¬ bird was seen at Llano Grande 17 Jun (MG). A few Wine-throated Hummingbirds were feeding on flowering thistles in the wetland 5 km s. of San Cristobal de las Casas 21 Jun (MDC et al.). A Strong-billed Woodcreeper was at Cerro Huitepec, near San Cristobal de las Casas, as was a Scaled Antpitta 20 Jun (RR, MDC et al.). Many Greenish Elaenias at This Gull-billed Tern was photographed at its nest in Par¬ que Ecologico Xochimilco in Mexico City, where two pairs were found nesting in late May and early June 2005 (here 2 June); there are no records for the subregion otherwise. Photograph by Hector Gomez de Silva. S.EP— including 4 together, one of which re¬ peatedly fed another — were seen at C.V. 30 Jun, this is a new breeding location. A pair of Great Kiskadees was nesting at PA.D. 28 Jun; in the same tree and same nest where Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers have nested in two previous years. A Cassin’s Kingbird was high (2750 m) at C.V. 30 Jun. For the 2nd year in a row, a Brown-capped Vireo was seen in the coffee fincas of the coastal sierras of s. Oaxaca on 6 Jun (MDC). A Green Jay seen at Presas de Huayapan 5 Jul furnished a 2nd record for cen. Oaxaca, both presumably escapes. About 15 Violet- green Swallows (including imms. with gape flanges) were seen at PA.D. 28 Jun. At least three pairs of Barn Swallows were nesting in San Cristobal de la Casas 19-21 Jun (MDC et al., ph. NS). A Bewick’s Wren was feeding - ^ "S-' - 660 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS m _ _ young in a nest in a hole in a cut road bank at S.EP 4-7 Jun. A juv. Clay-colored Robin was mist-netted at the Santo Domingo botanical garden 26 Jun (MG, EdV, HC). An ad. Aztec Thrush was at Cuajimoloyas 16 Jun (MG). A male Golden-cheeked Warbler was seen at Huitepec Reserve near San Cristobal de las Casas 24Jul (JG). On 19 May, a pair of Red-headed Tanagers was seen in the Valley of Oaxaca along Hwy. 175 ca. 5 km e. of the junction with Hwy. 190 (MDC et al.); the species has been seen along Hwy. 175 in recent winters at higher eleva¬ tions, just below El Estudiante. A pair of ad. Oaxaca Sparrows was seen feeding a fledg¬ ling at S.EP. 25 Jun; the latter looked much like the ads. except for the dull yellow bill. About 30 Striped Sparrows including juvs. with gape flanges were seen at C.V. 30 Jun. Chipping Sparrows in breeding plumage were seen and heard singing at S.EP. 4 & 7 Jun. A White-throated Towhee, about 35 House Finches, and 4 Lesser Goldfinches were high (2750 m) at C.V. 30 Jun. Contributors (area compilers in boldface): Ramiro Aragon, Michael D. Carmody, Hans Clebchst, Edgar del Valle, John M. Forcey, Javier Gomez, Manuel Grosselet, Robert Ridgely, Nigel Simpson. Uncredited observa¬ tions are by John M. Forcey and Ramiro Aragon. YUCATAN peninsula was a transient species on the Yucatan Pen., but for the past 15 years, large flocks spend the winter here, and a few individuals have This adult Stygian Owl was one of two found near Casa de Piedra in June, furnishing the first record for the state of Tamaulipas (here 17 June 2005); there are two records from neighboring Texas. Photograph by Fernando Cerra. summered. On 21 Jun, 76 were counted be¬ tween Chuburna and Uaymitun on the n. coast of Yucatan, and most were in one large flock (BM, RM). Only one was seen at Ce¬ lestun 10 Jul, where a few have previously been recorded in summer (DB). Also on 21 Jun, during the count of water birds between Chuburna and Uaymitun, 89 Snowy Egrets were observed, but not a single Little Blue Rio Lagartos Merida, f Cozumel •'Chunyaxche Carrillo Puerto Banco Chinchorro A synchronized monitoring of water birds along different sections of the Yucatan coast was carried out 21 June in order to confirm just what birds were spending the summer here; the results provided much of interest. The unfortunate early arrival of Hurricane Emily 17 July had quite an impact on resi¬ dent birds at the height of the breeding sea¬ son. It slammed into Cozumel, entering the mainland at Playa del Carmen before veering northward and, fortunately, rapidly exited into the Gulf of Mexico. There were many downed nests, particularly of flycatchers, vireos, and orioles and many of these had dead or live chicks in them. PELICANS THROUGH WARBLERS Thirty years ago, American White Pelican Heron was present. This seems to support past observations that this species has a much larger migratory population than oth¬ er resident and migratory heron species (BM, RM). Besides the herons, 21 Roseate Spoonbills were seen feeding in the flats be¬ hind Churburna and Chelem 21 Jun (BM, RM). However, there were only 882 non¬ breeding Greater Flamingos feeding in the coastal lagoons at Uaymitun on the same day; most are found at their traditional nest¬ ing site at Punta Mecoh near El Cuyo, where 10,000 chicks were hatched this year (BM, RM). A Swallow-tailed Kite was recorded 15 Jul at Celestun (AD, VM, RL, FC, LG), and rarer still was a White-tailed Kite 15 Jun at Reserva Natural T’isil (formerly Rancho San¬ ta Maria; hereafter R.N.T.), n. Q. Roo. Even more exceptional was the sight of 4 White¬ tailed Kites there 24 Jun, which may suggest migration (PW); one had been reported in same area in Jul 2004. Nine Black-bellied Plovers were on the flats behind Churburna and at Uaymitun 21 Jun, and, for the first time, Semipalmated Plovers were confirmed to summer when 2 were seen on the same day in the flats be¬ hind Chuburna (BM, RM). Other summer¬ ing species observed 21 Jun between Chuburna and Uaymitun were 2 Greater Yel- lowlegs, a Willet, 14 Ruddy Turnstones, 5 Least Sandpipers, and 8 Short-billed Dow- itchers (BM, RM). A few Ring-billed Gulls were at Celestun 10 Jul (DB), and a single Caspian Tern was among the Royal Terns on a sandbar behind Chelem 21 Jun. On the same day, a total of 51 Least Terns was counted between Chuburna and Uaymitun (BM, RM). A Striped Cuckoo, rarely reported in the subregion, sang for half an hour at R.N.T. 9 Jul but subsequently disappeared (PW); though not noted in Yuc. by Howell & Webb (1995), this species has also been found be¬ hind El Cuyo, as well as far to the s. at Hobonil (BM). Pheasant Cuckoos were heard occasionally through the month of Jul at R.N.T. (PW). A Caribbean species, Smooth-billed Ani is usually limited to Cozumel and the mainland directly to the w., but after Hurricane Emily hit the island 17 Jul, one showed up at R.N.T. 19 Jul (PW). A male Belted Kingfisher, an early migrant on the peninsula, was recorded on 28 Jul at Celestun (DB). The Purple Martin migration started 8 Jul at R.N.T. (later than last year), Three Barn Swallow nests were found at San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, in the second half of June. The species was previously considered a winter visitor and transient in the state of Chiapas. Photograph by Nigel Simpson. with several hundred per day passing through by the last week of Jul (PW). A Yel¬ low-throated Warbler was sighted 15 Jul at Celestun (AD, VM, RL, FC, LG), and anoth¬ er was at R.N.T. 23 Jul (PW). As expected, Louisiana Waterthrush was the first of the warblers to arrive at R.N.T., where individu¬ als were recorded 18, 22, & 23 Jul (PW). Contributors: (regional compiler in bold¬ face): David Bacab, Francisco Cutz, Alex Dzib, Luis Garina, Ramiro Lara, Barbara MacKinnon, Victor Marin, Rodrigo Migoya, Paul Wood. VOLUME 59 (2005) NUMBER 4 661 . . . H. Lee Jones 4810 Park Newport, #317 Newport Beach, California 92660 (hleejones@adelphia.net) Oliver Komar SalvaNATURA Conservation Science Program 33 Avenida Sur #640 San Salvador, El Salvador (okomar@salvanatura.org) There is still much to learn about the resident avifauna of many areas of Central America, especially in the of¬ ten hard-to-reach areas such as highlands where there are few or no roads. A Rapid Ecological Assessment this summer in the Guatemalan and Honduran part of Cerro Montecristo, a mountain with cloud forest spanning the borders of Guatemala, Hon¬ duras, and El Salvador, produced several previously unrecorded species for that range, including the first records of Hutton’s Vireo for Honduras. In Panama, a small group of birders spent the summer in the El Valle-Altos del Maria highlands west of Panama City and, likewise, recorded a num¬ ber of species previously unreported or sel¬ dom reported from that region. Pelagic trips into the Pacific Ocean con¬ tinue to break new ground regardless of sea¬ son. This season, there were three ornitho¬ logical expeditions into the Pacific, two off El Salvador and one off Costa Rica. Because of the paucity of information on pelagic birds in the Region and little information on seasonality, almost every species recorded on these trips adds significantly to our knowl¬ edge of pelagics in the Region. Although Pink-footed Shearwater and Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel were recorded for the first time in El Salvador waters, more pelagic trips out into the Pacific will probably document their regular presence in the area. Elsewhere, Blue-chested Hummingbird and Olive Tan- ager were photographically confirmed in Honduras for the first time, and Yellow¬ winged Cacique was photographically con¬ firmed in El Salvador. Abbreviations: KUNHM (Elniversity of Kansas Natural History Museum); MUHNES (Museum of Natural History of El Salvador). SHEARWATERS THROUGH HERONS The highlights of the summer season in El Salvador were two pelagic expeditions, one on 2 Jul to the edge of the continental shelf 114 km offshore of Jiquilisco Bay (OK, TJ, BS), and the other on 11 Jul to an area about 55 km offshore s. of the Gulf of Fonseca (AM). These trips documented the first El Salvador records of Pink-footed Shearwater (5 on 2 Jul, 2 on 11 Jul) and Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel (2 on 2 Jul), along with 2nd records (first specimens) for Red-footed Booby (2 on 2 Jul, one on 11 Jul), Audubon’s Shearwater (2 on 2 Jul, 5 on 1 1 Jul), and Black Storm-Petrel (4 on 2 Jul). Voucher specimens of each species (*MUHNES; duplicates to KUNHM) were taken on 2 Jul. The storm-petrel, booby, and Audubon’s Shearwater were last reported by Jehl (1974) over a one-and-a-half day period in Apr 1973. The 11 Jul expedition also found 3 Red-billed Tropicbirds, only the 3rd record for El Salvador. Three ad. Nazca Boobies on 2 Jul (*MUHNES) and 2 ads. on 11 Jul were the first recorded in summer in El Salvador. None of these species were es¬ pecially surprising, as all are regular off the coast of Central America. In Costa Rica, a Blue-footed Booby was seen during a Gulf of Nicoya crossing from Puntarenas to Paquera on 10 Jul (RN, BSc). This species is presumed to be an irregular visitor at any time of year in the Gulf of Nicoya but is seldom reported by birders. A male Least Bittern in El Salvador at Hacien¬ da Nueva York, Canton Cara Sucia, 10 Jun (RIP) was considered rare for Ahuachapan. A female was seen nearby in Jul 2004. Else¬ where, 2 heard and a male seen at The Dump ricefields 20 km nw. of Punta Gorda, Toledo 19 Jun (LJ) confirmed the breeding-season presence of this species in s. Belize. Providing perhaps the 3rd confirmed record for Honduras was an imm. Rufescent Tiger-Heron mist-netted in a swampy area in Las Marias, Gracias a Dios 26 Jul (ph. TJ, BS). The bird was first seen in a tree, but when the observers returned with a camera, it had flown into one of their nets. Other records are from the Moskitia at Segovia R., Gracias a Dios in 1887, the Rio Platano, Gracias a Dios in 1983, and near Tela, Atlan- tida in 1993. According to DA, the latter record, from a Christmas Bird Count, was published in a birding magazine with an ac¬ companying photograph; however, the pho¬ tograph did not include observer credit or any other information that would suggest that it was anything other than a stock pho¬ tograph of a bird perhaps taken elsewhere. Rare in summer in Panama, an ad. Great Blue Heron was at Punta Chame, Panama 31 Jul (GA). HAWKS THROUGH DOVES The Gray-headed Kite that appeared on Caye Caulker, Belize in Mar was seen again 14 Jul (J&DB). In El Salvador, a group of 4 Snail Kites, including 2 ad. males, was re¬ ported 10 Jun from Hacienda Nueva York, Canton Cara Sucia (RIP), where this some¬ what nomadic species had not been reported previously. In Guatemala, where uncom¬ mon, a Black-collared Hawk was seen in a swamp in Rubelsanto, Alta Verapaz 19 Jun (KE). Reports of Zone-tailed Hawk on the Caribbean slope of Honduras are increasing, perhaps as people become aware of their po¬ tential to occur in the area. The most recent report is of an ad. at Olanchito, Yoro on 30 Jul (DS). A Red-throated Caracara was heard near the Arboretum at the OTS La Selva Bio¬ logical Station 1 Jul (AD, OV, and student group). This species still appears at La Selva 662 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS about once every two years, usually stays for a few days, then moves on. It is an increas¬ ingly rare bird in the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica. Three Black Guans were seen 15 Jul at Cerro Gaital above El Valle, Code (MH, JP), an area in Panama from which they are rarely reported. A juv. Singing Quail cap¬ tured in cloud forest at Los Volcanes N.P, Santa Ana 20 Jul (LCA, BS) provided El Sal¬ vador’s first confirmed breeding record for this very locally distributed resident species. In The Dump ricefields, several calling Gray¬ breasted Crakes 19 Jun (LJ) further es¬ tablished the breeding-season presence of this species in Belize. Farther n., on Caye Caulker, the last wintering Ru¬ fous-necked Wood-Rail lingered until 8 Jun (J&DB). Black-bellied Plover was not seen on Caye Caulker between 2 Jun and 13 Jul (J&DB), suggesting that no individuals summered on the caye. Likewise, Western Sandpiper was ab¬ sent from the caye 4 Jun-30Jul (J&DB). This species is not known to summer in Belize, and the 3 Jun date is the latest on record. Although nonbreeding Willets remain year-round in El Salvador, fall migration was evidently under way by 11 Jul (AM), when southbound flocks of 16 and 13 were seen at sea 36 km s. of the entrance to the Gulf of Fonseca. In Belize, first-of-the-fall Willet, Spotted Sandpiper, and Whimbrel were reported 12 Jul from Caye Caulker, with Short¬ billed Dowitcher recorded the next day and Least Sandpiper not until 24 Jul (all J&DB). An imm. Pomarine Jaeger was seen during the Puntarenas-to-Paquera crossing of the Gulf of Nicoya 10 Jul (RN, BSc). Two Elegant Terns just off¬ shore of Usulutan 2 Jul, and a basic- plumaged Black Tern far out at sea the same day (OK, TJ, BS), established rare sum¬ mer records for both these species in El Sal¬ vador. Inca Dove may be on the move in Costa Rica. The first report from anywhere in the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica was one at La Virgen de Sarapiqui at 100 m 13 Jun (JA) about 15 km wsw. of La Selva. Ac¬ cording to JRZ, this species is likely to ex¬ pand into the Caribbean lowlands either from the northwest, perhaps even from Nicaragua, or from across the central valley. On the Caribbean slope, the species is presently confined to higher elevations along some of the lower passes along the n. continental divide as between San Ramon and La Tigra. The Caribbean Dove on Caye Caulker this past winter was last seen 13 Jun (J&DB). Purplish-backed Quail-Doves pres¬ ent at 800-1050 m at Altos del Maria, Panama throughout the period (MH, RA) were the first reported from this area. One reported from El Valle 5 Aug (MH) provided the first record for e. Code. OWLS THROUGH HUMMINGBIRDS A Bare-shanked Screech-Owl, not previously reported above 2100 m in Panama, was seen the night of 10 Jun at 2950 m on the Sum¬ mit Rd., Volcan Baru, Chiriqui (GA, WA, DW). Two days later, the rarely reported Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl was seen during the day along the Continental Divide Trail, For- tuna, Chiriqui (GA, WA). A male and a fe¬ male Black-crested Coquette frequented a yard on Ambergris Caye 5-28 Jul (SL), thus providing the northernmost record for this uncommon and local species in Belize. As we learn more about seasonal (?) move¬ ments of subtropical and tropical humming¬ bird species, we are finding that Black-crest¬ ed Coquette, like several others in the Re¬ gion, demonstrates a tendency to turn up, at least occasionally, 100 km or more out of range. Two Green Thorn tails were seen 21 Jul near El Valle, Code (MH, DR, JP), where they are rarely reported, and one was also found 27 Jul near Altos del Maria, Panama (MH), the first reported from this area. A Blue-chested Hummingbird was caught in a mist-net 27 Jul in Las Marias, in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, Gracias a Dios. The bird was first seen in the house garden of a Pech Indian family 26 Jul and was netted in swampy, mature secondary forest the following day (ph. TJ, BS). Al¬ though recently reported in the same area, this record firmly establishes the species on the Honduran list. At El Valle in e. Code, White-tailed Emeralds were seen near the summit of Cerro Gaital (1200 m) 27 Jun (MH, DR, JP). There was only one previous record of this species from the El Valle area. Snowcaps were reported 1 & 9 Jul be¬ tween 950 and 1100 m at Altos del Maria, Panama (MH, DR, JP, RA). There have been only two previous records from this province. In Honduras, a male and a female Snowcap were captured in mist-nets about 5 km w. of Las Marias 31 Jul and 1 Aug (ph. TJ, BS). All prior records of the species in Honduras are more or less an¬ ecdotal. Monroe included Snowcap in his 1968 monograph based on verbal descriptions, and there have been spo¬ radic unpublished reports since. A male Purple-throated Mountain-gem was seen 27 Jun at 1100 m near the summit of Cerro Gaital above El Valle, Code (MH, DR, JP), and 3 were seen 1 1 Jul at Altos del Maria, Panama (MH, DR). These are the first reported from e. Co¬ de and Panama, and the latter repre¬ sents the easternmost record for the species. Providing only the 4th convinc¬ ing record of Long-billed Starthroat in Belize, an imm. was seen and adequate¬ ly described from near San Pedro Co¬ lumbia, Toledo 4 Jul (JM). KINGFISHERS THROUGH JAYS A Belted Kingfisher seen on utility lines at Mile 10 along the Western Hwy., Be¬ lize 29 Jul (MC) was likely an early fall migrant. A Red-faced Spinetail near Al¬ tos del Maria, Panama 1 Jul, and 2 Spot¬ ted Barbtails at Cerro Gaital above El Valle, Code 16 Jun (all MH, DR, JP) were the first of those two species ever reported from the respective provinces. In Honduras, two vocalizing Spotted Wood- creepers in cloud forest at Cerro La Esperan- za, Ocotepeque 17 Jul (KE) were the first recorded for Cerro Montecristo. In Costa Rica, an Ivory-billed Woodcreeper was heard and seen in moist cove forest on Cerro Guayacan, Palo Verde N.P. 16 Jun (CJ). This is the first report of this species from heavi¬ ly birded Palo Verde in many years. A Brown-billed Scythebill found at 1050 m near Altos del Maria 27 Jul (MH) provided the first record from w. Panama e. of Ver- aguas. A Scaled Antpitta nest with eggs in cloud forest at Los Volcanes N. P, Santa Ana 20 Jul (BS, LCA) provided the first nesting docu¬ mentation at that site in over 25 years. A Ru- fous-browed Tyrannulet seen 1 Jul (MH, DR, JP) and 3 seen 18 Jul (MH, DR) at Altos del Maria, Panama were the first recorded be¬ tween w. Code and e. Panama. Another first This juvenile Rufescent Tiger Heron, only the third confirmed in Honduras, was mist-netted in the Department Gracias a Dios on 26 July 2005. Photograph by Tom leaner. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 663 i for Cerro Montecristo was at least 5 Paltry Tyrannulets heard 10, 11, & 15 Jul (KE) in cloud forest at Cerro Capucal, Ocotepeque. Two White-throated Spadebills 12 Jun on Cerro Gaital (MH, DR, JP) were the first recorded from e. Code. Representing a range extension, Hutton's Vireos, including sever¬ al singing individuals, were recorded this sum¬ mer in cloud forest in both the Honduran and Guatemalan part of Cer¬ ro Montecristo as fol¬ lows: one at Montana Las Hojas, Ocotepeque 16 Jul (KE); 2 at Cerro La Esperanza, Ocotepeque 17 Jul (KE); and one at Duraznal, Chiquimula 5 Aug, with 2 there 7 Aug (KE, CA). The birds in Ocotepeque were the first ever recorded in Hon¬ duras. A Black-chested Jay fi¬ nally made a visit 4 Jun to the heavily birded Wilson Botanical Gar¬ den in San Vito (ph. CM), where it was pho¬ tographed for the first time on Costa Rica’s Pa¬ cific Slope. This 6th re¬ port for the Pacific Slope is the only one that has not been within a km or so of the Panama border. Another was mist-netted 15 Jul (VR) in a small forest patch in coffee fields within a km of the Panama border at Santa Rosa, another new local¬ ity 3 km s. of Sabalito. A group of at least 8 Azure-hooded Jays in cloud forest at Duraznal, Chiquimula 5 Aug, with 2 or more heard the following two days (KE), established the first records for Cerro Montecristo. The first Black-capped Swallow found in Honduras since 1963 (Monroe 1968) was heard and audio-taped 17 Jul at Cerro La Esperanza, Ocotepeque (KE). This is also the first breeding season record for Honduras. Not unexpectedly, nests were found several km away over the border in Duraznal, Chiquimula 30 Jun (OK, BS, KE) and 6 Aug (KE); breeding was known previ¬ ously from the same area but in El Salvador (Komar 2002). WRENS THROUGH BLACKBIRDS Two Ochraceous Wrens on Cerro Gaital 24 Jul (MH, DR, JP) established the first records for Code. Pale-vented Thrushes were pres¬ ent in numbers throughout the period at 850-900 m at La Mesa, El Valle (MH, DR, JP), establishing the first records from e. Co¬ de. A young bird was observed there 19 Jun. The first Yellow-throated Warbler of the sea¬ son was recorded 12 Jul in Belize City (MC), and the first Black-and-white Warbler was recorded 28 Jul on Caye Caulker (J&DB). An unseasonably early American Redstart was an imm. at Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Liber- tad 19 Jul (ph. AM). The first migrant Louisiana Waterthrush was observed within cloud forest at Montana Las Hojas, Monte- cristo-Trifinio N.P 15 Jul (KE). An Olive Tanager was caught in a mist net at an alti¬ tude of 400 m on the lower slopes of Pico Dama, about 5 km w. of Las Marias, Gracias a Dios around 31 Jul (ph. TJ). The species was first observed in Honduras in Dec 2002 (also TJ), but this was the first to be photo¬ graphically documented. Establishing first records from e. Code were a number of Blue Seedeaters observed throughout the period at 900 m on Cerro Gaital, including a pair with a fledgling on 12 Jun (MH, DR, JP). Approximately 4 territorial singing male Wedge-tailed Grass-Finches were present all summer along the El Valle Rd. near La Es- tancia, Code. Although not previously re¬ ported from Cerro Montecristo, Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow was common between 1500 and 1800 m in secondary growth cof¬ fee plantations and cornfields at Cerro Ca¬ pucal, Ocotepeque 9-17 Jul and in Duraznal, Chiquimula 2-8 Aug (both KE, CA). At the northernmost limit of its range on Costa Rica’s Pacific Slope, where they are not often seen, lone male Red-breasted Blackbirds were at the Tarcoles R. bridge 21 Jun (RC) and about 2 km downriver near the estuary 25 Jun (AD). Representing a range extension of about 70 km eastward, a group of Yellow¬ winged Caciques (5 males, one female) ob¬ served nesting at Los Cobanos, Sonsonate 25 Jun (ph. MR, RIP) furnished El Salvador’s 2nd report and the first documented by pho¬ tographs. Possibly representing a nw. range extension of about 50 km, a Crested Oropendola was observed in flight about a km s. of the Inter-American Hwy. bridge over the Terraba R. at Palmar Norte, Costa Rica 17 Jul (NU). Literature cited Jehl, R. J., Jr. 1974. The near-shore avifauna of the Middle American west coast. Auk 91: 681-699. Komar, O. 2002. Birds of Montecristo Na¬ tional Park, El Salvador. Ornitologia Neotropical 13: 167-193. Monroe, B. L., Jr. 1968. A Distributional Sur¬ vey of the Birds of Honduras. American Or¬ nithologists’ Union Monograph 7. Corrigenda: The Black Skimmer at Santa Is¬ abel, Panama was seen on 27 Jun, not 27 Jan (N.A.B. 58: 611). The date for Panamas 5th Gray-hooded Gull was 26 Sep (N.A.B 59: 163). Contributors (country coordinators in bold¬ face): William Adsett, Joel Alvarado, David Anderson (Honduras), Leticia del Carmen Andino, George Angehr (Panama), Raul Arias, Claudia Avendano, Jim and Dorothy Beveridge, Rafael Campos, Mick Craig, Adolfo Downs, Knut Eisermann (Guatemala), Michael Harvey, Ricardo Ibar¬ ra Portillo, Tomjenner, Carlos Jimenez, Lee Jones (Belize), Oliver Komar (El Salvador), Susan Lala, Alvaro Moises, Christopher Montero, Jerry Moomaw, Russ Namitz, Jose Perez, Marvin Rivas, Danilo Rodriquez, Vi¬ vian Ruiz, Bob Schwaller (BSc), Bryan Sharp, David Shoch, Ricardo Steiner, Francisco Urbina, Noel Urena, Orlando Vargas, Dan Wade, George Wallace, James R. Zook (Cos¬ ta Rica). O Olive Tanager was first observed in Honduras in December 2002. This bird, mist-netted near Las Marias, Departmento Gracias a Dios in late July, provided the first photographic documentation of its occurrence in the country. Photograph by Tom Jenner. — NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 664 West Indies 0: Bermuda Robert L. Norton 8960 NE Waldo Road Gainesville, Florida 32609 (corvus0486@aol.com) Anthony White 6540 Walhonding Road Bethesda, Maryland 20816 (spindalis@verizon.net) Andrew Dobson 117 Middle Road Warwick PG 01 Bermuda (ADobson@warwickacad.bm) SO. CAROLINA _____JFgE0RSIA BERMUDA \ FLORIDA L Grand ATLANTIC \ chobee Bahama /. X I '■ OCEAN V J pjgg) ft , New Providence /. v J Port Eleuthera 1. A \ « xCatl. „ „ , Andros Nassau * >* — San Salvador ^ Icrookedl. AMns 1 - CAICOS IS Youth - '"«i — ^Great Inagua m .. - . - , WJH® & /<*■ , ( as < rA*™™ ™ m us ssr ' — CARIBBEAN SEA Martinique Jr# Curacao " “ C St, Lucia ■ Providence 1. Aruba ] St. Vincent 9 & Barbados ■ f -St. Andrew I. jO C\ * ' Bonaire Grenada o' ""v Colombia )\ • ne iz 0 i l a ’'TJjrimdad ummer in this Region usually means fewer reports; breeding by most species •v usually takes place in April or May but often later in the year in response to wet con¬ ditions. Nesting was confirmed for White Ibis in the Bahamas and suspected there for Yellow-billed Cuckoo, while West Indian Woodpecker, Brown Pelican, and Cave Swal¬ low may be recovering or expanding in the Bahamas as well. The news continues to be good for nesting Cahows (Bermuda Petrels), but the long-term forecasts for rising sea lev¬ els and increasingly frequent (and stronger) tropical storms continue to bode ill for most of the Regions already vulnerable avifauna. PETRELS THROUGH TERNS Another good year for Bermuda Petrels after the setback caused by Hurricane Fabian of 2003: a record-high 71 pairs produced 35 chicks, of which 21 were successfully translocated and fledged from Nonsuch I. (JM; ). Greater Shearwater passage off Bermuda occurred on 3-4 Jun; counts past Coopers Point reached 1000/hr on 4 Jun, one of the best counts ever (AD, JM, LM). On 28 Jul, a Cory’s Shearwater, 50 Audubon’s Shearwaters, 50 Roseate Terns, 25 Brown Noddies, 18 Bridled Terns, and 8 Sooty Terns fed over an area known as “the tuna hole” about 3 km off Guana Cay, Abaco, Bahamas (RP). Over 20 pairs of White-tailed Tropicbirds nested on the n. shore of San Sal- turning shorebirds in Bermuda were at least a vador this summer (WH, m. ob.). Brown Pel- week later than usual, with Lesser Yellowlegs icans have returned to the n. Bahamas as a at Warwick Pond and Least Sandpiper at nesting species: 12 pairs nested on Brush Cay Spittal Pond 15 Jul (AD). Five Western Sand- (26° 31.39’ N, 77° 48.95’ W) between Grand pipers at Green Turtle Cay, Abaco 1 Jul were Bahama and Abaco (JK), and five pairs nest- early arrivals (EB). A Bonaparte’s Gull seen ed on Crab Cay off Chub Cay, Berry Is. (VS). through much of Jun provided the first sum- It is not known whether these birds are of the mer record for this species in Bermuda (PW). West Indian nominate subspecies or of the e. A Gull-billed Tern flew over Bartrams Pond, North American carolinensis. A Magnificent Bermuda 20 Jun (EA); 6 flew over Cable Frigatebird, uncommon on New Providence, Beach G.C., Bahamas 5 Jun (PD); and 5 fed was seen over Fort Montagu, Nassau, Ba- daily over Lyford Cay G.C., Bahamas Jun- hamas 8 Jul (PD, TW). Twelve pairs of White early Jul (TW). Approximately 25 pairs of Ibis nesting on Sandy Cay in the lagoon at Roseate Terns nested on Salt Cay (Blue La- North Bimini 26 Jun provided the first docu- goon Cay) off Nassau, Bahamas this summer mented nesting record for the Bahamas (ph. (PD). Pagliaro reported a mixed colony of 30 JK, PK). At Guadeloupe, Levesque found a pairs of Roseate Terns, 20 of Bridled Terns, pair of Least Bitterns at Port Louis swamp on and five of Sooty Terns on Footes Cay, 1.6 9 Jul. km w. of Guana Cay, Abaco. An ad. Bridled A Green-winged Teal and a Blue-winged Tern was seen of the East End, Bermuda 12 Teal were found at Harrold and Wilson Jun (PW), the island’s 4th record. At Barba- Ponds N.P, Bahamas 7 Jul (PD, LH, KHL, dos, a very early Black Tern was seen in the LL). Single Ospreys were present throughout Oilfields on 3 Jul (MF, EM), marking the be- the period at the East End and in the Castle ginning of fall migration for this species in Harbour area, Bermuda. A Merlin over Tee the Region. Street, Bermuda 3 Jul provided the first sum¬ mer record (AD, PJH). Two Piping Plovers DOVES THROUGH WARBLERS were at Grape Bay, Bermuda 29 Jul (DW). A About 5 White-winged Doves were noted on small flock of shorebirds, all in basic San Salvador, Bahamas at Cockburntown and plumage, on San Salvador, Bahamas 26 Jun near the Gerace Research Center 23-27 Jun included 3 Black-bellied Plovers, 8 Semi- (EB, TF, JH, TW). A Zenaida Dove on the palmated Plovers, 4 Ruddy Turnstones, and a grounds of the Radisson Hotel, Cable Beach, Sanderling (EB, TF, JH, TW). The first re- New Providence, Bahamas 24 Jun (DC) was VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 665 WEST INDIES &r BERMUDA Search our online database www.americanbirding.org/ festivals American Bird ing ASSOCIATION Donated lately?... Mm? Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne struck the northern Bahamas in September 2004. Fortuitously two studies were con¬ ducted just before the hurricanes that provided baseline data to measure the hurricanes' impact on birdlife: W. Hayes had been studying birds in the pine forests of Grand Bahama, and C. Stahala was studying Bahama Parrots on Abaco. Pre¬ liminary findings from post-hurricane studies are now available, although much work remains to be done. The population of birds in Grand Bahama's pine forests declined from summer 2004 to summer 2005 by a shocking 58.3%. Among the hardest hit species were Cuban Emerald (-86%), Hairy Woodpecker (-72%), Thick-billed Vireo (-73%), Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (-88%), Red-legged Thrush (-69%), and Western Spindalis (-72%). Stahala's parrots fared better. There was a decline in nesting suc¬ cess (54% to 44%) during the year of the hurricanes, but the success rate returned to its 2003 level in 2005. Lest we be too optimistic, it is important to note here that these levels are not high enough for the parrot population to persist. We thank Hayes and Stahala for permitting us to publish their preliminary data. unusual. Four Cuban (Bahama) Parrots have been seen in New Providence, Bahamas since at least 21 May; photographs indicate that they are probably from Great Inagua. No Bahama Parrots are missing from the col¬ lection at Ardastra Gardens (PD, RH), so these free-flying birds were probably intro¬ duced illegally. West Indian Woodpecker sightings are gradually increasing on Abaco. The Knowles saw or heard at least 6 at Ba¬ hama Palm Shores 1 Jun, and near Crossing Rocks, 5 were seen 20 Jun and 12 on 30 Jun (EB, WH, PH); one was along Jake Jones Rd., San Salvador 27 Jun (WH, EB). A pair of Yellow¬ billed Cuckoos was heard calling at Nicholls Town, North Andros, Ba¬ hamas 28 Jun (DC). They have been noted calling on different islands over the past few summers, raising speculation that the species may nest in the Bahamas. Levesque saw a Purple-throated Carib at Petit-Terre N.R., Guade¬ loupe 25 Jul; primarily a Lesser An¬ tillean species, this striking hum¬ mer has been found as far nw. as St. John, U.S. Virgin Is., and as far se. as Barbados. There were several re¬ ports of a summering Belted Kingfisher in Jun at Bermuda (fide AD). On Guadeloupe, an ad. Caribbean Elaenia fed a fledgling Gray Kingbird at Ste. Anne 10-11 Jul (AL), an unexpected sight. San Salvador’s first Black-whiskered Vireo was found at Gerace Research Center 27 Jun (EB, WH). The pres¬ ence of 2 Bahama Swallows over the road be¬ tween Coral Harbour and Nassau Airport, Bahamas 22 Jun (CW) suggests that a few still nest on New Providence. A Barn Swal¬ low flew over the beach at Graham’s Har¬ bour, San Salvador 24 Jun (TW). A possible Cave Swallow was at Fresh Creek, North Andros, Bahamas 28 Jun (DC), potentially the first Bahamian report away from the nesting area on South Andros. A Bank Swal¬ low was noted 1-2 Jun at Sptittal Pond, Bermuda (DW). A Northern Waterthrush 1 Jun (latest spring date) at Somerset Long Bay N.R., Bermuda (DW) provided a very rare Jun record. Fall migrant warblers in Bermu¬ da were right on time; they included a Black- and-white Warbler 29 Jul at Riddell’s Bay (DW) and a Louisiana Waterthrush 27 Jul at Spittal Pond (EA). Addenda to Spring 2005: Spring sightings (PM, KM) from St. Lucia of interest includ¬ ed 6 Common Terns at Soufriere 18 May; 2 St. Lucia Parrots at En Bas Saut Falls trail, Edmund Forest 12 May and 6 at Des Cartiers Forest Reserve 21 May; and 3 Black Swifts at En Bas Saut Falls trail 14 May. PM reports that approximately 138 pairs (22% of the world’s population) of White-breasted Thrasher, a critically endangered endemic, are threatened by a large hotel and residen¬ tial development project associated with the coming Cricket World Cup planned for St. Lucia. A single bird was noted at Praslin Bay 14 May. Two St. Lucia Black Finches were noted at en Bas Saut Fall trail, Edmund For¬ est 14 May. Observers: Eric Amos, Elwood Bracey, Dan Cooper, Paul Dean, Andrew Dobson, Ted Fleming, Martin Frost, Lee Hanna, Keva Hanna-Lawrence (KHL), Joshua Hapner, Pat Hayes, William Hayes, Peter Holmes (PJH), Robin Howard, Anita Knowles, James Kush- lan, Philip Kushlan, Anthony Levesque, Li¬ onel Levine, Jeremy Madeiros, Leila Madeiros, Eddie Massiah, Peter Metropulis, Kathleen Metropulis, Ron Pagliaro, Vernal Smith, Caroline Stahala, David Wallace Car¬ olyn Wardle, Paul Watson, Tony White. & Twelve nests of White Ibis on Sandy Cay, North Bimini Lagoon provided the first confirmed nesting record of the species in the Bahamas. Photograph by Jim Kushlan. 666 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Hawaiian Islands 180° „ o Midway Atoll Kure 7 Atoll PearlUnd Hermes Atoll Lisianski I. ,LaVsan 1 Alakai Swamp, Kilauea Point N.W.R. 168° W 27° N Nilhau \A Kaua 1 1. o‘ahu \.^ames Campbell N.W.R. Marco Reef o Gardner Pinnacles NORTHWEST HAWAIIAN ISLANDS French Frigate fieckeM Nihoa I. Molokai I. Kanafta poncj Lana ' ^ \l^Haleakala Kaho'olawe Shoals Kauai I. Kealia Pond N.W.R. Mauna Kea 21° N / * O A 156° W / 0‘ahu I. Maui I. Johnston Atoll t MAIN ISLANDS ; Hawaii I. Aimakapa Pon< Kailua-Kona Mauna Weather was very ordinary in the Region during the summer of 2005. Moderate trade winds blew across the islands, producing normal rainfall amounts. The number of observations we col¬ lected was a bit low. We had no reports from boat trips, but an airplane ride provided some interesting seabird observations. The most unusual seabird of the season, a new species for the Region, was seen from dry land. This was the second year in a row with a number of unusual migrants that oversummered. Abbreviations: H. (Hawaii I.); HRBP (Hawaii Rare Bird Documentary Photograph; used with image catalog number from the HRBP file at Bishop Museum, Honolulu); Hakalau (Hakalau N.W.R., Hawaii I.); Hanalei (Hanalei N.W.R., Kauai I.); Honouliuli (Hon- ouliuli Unit of Pearl Harbor N.W.R., 0‘ahu I.); K. (Kauai I.); Kanaha ^1 (Kanaha Pond, Maui I.); Kealia (Kealia Pond N.W.R., Maui I.); Kii (Kil Unit of James Campbell N.W.R., 0‘ahu I.); Kokee (Koke'e S.P, Kauai I.); K.P. (Kilauea Pt. N.W.R., Kauai 1.); M. (Maui I.); Midway (Midway Atoll N.W.R.); O. (0‘ahu I.); Pouhala (Pouhala Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary, 0‘ahu 1.); Waiawa (Waiawa Unit of Pearl Harbor N.W.R., 0‘ahu I.); Waikamoi (Waikamoi Preserve, Maui I.). ALBATROSSES THROUGH IBISES Laysan Albatrosses nesting at K.P. and nearby areas went well again this year, with 68 This adult Nazca Booby, perched conve¬ niently near Masked Boobies, represents the first record of the species for the Hawaiian Islands. The bird was spotted 21 July 2005 by Linda Takahashi on Tern Island, French Frigate Shoals, in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge. The bird's bright orange bill, slenderer than that of a Masked Booby, is clearly visible in the image. Photograph by Linda Takahashi (United States Fish & Wildlife Service)/HRBP 5209. birds fledging at K.P and 45 elsewhere on the n. shore of Kauai I. An airplane ride along the towering sea cliffs on the n. shore of Molokai I. 14 Jul revealed over 250 trop- icbirds, most near Mokapa 1. (ADY). Unfor¬ tunately, few of the birds could be identified as to species. At K.P., 180 Red- tailed Trop- icbird nests and five White-tailed Tropicbird nests were located (BZ). An odd-looking booby with an orange bill was observed 21 Jul-i- in the Hawaiian Islands N.W.R. at French Frigate Shoals (LT, ph. MG). The bird has been identified as a Nazca Booby and represents the first record for the Region. Four Plegadis ibis remained at Kealia Jun+ (MN), but no ibis were reported elsewhere. GEESE THROUGH GULLS At least 3 Cackling Geese decided to forego long migrations and oversummered in the Re¬ gion. Single Cacklings were observed Jun+ at Kealia (MN), Honouliuli (PD), and K.P. (BZ). The Cackling at K.P. continued to associate with Hawaiian Geese (En¬ dangered). There were 111 Hawaiian Geese at K.P along with the lone Cackler 13 Jul (BZ). There have been a number of recent reports of Hawaiian Geese in unexpect¬ ed areas on Hawaii I. (CC, JC). Apparently efforts to provide safe nesting areas for the birds are helping. Forty- two goslings fledged at Hakalau this spring (JJ), and as many as 15 may have fledged at the Big Island Country Club (JP). Some of these young birds have ap- Robert L. Pyle 1314 Kalakaua Ave., #1010 Honolulu, Hawaii 96826 (rlpyle@hawaii.rr.com) Peter Donaldson 2375 Ahakapu St. Pearl City, Hawaii 96782 (pdnldsn@mac.com) parently dispersed around the island (JJ> JP RP). One female Lesser Scaup failed to mi¬ grate north and was seen at Kealia 16 Jun (MN). Six Hawaiian Hawks (Endangered) were observed in cen. Hawaii 1. 17 Jul (H.ET.), an unusually high count. One Erckel’s Francolin was spotted at Ho- nouliuli 26 Jul (MS). This species has appar¬ ently been observed in small numbers at Ho- nouliuli since 2002, several km from any ar¬ eas where they have been previous reported. Eighteen Pacific Golden-Plovers in partial breeding plumage, and thought to be return¬ ing migrants, were seen at Kii 23 Jun, a very early date (DD, AN). Numbers of Pacific Golden-Plovers at the Waipio Soccer Fields in Waipahu, O. increased through Jul, with counts of 38 on 6 Jul, 48 on 13 Jul, and 55 on 27 Jul (PD). People in the islands view re¬ turning Pacific Golden-Plovers as one of the first signs of fall, much as people on the mainland look at American Robins as signs of spring. In both cases, these species may be overrated as harbingers. Some Pacific Gold¬ en-Plovers remain in the Region over the summer, and others apparently return from VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 667 HAWAIIAN ISLANDS the breeding grounds as early as Jun. One Semipalmated Plover at Kii 5 Jun+ (PD) was probably an oversummering bird. Four un¬ common or rare shorebird species observed during the season represented the first records for Jun or Jul. Hawaiian Stilts (Endangered) had a very good breeding season at the Kii, Honouliuli and Waiawa refuges on O'ahu I (MS). A Whimbrel of the variegatus race that first ap¬ peared late Feb was observed at, or near, Kii Jun+ (GF, m.ob.). A Marbled Godwit first seen at Kii mid-May remained there Jun+ (AN, m.ob.). A Red Knot in breeding plumage, first spotted at Honouliuli 28 May (PD), was seen again 5 Jun (ph. PD, RM). Two Curlew Sandpipers found at Kii 31 May were observed there through 1 Jul (AN, ph. PD, RM, DD). Oversummering Sander- lings are not unprecedented, but the num¬ bers at Kealia this season were unusually high, with counts of 1 1 on 2 Jun, 13 on 7 Jul and 5 on 21 Jul (MN). The only gulls of the season were at Kealia. A single Laughing Gull was seen 21 Jul (MN). Three Franklin’s Gull were ob¬ served 2 Jun and 2 on 21 Jul (MN). Franklins Gulls are uncommon but regular in the Region late spring-early summer. The Franklin’s on 21 Jul were unusually late. OWLS THROUGH PASSERINES Short-eared Owls were found in unusually high numbers in cen. Hawaii I. this summer. Counts of 19 and 16 were recorded 7 Jun & 17 Jul, respectively (H.FT.). Small numbers of O’ahu ‘Elepaio (Endan¬ gered) were observed on the windward (ne.) side of O'ahu in Waikane and Kanaha Valleys 22-23 Jul (EV, KS). This seems to be the last decent-sized population remaining in the area. No O'ahu 'Elepaio were found in Pia Valley in se. O'ahu 27 Jul (MW), an area where they are often seen. Introduced Red- whiskered Bulbuls have been spreading across O'ahu from their original stronghold in Honolulu, along the s. coast of the island. Two Red-whiskereds were observed along the ne. coast as far as Kahana Valley 23 Jul (EV, KS), and they are reported to be abun¬ dant in nearby Waikane Valley (RD). Two Red-whiskereds in Waianae, along the sw. coast of O'ahu, 26 Jul (JA) indicate they are also spreading in the opposite direction. Two Saffron Finches, an introduced species, were reported in Pepe'ekeo along the ne. coast of Hawaii 1.21 Jul (JJ). Saffron Finches have spread from the w. side of Hawai'i !. around the s. end of the island and across the Waimea Saddle near the n. end. For now, there is an area along the ne. coast of the is¬ land n. of Pepe'ekeo still unoccupied by the Saffrons. Saffron Finches, Yellow-billed Car¬ dinals, and Yellow-fronted Canaries all ap¬ pear to be expanding their populations along the se. coast of Hawai'i 1. in Hawaii Volcanoes N.R (KT). We received no reports of any of the rare native forest birds from Kaua'i or Maui this season. On Hawai'i 1., Palila (Endangered) were seen regularly Jun+ in Pu'u La'au, H. (H.ET.), 'Akiapola’au (Endangered) were seen regularly at Pu'u 'O'o Ranch Jun+(H. FT.), and Hawaii Creepers (Endangered) were seen reg¬ ularly at Pu'u 'O'o Ranch and Hakalau Jun+ (H.ET.). 'Akepa (Endangered) were seen at Hakalau 6 Jun & 17 Jul (H.ET.). This species seems to be getting harder to find. Contributors: Jeremy Adams, Joan Carroll, Clarence Ching, Reg David, Garry Dean, David DesRochers, Arleone Dibben-Young, Peter Donaldson, Beth Flint, George Fisher, Holly Freifeld, Morgan Gilmour, Hawaii For¬ est & Trail, Jack Jeffrey, Betty Joao, Nick Kalodimos, Dan Lindsay, Uilani Makekau, Richard May, Aaron Nedig, Michael Nishimo- to, Rob Pacheco, John Polhemus, Mike Sil- bernagle, Forest & Kim Starr, Keith Swindle, Linda Takahashi, Kathryn Turner, Eric Van- derWerf, Michael Walther, Brenda Zaun, t© BIRDERS' EXCHANGE NEEDS YOU! Assist in bird conservation, research, and outreach in the Neotropics by donating your used but still functional birding equipment to Birders' Exchange. We collect binoculars, spotting scopes, neotropical field guides, and backpacks for distribution to research and education organizations in the Neo¬ tropics. We also accept financial contributions to support the program. Please send your donations to: Birders' Exchange, American Birding Association, 720 West Monument Street, PO Box 6599, Colorado Springs, CO 80934. www.american birding NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Little Ringed Plover ( Charadrius dubius ) in Martinique: First for the West Indies Vincent Lemoine 30, Residence L'Autre Bord 97220 La Trinite, Martinique French West Indies (lemoine_v@yahoo.fr) Abstract This paper documents a Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius ) in Martinique, a new species for the Caribbean Basin and first record in the Americas away from the Aleutian Is¬ lands of Alaska. Field Encounter On 17 April 2005, the author observed a small Charadrius plover in breeding plumage on the beach of Sainte Marie, on the northeastern side of Martinique, near a river mouth. Other shorebirds present at the site were a Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularia ) and a Solitary Sandpiper ( Tringa solitaria ). The site was checked 16 April and again 18-19 April, when only the Solitary and Spotted Sandpipers were present, and the plover was not observed again. The plover was observed for 45 minutes, in good light, at distances of 10-25 m. The plover’s bill — rather slender, pointed, and entirely black — and its long white super- cilium indicated that the bird was not of the expected species, Semipalmated Plover (C. semipalmatus) . Moreover, the plover appeared to be too small for Semipalmated, its legs were yellow rather than orange, and its small head was more or less spherical in shape, giv¬ ing the overall impression of a tiny Killdeer (C. vociferus ) rather than the more stocky Semipalmated. Its orbital ring was a clear, bright yellow, of even width around the eye. In flight, its wings looked almost uniformly dark above. These features indicated Little Ringed Plover (C. dubius ), and photographs were secured to document the record. The bird was not heard vocalizing. Discussion Ornithologists Anthony Levesque in Guade¬ loupe and Damien Cohez in France reviewed the photographs of the plover and confirmed its identification as Little Ringed Plover. Co¬ hez judged it to be an adult female because of the brown auriculars, apparently a consistent character that distinguishes the sexes (adult males have black auriculars, lacking brown tones; Paulson 2005). Although several sub¬ species have been described (Flayman et al. 1991, Del Hoyo et al. 1996), it is apparently not possible to identify the Martinique indi¬ vidual to the level of subspecies. The only pre¬ vious records of this species in the New World come from the Aleutian Islands of Alaska: a specimen from Buldir Island 15-16 June 1974, plus single adults in breeding plumage at Attu Island 18-30 May 1986 and Shemya Island 18-19 May 1988 (A.B.A. 2002). Martinique, southern¬ most of the French Lesser Antillean islands, is located in the middle of the Lesser Antilles arc. To the north lies Dominica and to the south is Saint Lucia. Al¬ though Martinique has few¬ er nesting bird species than neighboring islands, the number of migrant or va¬ grant species is comparable to, perhaps even greater than these islands (Feld- mann 1998; Levesque et al. 2005). Like other Antillean islands, Martinique serves as a stopover for many species that nest in North America and win¬ ter in South America or in the Caribbean. In Martinique, as on most other islands of the Lesser Antilles, Nearctic shorebirds are regu¬ lar constituents of the avifauna, usually far more common during the fall than during the spring migration (AOMA 2002, 2003). Ebels (2002) summarized trans-Atlantic vagrancy of Palearctic species in the Caribbean, includ¬ ing of Old World shorebirds; additionally, several Palearctic shorebird species have been added to the Guadeloupe list in recent years, including Curlew Sandpiper (Calidris ferrug- inea), Wood Sandpiper ( Tringa glareola ), and Spotted Redshank ( Tringa erythropus ) (Levesque and Jaffard 2002, Levesque and Saint-Auret 2005). It is impossible to deter¬ mine the provenance of the Little Ringed Plover on Martinique, which could have flown southeastward from Siberia almost as easily as westward across the Atlantic from Africa. Whatever its path to Martinique, it was not an expected vagrant there, given the species’ minimal presence in the New World heretofore. Perhaps significant in this record was the plover’s choice of habitat: a freshwater river mouth, a typical habitat for this species. Acknowledgments The author thanks Anthony Levesque and Damien Cohez for assistance in the identifica¬ tion of the Little Ringed Plover on Martinique and Alvaro Jaramillo for help with earlier drafts of this article. Literature cited American Birding Association (A.B.A.). 2002. ABA Checklist : Birds of the Continental United States and Canada. American Birding Association, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Association Ornithologique de Martinique (A.O.M.A.). 2002. Les oiseaux limicoles en Martinique - suivi 2000. Les travaux scien- tifiques du Parc Naturel Regional de la Mar¬ tinique. Association Ornithologique de Martinique (A.O.M.A.). 2003. Les oiseaux limicoles en Martinique - suivi 2001. Les travaux scien- tifiques du Parc Naturel Regional de la Mar¬ tinique. Ebels, E. B. 2002. Transatlantic vagrancy of Palearctic species to the Caribbean region. Dutch Birding 24: 202-209 del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott, and S. Sargatal, eds. 1996. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 3. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. Feldmann, P. 1998. Liste des oiseaux de Guadeloupe et de Martinique. Rapport 20 de 1’ Association pour I’Etude et la protection des Vertebres et vegetaux des petites Antilles (A.E.V.A .). Petit-Bourg, Guadeloupe, France. Haymann, P., J. Marchant, and T. Prater. 1991. Shorebirds: An Identification Guide to the Waders of the World. Christopher Helm/A&C Black Edition, London. Levesque, A., and M-E. Jaffard. 2002. Quinze nouvelles especes d’oiseaux observees en Guadeloupe (EW.L). El Pitirre 15: 1-4. Levesque A., P. Villard, N. Barre, C. Pavis, and R Feldmann. 2005. Liste des Oiseaux des An¬ tilles Francises. Rapport 29 de l’Associa- tion pour I’Etude et la protection des Vertebres et vegetaux des petites Antilles (A.E.V.A.). Petit-Bourg, Guadeloupe, France. Levesque A., and A. Saint-Auret. in press. First sightings and rare birds records from Guadeloupe (FW.I.) in fall 2003. Journal of the Society for Caribbean Ornithology. Paulson, D. 2005. Shorebirds of North America: The Photographic Guide. Princeton Universi¬ ty Press, Princeton, New Jersey. O Figure 1 . Adult female Little Ringed Plover at Sainte Marie, Martinique, 17 April 2005. The all-dark bill, broad, striking, bright yellow or¬ bital ring, long white supercilium, and yellow legs distinguish this species from Semipalmat¬ ed and Common Ringed Plovers. The rather small head and slim bill give the species a Killdeer-like appearance in many poses. Photograph by Vincent Lemoine. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 669 First Record of Caribbean Martin ( Progne dominicensis ) for Aruba Jeffrey V. Wells Boreal Songbird Initiative 210 Water Street Hallowell, Maine 04347 (jeffwells@borealbirds.org) Allison M. Childs Wells Natural Resources Council of Maine 3 Wade Street Augusta, Maine 04330 (awells@nrcm.org) Abstract This paper documents the first record of Caribbean Martin ( Progne dominicensis ) for Aruba and considers the record in context of the species’ occurrence elsewhere in the southern Caribbean islands. Field Encounter On 15 January 2002, from 1730 to 1830 AST, we had several brief observations of a martin ( Progne species) flying over one of the build¬ ings of the Divi Village Resort, Oranjestad, Aruba (formerly Netherlands Antilles). Dur¬ ing these brief observations, we noted the bird’s dark bluish upperparts, relatively deeply forked tail, dark upper chest and dark flanks, and white underparts that extended from the mid-breast through the undertail coverts. The next day, we relocated the bird at the same location and studied it more carefully from 1730 to 1745 AST. At this time, we were able to ascertain that the bird showed a dark blue throat continuous with dark blue upper breast and sides and that this blue plumage contrasted sharply with the starkly white lower breast, belly, and undertail coverts. We identified the bird at the time as an adult male Caribbean Martin (P. dominicensis ) and obtained several photographs of the bird using an Olympus D-460 digital camera though Swarovski 10x40 EL binoculars (Fig¬ ures 1, 2). During this observation period, the bird was roosting on the roof of the hotel overlooking the pool courtyard and about 25-35 m above us. The hotel is located about 200 m inland from a coastal beach that is developed with hotels for several km, but at the time there was an area of undeveloped thorn scrub habitat behind the hotel and a freshwater wetland, the Bubali wetlands, about one km from the hotel. We left the island the following day and have no further information on the length of the bird’s stay. Discussion There are six species of Progne martin in which males are dark blue above: Caribbean, Purple (P subis ), Cuban (P cryptoleuca ), Sinaloa (P sinaloae ), Gray-breasted (P chalybea ), and Southern (P modesta). We eliminated Purple and Southern Mar¬ tins because in both species males are completely dark below with no white on the undersides (Hilty 2003, Turner and Rose 1989); adult male Cuban Martin likewise shows dark under¬ parts in the field (the white belly feathers are normally concealed) and was thus also eliminated (Garrido and Kirkconnell 2000, Raffaele et al. 1998). Gray-breasted Martin, in which males have a grayish-brown throat and upper chest and gray flanks, was also easily ruled out (Hilty 2003, Howell and Webb 1995, Turner and Rose 1989). Sinaloa Martin, the only Progne species other than Caribbean Martin that shows a white belly con¬ trasting with bluish flanks and breast, typically shows a broader area of white in the upper belly/lower breast than Caribbean Mar¬ tin (Howell and Webb 1995, Ridgely and Tudor 1989). The rather narrow white belly patch of the Aruba bird appears to us to be most consistent with Caribbean Martin. Geographic distribution also favors Caribbean over Sinaloa Martin in this case. Caribbean Martin breeds commonly in all the Greater Antilles except Cuba, throughout the Lesser Antilles, and on Tobago (A.O.U. 1998); it normally vacates the breeding range from October through early January, appar¬ ently migrating to an unknown wintering location in South America (Frost and Mas- siah 2001, Murphy and Hayes 2001, Raffaele et al. 1998, Keith 1997, Ridgely and Tudor 1989). A wintering roost of Caribbean Mar¬ tins discovered and monitored on Barbados in winter 2000-2001 was the first docu¬ mented instance of overwin¬ tering in the Caribbean Basin (Frost and Massiah 2001), and small numbers have been recorded wintering there every year since the initial discovery (M. Frost, pers. comm.). Our record consti¬ tutes the first for Aruba and the first record from the win¬ ter period for Aruba, Bonaire, or Curasao. Although no previous records exist for this species on Aruba (Rodner et al. 2000), Voous (1983) lists 12 records, including six speci¬ mens, of the species from the nearby islands of Curasao and Bonaire. Within these 12 records are at least three spec¬ imen records of Cuban Mar¬ tin — a taxon Voous (1983) lists as conspecific with Caribbean Martin — and it is unclear how many of the six sight records were unequiv¬ ocally identified as Caribbean versus Cuban Martin. All of the records for Bonaire and Curasao sum¬ marized by Voous (1983) are from autumn (Septem- ber-October) or from May. The May records are of par¬ ticular interest: throughout the breeding range of Carib¬ bean Martin, individuals are Figure 1. Adult male Caribbean Mar¬ tin at Divi Village Resort, Oranjestad, Aruba on 16 January 2002. Note the very narrow white underparts bounded by rather broad dark-blue plumage of the sides. The very similar adult male Sinaloa Martin typically shows a broader area of white below. Photograph by Jeffrey V. Wells. Figure 2. Adult male Caribbean Martin at Divi Village Resort, Oranjestad, Aruba on 16 January 2002. From the side, the bird often looked entirely dark, with just a small area of white visible around the feet. Photograph by Jeffrey V. Wells. 670 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS said to return to the breeding grounds in Jan¬ uary or February, with eggs often laid by April. However, multiple observations of Caribbean Martins at Trinidad over a period three years by Murphy and Hayes (2001; first confirmed records for Trinidad) fell in the April-May period, except for one from Feb- ruary-April. Perhaps the April and May records refer to laggard first-spring individu¬ als, a phenomenon noted in a number of other migrant bird species, or perhaps the species has a more protracted migration period than is currently known. It is puzzling that there are no previous records of migrant Caribbean Martins from Aruba, Bonaire, or Curagao for the Janu- ary-March period, a time when one would presume the bulk of the population would be returning to the breeding areas. Because the species has been at least occasionally recorded on Curagao and Bonaire in fall migration (Voous 1983), the absence of reports from late winter/early spring is even more surprising. As we left Aruba shortly after discovering the Caribbean Martin at Oranjestad, we cannot determine whether the bird wintered there or was just roosting on the buildings during a short migration stop-over. The southern Progne species still present enigmas: their field identification is difficult, their taxonomic relationships are unsettled. their wintering areas in several cases (Cuban and Caribbean Martins) remain unknown, and the phenology of their migrations is poorly understood. The genus clearly deserves further study. Acknowledgments We offer thanks to Martin Frost, who pro¬ vided extensive comments on early drafts of this paper. We extend our gratitude also to the Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band for the oppor¬ tunity to visit the island, and the Divi Tamarijn Resort for its kind hospitality dur¬ ing our stay. Literature cited American Ornithologists’ Union [A.O.U], 1998. Check-list of North American Birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists’ Union, Washington, D.C. ffrench, R. 1991. A Guide to the birds of Trinidad and Tobago. Second edition. Cor¬ nell University Press, Ithaca, New York. Frost, M. D., and E. B. Massiah. 2001. Caribbean Martins ( Progne dominicensis) overwinter at a roost in Bridgetown, Bar¬ bados. El Pitirre 14:128-129. Garrido, O. H., and A. Kirkconnell. 2000. Field Guide to the Birds of Cuba. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York. Hilty, S. L. 2003. Birds of Venezuela. Second edition. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Howell, S. N. G., and S. Webb. 1995. A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and northern Central America. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Keith, A. R. 1997. The Birds of St. Lucia. British Ornithologists’ Union Check-list 15. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, United Kingdom. Murphy, W. L., and F E. Hayes. 2001. First records of Caribbean Martin ( Progne dominicensis ) for Trinidad, with com¬ ments on its supposed migration to South America. El Pitirre 14: 62-63. Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A Guide to the Birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Ridgely, R. S., and G. Tudor. 1989. The Birds of South America. Volume 1. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas. Rodner, C., M. Lentino, and R. Restall. 2000. Checklist of the Birds of northern South America. Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut. Turner, A., and C. Rose. 1989. A Handbook to the Swallows and Martins of the World. Christopher Helm, London. Voous, K. H. 1983. Birds of the Netherlands Antilles, de Walburg Press, Utrecht, Netherlands. O The Maine ABA Convention is timed to coincide with the best month to see resident breeding birds, includ¬ ing nesting alcids and terns. The Pine Tree state is a must visit for birders, offering a beautiful rugged rocky coastline, sandy beaches, salt marshes, deciduous woodlands, boreal forests, peatlands, inland waters, and freshwater marshes. Maine is the most sparsely populated state east of the Mississippi, and Bangor — Maine's third largest city— only has a population of approximately 32,000. Maine is geologically young, having been sculptedby glaciers, most evident on its breathtakingly beautiful coastline. Seeing and hearing breeding warblers in the nuptial plumages is always a treat while boat trips to view Atlantic Puffins, Razorbills, and Arctic and Roseate Terns will be a thrilling venue. A good opportunity to study the differences between the saltmarsh sparrows will be provided. ABA Sales, our favorite vendors, and artists will be there along with the birds. Maine’s Magical Mystery Tours are waiting to take you away. . . See you in June in Maine! American Birding* REGISTER NOW! www.americanbirding.org VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 671 A record of Cuban/Caribbean Martin ( Progne cryptoleuca/ dominicensis ) for the Bahamas William K. Hayes Department of Earth and Biological Sciences Loma Linda University Loma Linda, California 92350 (whayes@llu.edu) Anthony W. White 6540 Walhonding Road Bethesda, Maryland 20816 (spindalis@verizon.net) Abstract This paper presents documentation of three female martins ( Progne species) found in May 1997 at White Cay, Exumas, Bahamas; their identification is uncertain, but Caribbean Martin (P dominicensis ) and Cuban Martin (P cryptoleuca ) would appear to be the most likely species involved. The state of field identification of female Progne is reviewed. Field Encounter At about 0800 on 3 May 1997 on White Cay (also called Sandy Cay), at the southern ter¬ minus of the Exumas Islands in the Bahamas, W. K. Hayes noted three female-type martins ( Progne species) in the snags of a dead Ca- suarina tree above the tent in which he was camping. He was there during an extended study of the endangered endemic White Cay Iguana ( Cyclura rileyi cristata). He immedi¬ ately recognized the birds as martins but knew that they could not be female Purple Martins (P sub is). He studied them at very close range (about 5 m) for about 10 minutes and asked co-worker Carl Fuhri to take a se¬ ries of photographs (Figures 1-3). During this time, the birds flew about and returned repeatedly to the same tree. Their rolling vo¬ calizations were obviously those of martins. Hayes noted that all three martins were white below other than strong brownish tones on the throat, breast, and sides (Fig¬ ures 1-3). The white plumage below extend¬ ed well up the belly, approaching the chest and contrasting sharply with the dark breast and sides, although the demarcation ap¬ peared to show irregular borders, especially when the birds were perched, somewhat re¬ calling Brown-chested Martin (P tapera ) (Figures 2, 3). In flight, several birds (Figure 1) showed an irregular border between breast and belly that appeared to be the re¬ sult of dusky shaft streaks or shaft smudges, and the undertail coverts also showed a few such smudges (Figure 1). The throat of sev¬ eral birds was noted to be slightly paler but not white (Figure 3). The entire underwing and the upperparts appeared to be dark brown in the field. At the time, Hayes suspected that the birds could be Caribbean Martins, a species famil¬ iar to him from Tobago Island. The white un¬ derparts clearly ruled out male Purple Martin and male Cuban Martin (P cryptoleuca ), and the contrast of the white underparts with the dark throat, chest, and sides ruled out female Purple Martin. He did not consider in the field the possibility of female Cuban Martin (a species unfamiliar to him), which is very similar to female Caribbean Martin, or the less likely possibility of Sinaloa Martin (P sinaloae ) of western Mexico. Discussion Identification of martins in the field can be challenging in many cases and may not be possible in some cases on present knowl¬ edge. Field separation of female Caribbean Martin from female Cuban Martin is report¬ edly possible based on the underpart pattern: Figure 1. Female Cuban/Caribbean Martin, White Cay, Exumas, Bahamas on 3 May 1997. Some references suggest that fe¬ male Cuban Martins show more extensive pale plumage in the breast than female Caribbean Martins, and that the contrast between dark breast and pale belly is more starkly demarcated in Cuban, more blended in Caribbean. These features may sug¬ gest an identification of the White Cay birds as Cuban Martins, but on present knowledge a certain identification may not be possible. A more remote possibility for occurrence in the Bahamas, female Sinaloa Martin closely resembles female Cuban/Caribbean but is smaller. Photograph by Carl Fuhri. 672 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Figure 2. Female Cuban/Caribbean Martins, White Cay, Exumas, Bahamas on 3 May 1997. The incursion of white from upper belly into the lower breast was clearly visible on perched birds; this feature may be more typical of female Cuban than of female Caribbean Martin, but more study of specimens and live birds is needed to determine variation in this character. Photograph byCarlFuhri. in female Cuban Martin, the white of the ab¬ domen extends farther into the breast than in Caribbean, in which the dusky brown breast extends farther down the breast; the dark breast of female Caribbean is also sup¬ posed to blend more gradually into the pale belly, rather than being starkly set off, as in Cuban (Raffaele et al. 1998); and the pres¬ ence of dark shaft streaks/smudges in other¬ wise white plumage below (e.g., undertail coverts, breast feathers) may also support identification as Cuban (Turner and Rose 1989), but this point is not clearly adum¬ brated in the literature. Also, the upperparts of female Cuban Martins are said to be dark¬ er than those of female Caribbean Martins (Turner and Rose 1989). The underpart pat¬ tern of the three martins on White Cay — both the distribution of dark and pale plumage and its contrast — would appear more like Cuban than Caribbean Martin, at least based on the limited discussion of this identification problem in the literature. In researching the present report, A. W. White and Richard C. Banks studied speci¬ mens of Cuban and Caribbean Martins, par¬ ticularly females collected within the breed¬ ing range during breeding season, at the U. S. National Museum of Natural History (Smith¬ sonian). They measured and/or compared the specimens’ wing dimensions, extension of the undertail coverts in relation to the rec- trix tips, throat color, and the extent of the dark flanks along the white belly. In these at¬ tributes they were unable to find significant or consistent differences between the two species that could be used to identify the birds in the photographs taken at White Cay. Geography is of little help in speculation on the identification of these martins: White Cay lies less than 400 km from the nearest breeding area of Cuban Martin and less than 500 km from the nearest breeding area of Caribbean Martin. Cuban Martin has never been reported from the Bahamas, but Caribbean Martin has been reported from the southern Bahamas on Great Inagua, Grand Turk, and Mayaguana Islands (Raffaele et al. 1998); none of these reports has been criti¬ cally reviewed by the Bahamas Bird Records Committee (A. W. White, pers. comm.), and at least some may refer to Cuban Martin. The very similar but smaller Sinaloa Martin, often combined with Cuban and Caribbean Mar¬ tins as a single species, Snowy-bellied Martin (P dominicensis sensu Into; see Turner and Rose 1989), has a broader area of white be¬ low, particularly in males, but females are re¬ portedly very similar to female Caribbean Martins (Ridgely and Tudor 1989). Sinaloa Martin would seem less likely based on ge¬ ography, but there is a published report of the species from Bermuda (Raffaele et al. 1998), and so it should be considered a possibility, if a remote one, in this case. Acknowledgments We thank Richard C. Banks for assistance in investigating specimens of Cuban and Caribbean Martins. Literature cited Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A Guide to the Birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Ridgely, R. S., and G. Tudor. 1989. The Birds of South America. Volume 1. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas. Turner, A., and C. Rose. 1989. A Handbook to the Swallows and Martins of the World. Christopher Helm, London. Figure 3. Female Cuban/Caribbean Martin, White Cay, Exumas, Bahamas on 3 May 1997. The slightly paler throat is a feature typ¬ ical of both female Cuban and female Caribbean Martins. Photograph by Carl Fuhri. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 673 Occurrence and abundance of tubenoses (Procellariiformes) at Guadeloupe, Lesser Antilles, 2001-2004 Anthony Levesque Reserve Naturelle des ilets de la Petite-Terre and Association AMAZONA Labrousse 97190 Le Gosier Guadeloupe, French West Indies (anthony.levesque@wanadoo.fr) Pierre Yesou Office National de la Chasse etdela FauneSauvage 53, rue Russeil 44000 Nantes France Abstract This paper presents observations of tubenoses (Procellariiformes) of nine species recorded 2001-2004 in year-round seawatch- es from Terre-de-Bas, part of Petite-Terre Na¬ ture Reserve, located between the islands of Desirade and Marie-Galante in the Guade¬ loupe archipelago. The context of these ob¬ servations, both historically (for Guade¬ loupe) and regionally in the Lesser Antilles, is also considered herein. Introduction Although pelagic seabird enthusiasts tend to consider the Caribbean Sea an avifaunally poor environment (e.g., Ballance 2004), the eastern, Atlantic-facing coasts of the Lesser Antilles in fact host a variety of shearwaters and petrels, many of these being migratory species that nest in the North Atlantic or South Atlantic Ocean. Summarizing these species’ status, Raffaele et al. (1998) noted that many were under-represented in the lit¬ erature, owing to their occurrence far off¬ shore. For example, they regarded Audubon’s Shearwater (Puffirtus Iherminieri ) as “not likely to be seen except from a boat far off¬ shore” (Raffaele et al. 1998). Levesque began to look for seabirds from shore in 2001, when he assumed his position as a warden at Petite-Terre Nature Reserve in the Guadeloupe archipelago, French West Indies. Preliminary experience in mainland France had taught him that seawatching from a coastal vantage point might be pro¬ ductive — provided one is armed with pa¬ tience, good optical equipment, and some luck. Not long after beginning in February 2001, his effort was rewarded, and within three months’ time, the numbers of tubenoses he recorded had redefined the re¬ gional status of several species. A year-round survey was thus set up, then repeated in 2002, 2003, and 2004 in order to determine both constancy and interannual variation in the occurrence of the area’s seabirds. In all, nine species of tubenose (Procellariiformes) were observed during this survey. Methods Observations were carried out from the islet of Terre-de-Bas, part of Petite-Terre Nature Reserve, which lies between the islands of Desirade and Marie-Galante at the southeast¬ ern corner of the Guadeloupe archipelago; at 16° 15’ N 61° 7’ W, this is also one of the east¬ ernmost points on Guadeloupe (Map 1). The Continental Shelf is rather narrow east of Terre-de-Bas, with ocean sea-floor depths of 20 m, 88 m, 376 m, and 456 m at distances of one, 2, 3, and 4 nautical miles (nmi) offshore (1.8, 3.7, 5.5, and 7.4 km), respectively (M. Devarieux, pers. comm.). Prevailing lo¬ cal winds are trades and thus have a strong easterly component that varies from north¬ easterly to southeast¬ erly, but winds have a true easterly direction about 30% of the time. Wind speed ranged from 18-30 km/hr 60% of the time, reaching 30-40 km/hr about 2% of the time; June and July are the windiest months. The sampling pro¬ tocol required 15- minute nonstop ob¬ servation from the top of the highest cliff (ca. 7 m above sea level) with a tripod-mount¬ ed Swarovski AT80 or ATS65 FID spotting scope with a 20-60x zoom lens used at 30x during search, occa¬ sionally switched to higher magnification for identification of distant birds. Within each clock hour from 0600 to 1800 (plus a minor¬ ity of early and late sessions from 0530 and up to 1830 in late spring and summer), two consecutive 15-minute survey periods were separated by a break of up to three minutes. The original protocol called for even distri¬ bution of 15-minute periods across days, months, and years for consistent coverage. Actual observation effort deviated from this model because main passage periods were given extra coverage for better quantification and because wardening responsibilities fortu¬ itously left more free time early and late in the day, when movements were heaviest (Fig¬ ures 1,2). Sampling was done with the tele¬ scope pointed to the south (±20° according to sun glare), but it was briefly shifted to fol¬ low birds for identification or for counting and then restored. Simultaneous observa¬ tions from the study site and from a boat at sea using GPS indicated that the relative sizes of shearwaters were identifiable by telescope up to 4 nmi (7.4 km) offshore and that much of the visible passage occurred within 1-3 nmi (1.8-5. 5 km) from shore. Specific identi¬ fication was based on plumage and structur¬ al characters (Harrison 1985, 1987; Raffaele Map 1 . All observations treated in this paper were made on the small island of Terre-de-Bas between the islands of Desirade and Marie-Galante in the Guadeloupe archipelago. 674 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS beats than Manx — and these bursts of flap¬ ping were also of greater duration than Manx’s. This flight behavior is typical of the species in both low winds and at higher wind speeds. While the first author was re¬ sponsible for most of the field observations, the second author, who has extensive expe¬ rience with Atlantic shearwaters, joined for the survey for 10 days in April 2004 to veri¬ fy identification characters. Without exception, when birds occurred close enough to shore to allow plumage characters to be studied, we found that the identification based on plumage characters corresponded to the identification based on flight action and structure. Pelagic trips in spring 2004 (up to 33 nmi [60 km] offshore) were also conducted in order to check the identification characters used in shearwater and storm-petrel identification; seabirds were attracted close to the vessel with fish oil and small pieces of fish. Data obtained during each 15-minute pe¬ riod, including all sampling zeros, were pooled per hour and per month, leading to the calculation of the mean number of indi¬ viduals of a given species observed per hour during a given month. Multiplied by the number of hours with daylight and the num¬ ber of days per month, this database also permits a rough estimate of the number of birds that passed through the study area over a given period. Results in Context Shearwaters and petrels From April 2001 to December 2004, 7513 shearwaters and petrels (Procellariidae) were sampled during 380 hours of seawatching; 88 per cent of these (6611) were identified to species. Unidentified birds were scored as “large shearwaters” (Cory’s/Greater) or “small black-and-white shearwaters” (Manx/Audubon’s) (Table 1). Black-capped Petrel ( Pterodroma hasita- ta ) — Three individuals were seen in early 2004 (7 and 14 January, 4 February); four Table 1. Monthly distribution of shearwaters, petrels, and storm-petrels off Petite-Terre, Guadeloupe, 2001-2004, with level of sea-watching effort (hours per month). Numbers in square brackets indicate unconfirmed identifications. Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTAL Manx Shearwater 5 85 2245 139 56 4 3 6 2543 Audubon's Shearwater 3 3 2 98 339 125 3 1 2 2 3 581 Manx/Audubon's Shearwater 9 20 30 49 49 30 3 1 5 5 5 206 Greater Shearwater 3 1547 501 2051 Cory's Shearwater 1 2 18 463 91 5 42 5 627 Sooty Shearwater 1 5 3 1 10 Greater/Cory's Shearwater 9 268 88 2 7 3 377 Black-capped Petrel 2 1 3 gadfly petrel (Pterodroma sp.) 2 1 1 4 Bulwer's Petrel 11+1] [1] U+21 Wilson's Storm-Petrel 3 63 359 282 51 4 1 2 765 Leach's Storm-Petrel 5 26 14 1 46 unidentified storm-petrel 7 33 97 138 19 1 1 1 297 Total number of birds 22 121 2379 770 913 2513 692 8 1 11 60 23 7513 Total number of hours 25.5 31.25 37 30.25 50.25 60 45.5 32.5 13.25 11 18.75 24.75 380 Figure 1 . Distribution of the observation effort per month. The effort was kept low in autumn (down to 1 1 hours in October, i.e. on average one 1 5-minute observation period every three days) due to the very low frequency of birds detected at that time of the year; the effort was intensified during periods that proved to be most productive. Figure 2. Distribution of observation effort and average bird frequency through the day. The observation effort peaks in the first and last part of the day due to work schedule on the Nature Reserve, leaving more free time before 8 a.m. and after 5 p.m. Low observation effort in the very first and last hours of the day is linked to seasonal variations in dawn and sunset time. The mean number of birds per hour tends to decrease throughout the day (r = -0.71). et al. 1998; Sibley 2000), but flight behaviors were also carefully scrutinized and eventual¬ ly also used for identification. At such dis¬ tances, for instance, distinguishing Manx (Puffinus puffinus ) from Audubon’s Shearwa¬ ters based on plumage characters was often challenging; structure and flight patterns were thus the main features used to tell these species apart. Manx Shearwater alternates a brief series of strong, shallow beats of straight wings and long glides on slightly arched wings; its trajectory arcs above sea level during the glide as wind strengthens, and under strong winds it mostly glides, arc¬ ing sharply upward from the sea surface up to many meters high, then veering sharply downward again. Conversely, Audubon’s Shearwater undertakes much shorter, shal¬ lower glides on more arched wings, inter¬ spersed with frequent series of faster wing- V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 675 more gadfly petrels ( Pterodroma sp.) seen in the same period were also most likely this species. Black-capped Petrel had not been reported near Guadeloupe since breeding ceased to be reported in the eighteenth cen¬ tury or early nineteenth century (Pinchon 1976). According to Raffaele et al. (1998), a few pairs of this endangered species may still breed on nearby Dominica, although there no confirmed recent reports apart from a few birds reported off this island (A. R. Keith, pers. comm.). Bulwer’s Petrel ( Bulweria bulweri i) — One was seen 11 June 2003 following a period of strong easterly winds (50-80 km/hr) lasting several days, and two more singles were sus¬ pected that year on 12 June and 5 July. Bul¬ wer’s Petrel was previously recorded at sea near Curasao (13 May 1970; Voous 1983), at sea off Dominica (21 April 2003; Norton et al. 2003), and as a corpse on an islet off Trinidad in January 1961 (ffrench 1991). Al¬ though reported as a vagrant in Barbados by Raffaele et al. (1998), those reports are now considered “unsupported” (four reports; three confirmed but just east of the Barbados Exclusive Economic Zone) in the forthcom¬ ing Barbados checklist (Buckley et al., in press). Similarly, it cannot be added to the list of species recorded in Guadeloupe yet: according to the criteria in place for the French West Indies, any species new to the area needs to be either photographed or seen by at least two experienced observers. Large shearwaters Out of 3065 large shearwaters recorded dur¬ ing the study, 2688 (88%) were identified to species: 2051 Greater Shearwaters (Puffinus gravis), 377 Cory’s Shearwaters ( Calonectris diomedea). Another 637 were logged as unidentified large shearwaters (Greater or Cory’s). (No individuals resembling the re¬ cently split Cape Verde Shearwater [ Calonec - tri s edwardsii] were observed, but differences from Greater/Cory’s would likely to be diffi¬ cult to perceive at a distance. In many cases of distant shearwaters recorded as Cory’s, we cannot rule out edwardsii.) Somewhat sur¬ prisingly, only 10 Sooty Shearwaters (Puffi- nus griseus) were recorded during the survey. All three large shearwater species were ob¬ served in each study year. Greater Shearwater (Figure 3) occurred in June and July (extremes 26 May and 23 July). The highest count was with 261 in 2.5 hours on 11 June 2003. One may thus esti¬ mate that about 14,150 Greater Shearwaters pass east of Guadeloupe each year. Until the present study, this species was considered uncommon, although regular, at Guade¬ loupe (Feldmann et al. 1999), with all previ¬ ous records in May-July, even though the highest count was only four individuals off the Caribbean (west) coast 7 July 1994 (As¬ sociation pour 1’Etude des Vertebres des An¬ tilles, archives). Cory’s Shearwater (Figure 4) is also pri¬ marily a spring migrant (24 April-20 Au¬ gust), occurring mostly in June-July. Be¬ cause the peak of its occurrence overlaps considerably with the passage of Greater Shearwater, this survey recorded a rather high proportion (13-29% annually) of unidentified large shearwaters during these two months. In contrast to Greater Shearwa¬ ter, however, Cory’s also occurred in much smaller numbers year-round. The daily max¬ imum was 120 in 2.75 hours on 8 July; one may thus estimate that about 3000 Cory’s Shearwaters pass east of Guadeloupe in June and July annually. These observations con¬ trast starkly with earlier appraisals of the species’ status in Guadeloupe, where there were only two previous records: one on 16 May 1992 and one on 22 May 1993 (Feld¬ mann et al. 1999). Sooty Shearwaters were seen only 10 times in four years, mostly in May (five, ear¬ liest 19 May) and June (three, latest 11 June), with odd late-autumn and winter records on 11 November 2004 and 26 Janu¬ ary 2002. All observations were of single birds. These data are in keeping with limited previous information. Feldmann (1998) in¬ cluded the species on the list of the birds of Guadeloupe, although the database of the French West Indies naturalist society AEVA (Association pour l’Etude des Vertebres des Antilles) lacked any detailed records until Yesou reported one in mid-March 1998. Small black-and-white shearwaters Manx and Audubon’s Shearwaters are usual¬ ly easily told apart, and out of 3330 small shearwaters, only 206 (6%) were left unidentified. Most identified birds were Manx, of which 2543 were recorded, while 581 Audubon’s Shearwaters were recorded. The first Manx Shearwater recorded at Guadeloupe was found dead at Desirade Is¬ land on 30 April 1997; it had been banded in 1978 as a flying bird (born before that year, age otherwise unknown) at a colony in Saint Kilda, Scotland (Keith and Keith 2003; J. Clark, British Trust for Ornithology, pers. comm.). Earlier recoveries of Manx banded in the United Kingdom come from Trinidad and Grenada. No Manx was recorded alive in waters surrounding Guadeloupe until 2001 (Levesque and Jaffard 2002), and so it is sur¬ prising that Manx proved to be the most abundant procellariiform in the present sur- Greater Shearwater Figure 3. Observations of Greater Shearwater by month, 2001 -2004. Cory's Shearwater Figure 4. Observations of Cory's Shearwater by month, 2001-2004. 676 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Manx Shearwater Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Figure 5. Observations of Manx Shearwater by month, 2001 -2004. Audubon's Shearwater Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Figure 6. Observations of Audubon's Shearwater by month, 2001-2004. veys — 34% of all tubenoses recorded and 40% of all shearwaters — and thus probably the most abundant seabird off Guadeloupe (no systematic counts of terns have been un¬ dertaken, however). Manx has been record¬ ed from 5 November through 10 June, some¬ times in flocks of up to 18 birds, but it remains scarce outside its spring passage from February to May, peaking in March (Figure 5). The daily maximum was 597 in four hours on 3 March 2004 during strong northeasterly winds (up to 80 km/hr) that had begun the previous day. We estimated that on average an astonishing 26,000 Manx Shearwaters pass in February-May each year, three-quarters of them in March. Audubon’s Shearwater is the only shear¬ water known to breed in the Lesser Antilles. The nearest known colonies are in Domini¬ ca and Martinique, 66 and 149 km from the study area, respectively, but breeding is also suspected at Marie-Galante Island, which is just 24 km away. The species was recorded year-round during our study but proved very scarce outside the 4 April-9 July period (Fig¬ ure 6). While the other shearwaters were recorded at all times of day (Figure 7), it is remarkable that 72% of Audubon’s Shearwa¬ ters were recorded prior to 0800 hrs, includ¬ ing 65% during the first hour after dawn. Re¬ search on the species’ breeding biology in Martinique (R. Brithmer, pers. comm.; the late P De Mercey, pers. comm., fide M. Pas¬ cal) indicates that hatching occurs from late March into April and fledging in June and July — thus with a fledging period in agree¬ ment with the 62-100 (mean=75) days as given by Harris (1969). This strongly sug¬ gests that most if not all of the Audubon’s Shearwaters observed during the present study were not migrants but local breeders dispersing to foraging areas at dawn. If this interpretation is correct, it is conceivable that individual birds may be routinely recorded multiple times. In that case, the number of different birds passing the study site during their April-June peak period can¬ not be estimated. Storm-petrels The 1068 storm petrels logged during the four years of the survey almost certainly un¬ der-represent their actual abundance in the study area, as such tiny seabirds can be diffi¬ cult to detect at a distance. That 28% of those recorded were not identified to species like¬ wise relates largely to the distances of obser¬ vation involved. Nevertheless, the records shed light on the migration timing and rela¬ tive abundance of the two regular species. Wilson’s Storm-Petrel ( Oceanites oceani- cus ) accounts for 94% of identified storm- petrels recorded. It has been recorded from 14 February to 8 August, with peak numbers in April and May (Figure 8). An influx oc¬ curred on 25 April 2001, when 245 individ¬ uals were seen in only three hours. This pas¬ sage excepted, the species’ frequency is rather constant in April and May (at 4.7 ±1.7 birds/hr), and it can be estimated that on av¬ erage about 8000 individuals pass Guade¬ loupe in March-June each year, a figure in contrast to earlier statements that the species is rare at Guadeloupe (Feldmann 1998). Outside this spring passage, a few were seen in the June-August period; “two” on 13 Oc¬ tober 2004 possibly referred to only one in¬ dividual; and one unidentified storm-petrel on 7 December 2004 was possibly this species, although Leach’s might be more likely in the latter case, inasmuch as Raffaele et al. (1998) list Leach’s as a “rare non¬ breeding resident from November to June.” Leach’s Storm-Petrels ( Oceanodroma leu- corhoa ) were recorded in far fewer numbers (46) than Wilson’s, all of them between 12 March and 4 June, with the highest frequency (average of 0.5 bird/hr) in April (Figure 9). Interannual variability was high, however, Figure 7. Average shearwater distribution of records according to time of the day. The low frequency of Manx Shearwaters in the very first hour of the day is related to the shorter day (and thus later time of dawn), in March, when the species mostly occurs. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 677 Wilson's Storm Petrel Figure 8. Observations of Wilson's Storm Petrel by month, 2001-2004. Leach's Storm Petrel Figure 9. Observations of Leach's Storm-Petrel by month, 2001 -2004. with none in 2003 but twice the average num¬ ber in April-May 2004. We thus estimate that Leach’s Storm-Petrels off Petite-Terre in spring have ranged from zero to at least 800 birds per year during the study period. Furthermore, vessel-based observations several km offshore indicate that the actual Wilson’s:Leach’s ratio is probably about 10:1, rather than the 17:1 ratio observed from shore. This suggests that a significant proportion of distant, unidenti¬ fied storm-petrels might be Leach’s. Whatever the actual abundance of Leach’s, the figures again contradict earlier assessments of the species’ status in Guadeloupe, where it has been considered “rare” (Feldmann 1998). No Band-rumped Storm-Petrels ( Oceanodroma castro ) were recorded or even suspected, ei¬ ther from the coast or during boat-based off¬ shore observations. Considering its regional status (Raffaele et al. 1998), it is certainly pos¬ sible that some of the unidentified storm-pe¬ trels were this species. Discussion This four-year survey has revealed that many species previously considered rare in fact occur in large numbers in coastal waters off the Guadeloupe archipelago. The past deficiencies in our understanding of the sta¬ tus and distribution of tubenoses here may be most directly explained by the absence of systematic observations in spring from ap¬ propriate vantage points. It is now clear that many pelagic seabirds move through nearshore waters east of Guadeloupe. The observed seasonal pattern of most species agrees with previous knowledge about their migrations in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean generally, e.g., the northward post¬ breeding migration of austral breeders (Greater and Sooty Shearwaters, Wilson’s Storm-Petrel); the boreal-summer dispersal westward of nonbreeding or post-breeding Cory’s Shearwaters; and the return migra¬ tion of boreal breeders such as Leach’s Storm-Petrel and Manx Shearwater (Lee 1995, Keith and Keith 2003). The estimated average of 26,000 Manx Shearwaters each year in Guadeloupe’s coastal waters indi¬ cates that a sizeable portion of the breeding population passes along the Lesser Antilles’ Atlantic coasts when returning northward from South American wintering grounds. This species’ distribution in the North At¬ lantic during the nonbreeding season has typically been mapped as extending no far¬ ther west than ca. 40° W (e.g., Cramp and Simmons 1977, Brooke 1990, Carboneras 1992). It is now clear that it extends much farther to the west, at least during north¬ bound migration. The information collected during the present study also raises several questions. Although Sooty Shearwaters migrate in large numbers into the Northern Atlantic in spring, they were observed in very small numbers compared to Greater Shearwaters. The scarcity of Sooty Shearwaters around Guadeloupe suggests that their typical mi¬ gratory routes he farther offshore, and land- based counts from other sites (e.g., eastern Bermuda) appear to confirm that inference. Clearly, ship-based pelagic studies would improve our knowledge of the distribution of this species and of others, such as Audubon’s Shearwater, which is observed only rarely inshore outside of the nesting season. The distribution of pelagic seabirds extends much farther offshore at sea than the relatively short range that can be scanned with a spotting scope from shore: what can be seen from shore surely is only part of a broader movement, and the num¬ bers of storm-petrels, petrels, and shearwa¬ ters frequenting the deep Atlantic waters well east of the Lesser Antilles might prove to be much higher than those we have esti¬ mated for our study site in Guadeloupe. Studies of these seabirds’ distribution and phenology that include various biotic and abiotic oceanographic parameters (such as seawater currents, sea surface temperature, nutrient richness, and plankton and fish densities) would provide a better under¬ standing of these birds’ habits and habitats than we have now. We believe it likely that other east-facing sites along the Caribbean arc will prove to be productive for seawatching. For example, in April 2004 we briefly tried observing from the eastern point of Desirade Island, which lies farther east than Petite-Terre and closer to highly productive waters where Hump¬ back Whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) con¬ gregate within 3 km or so of the coast. This short visit allowed us to record species nev¬ er detected from Terre-de-Bas (e.g., groups of Willets [ Catoptrophoms semipalmatus ] in active migration over the ocean) and led us to suspect that Desirade Island may be even 678 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS more productive for seawatching than Terre- de-Bas. We encourage observers to seawatch in these locations at any time of year; March-July appears to have the greatest po¬ tential. Acknowledgments The project was partly funded by Direction Regionale de l’Environnement de Guade¬ loupe, where special thanks are due to Franck Mazeas. Anthony Levesque is grate¬ ful to Rene Dumont, curator of Reserve Na- turelle des ilets de la Petite-Terre, who agreed to include this project in the re¬ serves survey program. Alain Saint-Auret and Maurice Devarieux have been very helpful in driving the boats during trips at sea. Michel Pascal provided the information he had compiled on the breeding calendar of seabirds in Martinique. Research and travel facilities were given to Pierre Yesou thanks to Dominique Aribert and Eric Hansen from Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage (ONCFS). We grate¬ fully acknowledge the assistance provided by P. A. Buckley and Allan R. Keith, who helped in our literature search and reviewed drafts of the paper. Jacquie Clark, head of the banding (ringing) unit at the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), assisted us in locating details on the recoveries of Manx Shearwaters. Literature cited Ballance, D. K. 2004. Birdwatching from car¬ go ships. British Birds 97: 16-26. Brooke, M. de L. 1990. The Manx Shearwa¬ ter. Poyser, London. Buckley, PA.,M. B. Hutt, E. B. Massiah, E G. Buckley, and H. E Hutt. in press. The Birds of Barbados, West Indies. B.O.U. Checklist. British Ornithologists’ Union, London. Carboneras, C. 1992. Family Procellariidae (petrels and shearwaters). Pp. 216-257 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. and Sargatal, J., eds., Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 1. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons, eds. 1977. Birds of the Western Palearctic. Volume 1. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Feldmann, P 1998. Checklist of birds of Guade¬ loupe and Martinique. AEVA Report 20. As¬ sociation pour l’Etude des Vertebres des Antilles (AEVA), Petit-Bourg, Guadeloupe. Feldmann, R, E. Benito-Espinal, and A. R. Keith. 1999. New bird records from Guadeloupe and Martinique, West Indies. Journal of Field Ornithology 70: 80-94. ffrench, R. 1991. A Guide to the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York. Harris, M. R 1969. Food as a factor control¬ ling the breeding of Puffinus Iherminieri. Ibis 111:139-156. Harrison, P 1985. Seabirds: an identification guide. Houghton Mifflin, Boston, Massa¬ chusetts. Harrison, P. 1987. Field Guide to seabirds of the world. Stephen Greene Press, Lexing¬ ton, Massachusetts. Keith, A. R., and L. W. Keith. 2003. More pelagic bird sightings off Dominica. Jour¬ nal of Caribbean Ornithology 16: 26-30. Lee, D. S. 1995. The pelagic ecology of Manx Shearwaters Puffinus puffinus off the southeastern United States of America. Marine Ornithology 23: 107-119. Levesque, A., and M. E. Jaffard. 2002. Fif¬ teen new bird species in Guadeloupe (EW.L). El Pitirre 15: 5-6. Norton, R. L., A. White, and A. Dobson. 2003. The spring migration: West Indies and Bermuda. North American Birds 57: 417-419. Pinchon, R. 1976. Faune des Antilles frant^aises. Les Oiseaux. Fort de France, Martinique. Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith and H. Raffaele. 1998. A Guide to the Birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Sibley, D. A. 2000. The Sibley Guide to North American Birds. Knopf, New York, New York. Voous, K. H. 1983. Birds of the Netherlands Antilles. De Walburg Pers, Curasao. © The Birds of North America Online — the go-to site for researchers, students and birders. -> -> -> -> 18,000 pages of life-history information on North America’s breeding birds— the go-to site for researchers, students and birders Written by hundreds of the continent’s leading avian researchers Now with sound and video to enhance key sections of species accounts Growing database of digital images showing details of plumage, habitat, behaviors, and life at the nest Fully searchable by species and topic CrossRef compatible Content continually updated VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 679 Barred Owl by Gerrit Vyn Review of the status of American Coot (Fulica americana) and Caribbean Coot ( Fulica caribaea ) in the United States Virgin Islands Douglas B. McNair Sapphos Environmental, Inc. 133 Martin Alley Pasadena, California 91105 (dmcnair@sapphosenvironmental.com) Abstract This paper considers the current breeding status of American Coot ( Fulica americana ) and Caribbean Coot (F. caribaea ) in the United States Virgin Islands in historical and regional context. Breeding and nonbreeding coots are generally rare to uncommon in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where they have a re¬ stricted distribution at several dozen brack¬ ish and freshwater sites. The status of the two coot species here, as elsewhere, has been clouded by difficulties in identification, par¬ ticularly in the case of sight reports. The two species’ sympatric breeding range includes St. Croix, where coots are most numerous at brackish Southgate Pond, the preferred breeding site of both coot species in the U.S. Virgin Islands. A man-modified seasonal salt pond, Southgate Pond has had the largest documented breeding colony (eight pairs) of any island in the eastern Caribbean (where both coot species are also generally rare and restricted to a few sites). The largest breeding colony at any freshwater site in the eastern Caribbean has been at Marshall’s Pond in Barbados (four pairs of Caribbean Coots), al¬ though the largest number of confirmed freshwater breeding sites has been at St. Croix (up to three pairs per site at six sites), where coots have undoubtedly been over¬ looked until recently, since about 2002. Coots respond rapidly to changes in water levels at seasonal or permanent wetlands and have the capacity to nest year-round, but populations in the region remain low. With¬ out management intervention at wetland sites, coots will remain local and rare to un¬ common breeders in the eastern Caribbean. Future surveys should focus on selected manmade freshwater ponds and low-salinity salt ponds. Caribbean ( Fulica caribaea ) and American (F. americana) Coots are two of the rarest wetland birds that breed in the U.S. Virgin Islands (hereafter, USVI), yet their breeding status there and in the eastern Caribbean has not been critically reviewed. This paper re¬ views the historical and current breeding and nonbreeding status of coots in the USVI and eastern Caribbean islands. Their sym¬ patric distribution in this region requires clarification, especially if American Coots are expanding their breeding range (Levesque et al. 2002), before inquiries into the underlying reasons for the different geo¬ graphical distributions of the species, which have also been considered morphs of a sin¬ gle species (Payne and Master 1983), are un¬ dertaken. The taxonomic status of Caribbean Coot merits continued investiga¬ tion (Roberson and Baptista 1988; also Phillips 1967, Payne and Master 1983, Clark 1985, Taylor 1996), as does its conservation status. Although Taylor (1996) stated that Caribbean Coot is not a globally threatened species, it is listed as locally endangered in the United States Virgin Islands (Indigenous and Endangered Species Act of 1990) and is considered threatened throughout the West Indies, especially breeding populations (Raf- faele et al. 1998). BirdLife International treats the species as near-threatened (Stat- tersfield and Capper 2000). Because coots are associated with fresh¬ water marshes and low-salinity wetlands (Kantrud 1985), they are most numerous on St. Croix, which contains 43 of the total of 52.2 ha of extant freshwater ponds and 228.8 of 289.3 ha of extant salt ponds in the USVI (Conservation Data Center, unpubl. data). St. John — which contains 43.8 of the 60.6 ha of salt ponds in the northern USVI — likewise has more coots than St. Thomas, even though the latter island has 7.5 of the 9.1 ha of freshwater ponds in the northern USVI. Methods I searched for published historical data on breeding and nonbreeding coots in the USVI (including Christmas Bird Counts; hereafter CBCs), unpublished data in Division of Fish and Wildlife files (St. Croix), including brackish wetlands listed in Knowles and Ainrani (1991) and Knowles (1996), and museum collections (skin specimens, egg sets). Banded coots have not been recovered in the USVI (K. Klimkiewicz, pers. comm., Bird Banding Laboratory). I also searched the literature and solicited unpublished data from observers for breeding information on coots in the British Virgin Islands and Lesser Antilles to compare with data from the USVI, to provide broader context for their breeding status on small islands in the eastern Caribbean. I did not accept field identifica¬ tion of coots at face value and present as con¬ firmed records only those supported by spec¬ imen, photograph, or competent field notes; other reports are treated as referring to unidentified coots. Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs) are useful for analyzing relative abundance of bird species on large geographic scales, but the CBC data from St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John cannot be used to examine coots’ rela¬ tive abundance at this small scale: coots are highly social, normally occur in flocks, and have a highly skewed, clumped distribution (Bock and Root 1981). Moreover, because species identification of many individual coots was uncertain on several counts, 1 have combined counts of American and Caribbean Coots on each CBC. Spearmans rank correla¬ tion tests were used to assess the association between annual changes and counts of coots on each CBC, and the Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare differences in rank abundance on these three CBCs. All tests used an a-value of 0.05. I obtained current information on the abundance and distribution of coots on St. Croix through monthly waterbird surveys in fresh- and brackish wetlands since 2002 (through April 2005). Visits to ca. 30 fresh¬ water ponds were monthly but less frequent at other ponds, some of which were only re¬ cently covered (St. Croix has over 125 man¬ made freshwater ponds). Coots are conspicu¬ ous birds in wetlands with little emergent vegetation, unlikely to be overlooked in such surveys. Below I present information on the maxi¬ mum number of birds (all adult and subadult coots) for each site by consecutive monthly periods, along with breeding information from sites visited more frequently. Many non¬ breeding coots were not identified to species because they were too distant to see well, so I lumped species counts at each site (though computed species ratios of birds I did identi¬ fy). Coot identification is complicated by hy- 680 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Figure 1 . Thirty-two sites where coots have occurred on St. Croix. Watershed boundaries are also indicated. See Table 3 for numbered site names. bridization. I followed the criteria of Rober¬ son and Baptista (1988) to distinguish American (types A and B) from Caribbean (types C, D, and E) coots in the field, even though a small percentage (<, 1.4%) of the broad-, high-, and bulbous-shielded males may be white-shielded morphs of American Coots. Types A and B have a dark chestnut or red-brown corneous callus, whereas types C, D, and E lack a callus. Surveys were con¬ ducted during a period that included two torrential rainfall events throughout the USVI, a 50-year rainfall event (mean of 40-50 cm) from 15-20 November 2003 and in mid-September 2004 another heavy rain¬ fall (over 25 cm) during Tropical Storm Jeanne. These rainfall events followed a pro¬ longed drought for approximately the pre¬ ceding year and a half. Rainfall data for St. Croix were taken from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Station at Kingshill. Site names on St. Croix follow Imsand and Philibosian (1987), apart from other sites that 1 have named. A site is a dis¬ crete geographic entity (e.g., Southgate Pond). Results Breeding Status in the U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix, Southgate Pond Coots have nested at Southgate Pond since at least 1919 (Table 1), when one pair of American Coots laid seven eggs in a nest built in a mangrove of unidentified species (Beatty 1930). Although Beatty (1930) stat¬ ed that he had never found Caribbean Coots, he later collected Caribbean Coots on St. Croix, including two presumed chicks (Ta¬ bles 1, 2). Seaman (1957) suggested that Caribbean Coots formerly nested in Red Mangroves (R hizophora mangle ) in the east¬ ern third of Southgate Pond before 1957, one year after this section of the pond was drained and cleared, but he provided no documentation. Seaman (1973) also stated that Caribbean Coot nests and young were often found at Southgate Pond. One adult with enlarged testes was collected at South- gate Pond on 14 January 1962 (Table 2). Sladen observed mixed pairs at Southgate Pond during February 1985 but did not doc¬ ument breeding (Norton 1985). McNair and Cramer-Burke (in press) provide recent breeding information at Southgate Pond, where seven to eight pairs nested during the winter and spring of 2003-2004 and three pairs nested during the autumn and winter of 2004-2005. Almost all pairs nested in small, live White Mangroves ( Laguncularia racemosa ) away from the shore. St. Croix (other sites) The first confirmed breeding of a coot on St. Croix (and the USVI) was a Caribbean Coot chick collected at an unknown locality (per¬ haps Southgate Pond) in 1861 (Table 1). Beatty (1930) stated that American Coots were common on all the ponds and lagoons of St. Croix, where they nested from July to October (the hurricane season; see also Sea¬ man 1973, 1993). However, Beatty only doc¬ umented breeding records at Southgate Pond (above). Coots were not confirmed to breed at any other site on St. Croix until 2002-2005, when nesting occurred at six farm ponds: Carlton North Pond, Cather¬ ine’s Rest South Pond, Fredensborg Pond, Granard South Pond, Schuster East Pond, and Virgin Islands Agricultural Station Mid¬ dle Pond (McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press). St. John Coots have been confirmed to breed at two sites on St. John (Table 1), including a mixed pair with young that was present at Hart Bay in the early 1980s. 1 have been un¬ able to find documentation that American Coots nested in February 1983 (see Leek and Norton 1991). Earlier, Nichols (1943) stated that coots in the northern USVI were particularly numerous on St. John but docu¬ mented no specific nest records there. St. Thomas Coots have been confirmed to breed at only one site off St. Thomas, in a salt pond on Saba Cay where a clutch of six eggs of the Caribbean Coot was collected (Nichols 1943; Table 1). Nichols (1943) also stated that coots nested on St. Thomas and two more cays but gave no details. Finally, Clark (1985) stated that territori¬ al displays of American and Caribbean Coots (American pairs, Caribbean pairs, and mixed pairs) were observed in the USVI from December 1983 through early February 1984. However, further details are lacking. Considering both recent and his¬ torical data, coots in the USVI have nested in every month of the year (Table 1). The largest number of documented pairs nest¬ ing at any single site was eight pairs at brackish Southgate Pond, St. Croix during spring 2004. Breeding Status in the British Virgin Is¬ lands and Lesser Antilles Breeding coots have been confirmed on at least six islands in the British Virgin Islands and Lesser Antilles, with breeding of Amer¬ ican Coots documented south to Guade¬ loupe, where Caribbean Coots have not been confirmed to nest (Table 1). This total excludes probable breeding sites such as Lake Antoine, Grenada, a relatively undis¬ turbed reed-fringed crater lake about 300 m in diameter (E. B. Massiah, pers. comm.), where two Caribbean Coots (male and fe¬ male) were collected by James Bond on 21 March 1929 (Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia 86381, 86382); brackish Graeme Hall Swamp, Barbados from 1860 to 1888, when Caribbean Coots were pre¬ sumed to nest but documented breeding ev¬ idence is lacking (Frost and Massiah 2001); and Antigua, Martinique, and Marie- Galante (Raffaele et al. 1998; H. Raffaele, pers. comm.), where I was unable to find documentation of recent confirmed breed¬ ing evidence. Coots in the British Virgin Is¬ lands and Lesser Antilles have been docu¬ mented to nest in every month of the year except November (Table 1). The largest number of documented pairs nesting at any single site was four pairs at freshwater Mar¬ shall’s Pond, Barbados in the early 2000s (Frost and Massiah 2001; Frost, pers. comm.). The dominant vegetation at this site is Live Creeping Burrhead (Echinodorus VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 681 Table 1 . Confirmed breeding records of American Coots and Caribbean Coots in the United States Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, and Lesser Antilles. Island Site Habitat Year Season (month) Number of Pairs/Nests Species Reference St. Croix Unknown Unknown 1861 Jan 1a Caribbean Coot ZMUCb 37.940 St. Croix Southgate Pond Brackish 1919 10 Aug 1 American Coot Bailey 1930 FMNHC 415962 and 415963d St. Croix Southgate Pond Brackish 1943 Mar 1 Caribbean Coot St. Croix Southgate Pond Brackish 1984 7 Unknown Sladen 1992; St. Croix Southgate Pond Brackish 2003-2004 Dec-May 7-8 Mixed colony Sladen, unpubl. data McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Southgate Pond Brackish 2004-2005 Sep-Jan 3 Mixed colony McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Fredensborg Pond Fresh 2002 Apr-Jun 1 Caribbean Coot McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Virgin Islands Agricultural Fresh 2003 Jul-Aug 1 Caribbean Coot McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Station Middle Pond Virgin Islands Agricultural Fresh 2004 Jun-Aug 1 Mixed pair McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Station Middle Pond Granard South Pond Fresh 2004 May-Aug 3 Mixed colony McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Granard South Pond Fresh 2004 Nov-Dec 2 Mixed colony McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Schuster East Pond Fresh 2004 Jun-Aug 1 Mixed pair McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Carlton North Pond Fresh 2004 Jun-Sep 1 Caribbean Coot McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Carlton North Pond Fresh 2005 Feb-Apr 1 Caribbean Coot McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. Croix Catherine's Rest South Pond Fresh 2004 Nov-Dec 1 Unknown McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press St. John Unknown Unknown 1936-1943 Unknown 7 Caribbean Coot Nichols 1943 St. John Francis Bay Brackish 1961 Unknown 1 Unknown Norton 1982 St. John Francis Bay Brackish 1982 11 May 10e Unknown Norton 1982 St. John Hart Bay Brackish 1983 10 Aug-2 Nov 13f Mixed pair(s) Norton 1984 St. Thomas Unknown Unknown 1936-1943 Unknown 7 Caribbean Coot Nichols 1943 St. Thomas Saba Cay Brackish 1936-1943 6 Jun 7 Caribbean Coot Nichols 1943; WFVZ9 155658 St. Thomas Salt Cay Brackish 1936-1943 Unknown 7 Caribbean Coot Nichols 1943 St. Thomas Water Island Brackish 1936-1943 Unknown 7 Caribbean Coot Nichols 1943 Tortola Josiah's Bay Pond Brackish 1976 26 June 16h Caribbean Coot Mireckietal. 1977 Anguilla Caul's Pond Brackish 2000 June 121 American Coot S. Holliday, unpubl. data St. Martin St. Martin Unknown Etang de Philipsburg Brackish early 1980s Dec-Jul 7 l) Mixed pair American Coot Norton 1982 Benito-Espinal 1990 St. Martin St. Martin Little Bay Pond Little Bay Pond Brackish Brackish 2001-2002 2003-2004 Jan-Mar 7 1-2k Unknown Hans van Buel, unpubl. data fide A. C. Brown St. Martin Fresh Pond Brackish 22 Apr 1982 22 April 151 Caribbean Coot Norton 1982, 1984 St. Martin Fresh Pond Brackish 2002 27 Mar 1m Mixed pair A. Levesque, unpubl. data St. Martin Fresh Pond Brackish 2002 6 Jun 1n Caribbean Coot Hans van Buel, unpubl. data St. Martin Fresh Pond Brackish 2002 Oct 1° Mixed pair Hans van Buel, unpubl. data St. Martin Fresh Pond Brackish 2002-2004 Jan-Mar 2-6P Caribbean Coot A. C. Brown, unpubl. data St. Kitts Greatheeds Pond Unknown 1929 3 Jan American Coot Danforth 1936, Steadman et al. 1997 St. Kitts Unknown Unknown Unknown Jan ?r Caribbean Coot Bond 1976 Guadeloupe Grande Terre (Port-Lewis) 2001 Jan-Feb 1 American Coot Levesque et al. 2002 Guadeloupe Gaschet Reservoir Fresh 2004 Feb-May 2s American Coot Levesque, unpubl. data Barbados St. Philip - Marshall's Pond Fresh 1999-2004 Apr-Sep <4 Caribbean Coot Frost and Massiah 2001 a Chick about two weeks old (J. Fjeldsa, pers. comm.), presumably identified on basis of attending adult(s), which were not collected. The chick was originally identified by Riise as a Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). P Zoological Museum of the University of Copenhagen (ZMUC), Denmark. c Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), Chicago, Illinois. d Two downy chicks, presumably identified on basis of attending adult(s), which were not collected. eThe 10 birds included three apparent American Coots, two apparent Caribbean Coots, and five immatures. ^The maximum number of 1 3 birds included as many as six young on 25 October, when five apparent American Coots and two Caribbean Coots were also present. 9 Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology (WFVZ), Camarillo, California. The clutch size was six eggs. k The flock of 16 included two young birds. 'The 12 birds included four adults and eight juveniles (size otherwise undescribed). I Benito-Espinal discovered one nest that contained six eggs (photographed; A. Levesque, pers. comm.). ^Two nests in 2003, one nest in 2004. 'The 15 birds included nine apparent adult American Coots, three apparent adult Caribbean Coots, and three immatures attended by the three Caribbean Coots. mThe pair with three chicks was photographed. n0ne adult with one chick was photographed. °0ne nest was discovered. PTwo nests and no chicks were noted in 2002, two nests and three chicks in 2003, and six chicks in 2004. 90ne nest found by James Bond. rBond (1976) stated he found nests with eggs. s0ne adult nest-building (transporting plant materials) and, later, two pairs seen with pulli. berteroi) (Spreng.) Fassett. Nonbreeding Status in the U.S. Virgin Is¬ lands, St. Croix The earliest coots were reported at St. Croix in the late 1850s by Newton and Newton (1859). Birds of both species were collected thereafter through 1962 (mainly in the 1930s and early 1940s; Table 2), including at Southgate Pond and Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond. Seaman (1955, 1973, 1993) stated that coots were present in considerable numbers in the 1920s, when he found as many as 150 birds at Southgate Pond, but they were no longer plentiful by 1955. He also stated coots generally preferred fresh¬ water, where they occurred on farm ponds, but also stated coots were found (other than at Southgate Pond) at five saline lagoons (with tidal inlet) or salt ponds (no tidal in¬ let): Altona Lagoon, Great Pond, Krause La¬ goon (now a remnant), Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond, and Williams Pond (north of Fred- eriksted; now a semi-open wooded swamp and marsh). Sladen (1992) documented that American Coots were more numerous than Caribbean Coots at Southgate Pond from 1981 to 1985 (ratio of 2.4/1; 29% Caribbean), when he never found coots at Great Pond. Knowles (1996) reported no NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 682 Table 2. Specimens of adult and subadult American and Caribbean Coots collected in the United States Virgin Islands. Date Number Species Locality Year (month) of Birds Reference American Coot St. Croix 1862a 1 ZMUCb 37.909 St. Croix 1934 Apr 1c USNMd 353836; Danforth 1935 St. Croix 1940 Nov 2 FMNHe 157526 and 157527 Caribbean Coot St. Croix 1933-1934 Dec-Apr 7^ USNMd; Danforth 1935 St. Croix 1940-1941 Dec-Feb 5 FMNHe St. Croix 1962 Jan 1 ANSP9 169874; Bond 1966 St. John O CO CO 2 USNMd 081020 and 081021; Ridgway 1884 aDate of entry in the museum catalogue is 17 August 1862. ^Zoological Museum of the University of Copenhagen (ZMUC), Denmark. cBird collected at Southgate Pond. ^United States National Museum (USNM), Washington, D.C. eField Museum of Natural History (FMNH), Chicago, Illinois. fords collected at Southgate Pond except one at Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond. ^Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANSP), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. foate of entry in the museum catalogue is 23 October 1880. more than five coots per month per site from February 1989 to June 1996 at four (out of nine) salt ponds (Southgate Pond, the large cooling pond at what is now St. Croix Renaissance Park, Coak- ley Bay Salt Pond, and the Univer¬ sity of Virgin Islands Wetlands), until autumn and winter of 1995- 1996 (following a wet autumn), when he counted 24 birds at the University of Virgin Islands Wet¬ lands in February 1996 and 11-44 birds at Southgate Pond from De¬ cember 1995 to April 1996 (high¬ est number in March). Knowles (1996) reported only two out of 119 coots he identified at South- gate Pond as Caribbean Coots (1.7%). Including the seven recent con¬ firmed breeding sites (Southgate Pond, Carlton North Pond, Catherine’s Rest South Pond, Fre- densborg Pond, Granard South Pond, Schuster East Pond, Virgin Islands Agricultural Station Middle Pond), coots have occurred at 32 sites on St. Croix since 2002 (Table 3; Figure 1), but they did not nest at these twenty-five other sites ex¬ cept possibly Diamond Pond. Twenty-five of 32 are freshwater sites: twenty farm ponds, three golf course ponds, a wastewater treat¬ ment pond on one of these golf courses, and one pond on a former golf course. The seven brackish sites are four salt ponds, two la¬ goons, and a large (formerly industrial) cool¬ ing pond. Except for Southgate Pond (after the drought ended), where up to 69 adults and subadults were present in June and July 2004, coots occurred infrequently at other saline sites on St. Croix and only in low numbers and usually only after heavy rainfall (from the 50-year event of mid-November 2003 or Tropical Storm Jeanne in mid-Sep¬ tember 2004) had contributed substantial amounts of freshwater to these sites. Coots also occurred at many more freshwater sites following these two rainfall events, at 15 sites from mid-November 2003 until mid-Septem¬ ber 2004 and at 19 sites from then through April 2005 compared to just six freshwater sites before mid-November 2003. Coots oc¬ curred fairly regularly (>10 months) at six freshwater sites (nesting at four), including the Buccaneer Hotel, where they are fed but where breeding habitat is probably lacking. The ratio of American to Caribbean Coots that were identified was 1.9/1 (35% Caribbean; a higher proportion of Caribbean Coots was generally associated with the six breeding sites). St. Thomas Other than Nichols (1943), Beatty (1938) reported two coots at a salt pond on Water Cay off St. Thomas on 19 April 1936. Coots have occurred infrequently in small num¬ bers (<5 birds/day) at Turpentine Run on St. Thomas (Division of Fish and Wildlife files, unpubl. data). Floyd E. Hayes (unpubl. data) observed single American Coots (pos¬ sibly the same individual) on St. Thomas at Turpentine Run from 9 November through 8 December 2002 and at Perseverance Bay Salt Pond from 27 January through 14 February 2003. St. John The type specimen of Caribbean Coot was a male collected at St.John in 1880 (Ridgway 1884), as was also a female (Table 2), al¬ though a presumed young bird was collect¬ ed at St. Croix by chemist Riise as early as January 1861 (Table 1). One coot was pres¬ ent at Francis Bay Salt Pond during Novem¬ ber and December 1989 (Knowles and Am- rani 1989). The largest number of coots seen on St. John by F. Brannick-Trager (pers. comm.) has been four at Grootpan Salt Pond in January 1997. CBC Data The median number of 4.5 coots (range: 0- 24; n= 22) on the St. Croix West End CBC was significantly greater than the median number of one coot on either the St. John (range: 0-29, n=16) or St. Thomas (range: 0- 4, n=16) CBCs, respectively (Kruskal-Wallis H=10.15, n=64, df=2, P=0.006). Except for three winters from 1981 to 1984, when counts on St.John CBCs were 10, 29, and 21 coots, respectively, all other counts on this CBC were six or less. Coots on the St. John and St. Thomas CBCs significantly declined over time (St. John: 1978-2004, rs=-0.42, P=0.04; St. Thomas: 1976-1992, rs=-0.64, P <0.01), whereas coots on the St. Croix West End CBC increased over time, though this relationship was not significant (1972-1989, 1999-2004: rs=0.30, P=0.18). Four of the six largest counts (>12 birds) occurred on four of the last five St. Croix West End CBCs. Discussion American and Caribbean Coots have nested in two habitats in the USVI, British Virgin Islands, and the Lesser Antilles, primarily at natural seasonally flooded salt ponds and freshwater ponds (usu¬ ally manmade) in the interior of these islands. Nests in the interior at freshwater sites dominated by perennial emergent forbs were floating platforms built among this vegetation (Frost and Massiah 2001), which is typical of Ameri¬ can Coot nests in marshes (Fredrickson 1970, Sugden 1979, Gorenzel et al. 1982, Kantrud 1985, Alisauskas and Arnold 1994), or conspicuous bulky mounded nests of sticks built amongst remnant stands of thin dead Sesbania shrubs in open water (McNair and Cramer-Burke, in press). Southgate Pond, where nests are usually built in woody vegetation when conditions are suitable (McNair and Cramer-Burke, in ms.), is the preferred breeding (and nonbreeding) site for coots on St. Croix (and in the USVI), even though it is brackish. Nests found on St. Martin in two brackish salt ponds have been built in emergent, not woody vegeta¬ tion (A. C. Brown, unpubl. data). Other than recently on St. Croix, few breeding sites have been confirmed on any given island where abundance and breeding densities are low and coot distribution is otherwise restricted, even on favorable islands such as St. Croix and St. Martin. Breeding phenology of Caribbean Coots documented earlier in the USVI spanned May-June and September-Oc- tober (Nichols 1943, Taylor 1996), but both coots have the capacity to nest year-round in the USVI (and elsewhere in the eastern Caribbean), depending upon favorable wa¬ ter levels in seasonal wetlands. Shallow sea¬ sonal wetlands are also generally preferred habitat for American Coots in North Ameri¬ ca (Kantrud 1985 and references cited there¬ in, Arnold 1993, Alisauskas and Arnold 1994). Nonetheless, despite the rapid re¬ sponse of coots to rainfall events and filling of some wetlands, coots without manage¬ ment intervention will remain local and rare to uncommon breeders in the eastern Caribbean, with breeding likely at a nadir during droughts. Regardless, coots are pre- V0LUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 683 fable 3. The distribution and abundance of adult (and subadult) coots (both species combined) by consecutive monthly periods from January 2002 to April 2005 at 32 sites (25 freshwater; 7 brackish) on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Site Site Monthly Period Number Maximum Number Number Site Name N Lata/W Long3 of Occurrence of Months of Coots FRESHWATER 1 Buccaneer Hotel; golf course link #8 pond 17.75208/64.67507 Apr 2002-Jul 2003 16 5, Apr-May 2002 Nov 2003 1 1 Aug-Oct 2004 3 9, Aug Jan-Mar 2005 3 7, Jan 2 Buccaneer Hotel; golf course link #9 pond 17.75277/64.67736 Jun 2004 1 1 Aug-Oct 2004 3 7, Sep 3 Buccaneer Hotel: Wastewater Treatment Pond 17.75312/64.67333 May 2002-Nov 2003 19 5, Jan-Feb 4 Carambola Golf Resort Upper Pond 17.74984/64.82368 May-Jul 2004 3 2, Jun-Jul 5 Carlton North Pond*30 17.69872/64.84763 Jun 2004-Apr 2005 11 6, Sep 6 Catherine's Rest South Pond 17.72075/64.71189 Nov-Dec 2004 2 1 7 Cotton Valley Pond 17.75331 /64.62037 Feb 2005 1 1 8 Cruzan Rum Distillery Pond 17.70555/64.82808 Dec 2002-Jun 2003 7 1 9 Diamond Pond 17.71056/64.82582 Oct 2004-Mar 2005 6 7, Mar 10 Frangipani East Pond 17.75614/64.77891 May 2004 1 1 Dec 2004-Feb 2005 3 2, Dec 11 Fredensborg Pond*3 17.73471 /64.78819 Feb 2002-Mar 2004 26 16, Mar 2002 Jun 2004-Mar 2005 10 6, Aug-Sep 12 Glynn South Pond 17.75475/64.76842 Oct-Nov 2004 2 1 13 Granard Middle Pond 17.71449/64.71165 Nov-Dec 2004 2 2, Nov Mar 2005 1 14 Granard South Pond*3 17.71056/64.70720 Feb 2002; 1 2 Jan 2004-Apr 2005 16 11, Mar 2005 15 Hermitage Pond 17.74967/64.80918 Mar 2004 1 1 16 Lowry Hill Road North Pond 17.74417/64.67744 Sep 2004 1 17 Mount Fancy Pond 17.72535/64.63641 Jan 2005 1 1 18 Mountain Mint Dairy Lower Pond #1 17.72172/64.66552 Apr 2004 1 1 19 Schuster East Pond*30 17.75124/64.65467 Jun-Oct 2004 5 2, Jul-Sep 20 Schuster Lower Pond 17.75373/64.65785 Apr-Oct 2004 7 5, Aug 21 Schuster Upper Pond 17.75132/64.65691 Aug-Oct 2004 3 1, Sep 22 Southgate Plantation Pondc 17.75336/64.66061 Jun-Jul 2004 1 2, Jul 23 Virgin Islands Agricultural Station Middle Pond*3 17.72312/64.80725 Jun 2003-Apr 2005 23 10, Nov 2003 24 Virgin Islands Agricultural Station Upper Pond 17.72516/64.80920 Nov 2004-Mar 2005 5 2, Mar 25 Windsor North Pond 17.76125/64.77360 May-Jun 2004 2 1 Nov 2004-Mar 2005 5 1 BRACKISH 26 Altona Lagoon 17.75222/64.69300 Jan 2002 1 2 27 Coakley Bay Salt Pond 17.75932/64.64575 Dec 2004 1 3 28 Manning Bay Lagoon 17.69423/64.79276 Dec 2003-Jan 2004 2 3, Jan Aug 2004 1 1 Feb 2005 1 1 29 Mount Fancy Salt Pond 17.72548/64.63490 Oct 2004 1 1 Jan 2005 1 3 30 Rust-op-Twist Salt Pond 17.77948/64.78956 Jan 2005 1 1 31 St. Croix Renaissance Park; large cooling pond 17.69584/64.76728 Jan 2004 1 3 32 Southgate Pond*3 17.75821 /64.66265 Feb 2002; 1 9 Nov 2003-Jul 2004 9 69, Jul Sep 2004-Apr 2005 8 22, Dec Coordinates given using decimal system. ^Confirmed breeding site. cPond visited infrequently before 2004. adapted to tolerate considerable disturbance to nesting habitat and can select a variety of vegetation types as nest-sites in the Caribbean, despite the degradation of some wetland habitats. The dependence of breed¬ ing coots on ephemeral marsh habitats would strongly suggest that they would oc¬ cur at unpredictable times and places in the Caribbean (as do other rallids; Remsen and Parker 1990). Coots were most numerous within the USV1 on St. Croix, where winter popula¬ tions have not declined (al¬ though the sample size is low), but available data do not otherwise allow assess¬ ment of long-term popula¬ tion trends or population fluctuations of coots on St. Croix (and elsewhere in the USVI) in relation to rainfall or land use dynamics, al¬ though rainfall patterns (drought, floods) do help explain some distributional patterns there. Recent in¬ tra-island movements of both species of coots on St. Croix have been limited to thirty-two sites, with fre¬ quent absences at most of these sites in response to drought or other factors. Beatty (1930; see also Sea¬ man 1973, 1993) stated uncritically that coots were formerly common on all the ponds and lagoons of St. Croix, but currently coots are scarce on meso- saline lagoons and salt ponds except for Southgate Pond, and their distribu¬ tion on freshwater ponds (where they are rare to un¬ common) has also been lo¬ cal. Consequently, current coot populations have been easy to monitor, although the limited data (no marked birds) cannot elu¬ cidate whether coots also have inter-island move¬ ments, even following the two heavy rainfall events after which both species of coots nested at Southgate Pond during two succes¬ sive hydrological cycles (cf. Hawaiian Coot F. ameri- cana alai; Engilis and Pratt 1993). Winter breeding of American Coots south to Guadeloupe (Levesque et al. 2002) suggests that these birds are not from the mainland. Breeding into May through the summer, such as at Southgate Pond and five freshwater farm ponds in 2004, also sug¬ gests these birds are not from the mainland. Whether nesting Amer¬ ican Coots in the eastern Caribbean are of North American rather than Caribbean ori¬ gin needs to be determined. Larger counts during winter do show a presumed influx of North American populations of American NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 684 Coots to the USVI (and eastern Caribbean), south to Grenada and Barbados, where they rarely occur (Riley 1916, Bond 1976, 1984; Raffaele et al. 1998; M. Frost, pers. comm.). Farther north in the Lesser Antilles on St. Martin, Caribbean Coots outnumber Amer¬ ican Coots: 470 out of a cumulative total of 658 coots (71.4% Caribbean) in the years 2001-2003 (A. C. Brown, unpubl. data); and a ratio of approximately 5:1 on St. Martin from 1999-2003 (Hans van Buel, unpubl. data, fide F. E. Hayes). By contrast, Caribbean Coots are outnumbered by American Coots in the USVI, at least in re¬ cent times (this study; Sladen 1992, Knowles 1996; the latter source may under¬ estimate the abundance of Caribbean Coots due to misidentification). The reasons for the sharp increase in the proportion of Caribbean Coots farther south in the Lesser Antillean chain away from the USVI are not known. Nichols (1943) in the northern USVI and Seaman (1973) on St. Croix assumed all breeding coots must be Caribbean Coots, which is not the case; thus, the accuracy of older sight reports of both coot species, and of reports of breeding coots, is unknown. Uneven observer coverage, even at South- gate Pond, has resulted in an incomplete his¬ torical record of coots in the USVI (e.g. , coots probably nested at Southgate Pond during winter 1995-1996 when water levels were high, but Knowles [1996] did not doc¬ ument this event). Furthermore, Nichols (1943) never reported American Coots in the northern USVI during winter (even though adults were collected on St. Croix during this season and period), casting some doubt on his species identification of breed¬ ing Caribbean Coots (including the egg set), even though he claimed the birds bred from May through October. American Coots are most likely to occur during winter, when presumed residents are augmented by visi¬ tors (cf. Buden 1991, 1993), but verified records of Caribbean Coots going back to 1861 also document its occurrence, when this species may also breed. The comparative breeding (and nonbreeding) status of each species during the twentieth century may have remained relatively unchanged (despite problems with reliable identification of many birds), but populations of both species have almost certainly declined because of habitat destruction and degradation, as well as hunting in some areas (Raffaele et al. 1973; A. Levesque, pers. comm.). Renewed searches are required in the northern USVI to document the breeding status of coots at low-salinity salt ponds on St. John and sev¬ eral cays where they formerly nested (Nichols 1943), as well as at some other sites in the eastern Caribbean (e.g., Lake Antoine, Grenada); some islands (e.g., Saba) appear to lack suitable habitat for nesting coots. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBE Wetland surveys in February 2002 and May 2004 on St. Kitts failed to find breeding coots (A. C. Brown, unpubl. data). Recent activities by several observers in the Lesser Antilles, however, have provided detailed documentation of coots and their breeding status (Frost and Massiah 2001, Levesque et al. 2002). Acknowledgments I thank L. Brannick-Trager, A. C. Brown, N. Collier, C. Cramer-Burke, 1. Fisher, M. D. Frost, F E. Hayes, S. Holliday, E. B. Massiah, H. Raffaele, E W. Sladen, and L. D. Yntema for contributing data on birds or for answer¬ ing queries, the Conservation Data Center of the University of the Virgin Islands for shar¬ ing unpublished data on wetlands in the USVI, R. Corado (Collections Manager, Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology), J. R Dean (Collections Manager, Division of Birds, Department of Systematic Biology, Smithsonian Institution), J. Fjeldsa and N. Krabbe (Zoological Museum of the Universi¬ ty of Copenhagen, Denmark), L. Joseph and N. Rice (Ornithology Department, Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia), and D. Willard (Collections Manager, Ornithology, Field Museum of Natural History) for con¬ tributing data and confirming the identity of coots from their museum collections, K. Klimkiewicz of the Bird Banding Laboratory, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, United States Geological Survey for providing re¬ covery data from the eastern Caribbean, A. C. Brown for reviewing a penultimate draft of the manuscript, P. A. Buckley and A. Jaramillo for reviewing the submitted manu¬ script, and the USFWS for partial financial support (Federal Aid Program, Pittman- Robertson Wetlands Project, W15). Copies of the five unpublished reports listed below are available from the author. Literature cited Alisauskas, R. T., and T. W. Arnold. 1994. American Coot. Pp. 126-143 in Migratory Shore and Upland Game Bird Management in North America (Tacha, T. C., and C. E. Braun, eds.). International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Allen Press, Lawrence, Kansas. Arnold, T. W. 1993. Factors affecting renest¬ ing in American Coots. Condor 95: 273- 281. Beatty, H. A. 1930. Birds of St. Croix. Journal of the Department of Agriculture of Puerto Rico 14: 135-150. - . 1938. Notes from St. Thomas and cays, Virgin Islands. Aid? 55: 552-553. Benito-Espinal, E. 1990. Oiseaux des Petite s Antilles/Birds of the West Indies. Les Edi¬ tions du Latanier, Saint-Barthelemy, French West Indies. Bock, C. E., and T. L. Root. 1981. The Christmas Bird Count and avian ecology. 4 Studies in Avian Biology No. 6: 17-23. Bond, J. 1966. Eleventh supplement to the Check-List of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1976. Twentieth supplement to the Check-List of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - . 1984. Twenty-fifth supplement to the Check-List of Birds of the West Indies (1956). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Buden, D. W. 1991. Bird band recoveries in the Bahama Islands. Caribbean Journal of Science 27: 63-70. - . 1993. Bird band recoveries from Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Caribbean Journal of Science 29: 179-185. Clark, C. T. 1985. Caribbean Coot? Birding 17: 84-88. Danforth, S. T. 1935. Supplementary ac¬ count of the birds of the Virgin Islands, including Culebra and adjacent islets per¬ taining to Puerto Rico, with notes on their food habits. Journal of Agriculture of the University of Puerto Rico 19: 439-472. - . 1936. The birds of St. Kitts and Nevis. Tropical Agriculture 13: 213-217. Engilis, A., Jr., and T. K. Pratt. 1993. Status and population trends of Hawaii’s native waterbirds, 1977-1987. Wilson Bulletin 105: 142-158. Fredrickson, L. H. 1970. Breeding biology of American Coots in Iowa. Wilson Bulletin 82: 445-458. Frost, M. D., and E. B. Massiah. 2001. Caribbean Coot ( Fulica caribaea ) — the re¬ turn of a former breeding resident bird. Journal of the Barbados Museum and His¬ torical Society 47: 85-90. Gorenzel, W. R, R. A. Ryder, and C. E. Braun. 1982. Reproduction and nest site charac¬ teristics of American Coots at different al¬ titudes in Colorado. Condor 84: 59-65. Imsand, S., and R. Philibosian. 1987. Explor¬ ing St. Croix. Travelers Information Press, Pasadena, California. Kantrud, H. A. 1985. American Coot habitat in North Dakota. Prairie Naturalist 17: 23-32. Knowles, W. C. 1996. Wildlife use of saltwa¬ ter wetlands on St. Croix, USVI. Final re¬ port, Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restora¬ tion Aid grant, Study W7, Division of Fish and Wildlife, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Is¬ lands. Knowles, W. C., and C. Amrani. 1991. Wildlife use of the Virgin Island’s wet¬ lands. Final report. Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Aid grant, Study FW- 12-D. Division of Fish and Wildlife, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. Leek, C. E, and R. L. Norton. 1991. An An¬ notated Checklist of the Birds of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Antilles Press, Christianst- 685 cd, St. Croix. Levesque, A., R Yesou, and M. South. 2002. Nidification de la Foulque d’Amerique (Fulica americana ) en Guadeloupe (Pe- tites Antilles). El Pitirre 15: 44-45. McNair, D. B., and C. Cramer-Burke. In press. The breeding ecology of American and Caribbean Coots at Southgate Pond, St. Croix: use of woody vegetation. Wilson Bulletin 118. Mirecki, D. N.,J. M. Hutton, C. M. Panned, T. J. Stowe, and R.W. Unite. 1977. Report of the Cambridge ornithological expedi¬ tion to the British Virgin Islands 1976. Churchill College, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Newton, A., and E. Newton. 1859. Observa¬ tions on the birds of St. Croix, West In¬ dies, made between February 20th and August 6th, 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 4th and September 28th, 1858 by Edward Newton. Ibis , Series 3, 1: 252-264. Nichols, R. A. 1943. The breeding birds of St. Thomas and St. John. Memoirs of the Society of Cuban Natural Flistory “Felipe Poey” 17: 23-37. Norton, R. L. 1982. West Indies region. American Birds 36: 897-898. - . 1984. West Indies region. American Birds 38: 251-253. - . 1985. West Indies region. American Birds 39: 214-215. Payne, R. T., and L. L. Master. 1983. Breed- _ ing of a mixed pair of white-shielded and red-shielded American Coots in Michi¬ gan. Wilson Bulletin 95: 467-469. Phillips, A. R. 1967. Some Antillean coots ( Fulica ) in the Cambridge University and British Museums. Bulletin of the British Ornithological Club 87: 35-36. Raffaele, H. A., M. J. Velez, R. Cotte, J. J. Wehlan, E. R. Keil, and W. Cumpiano. 1973. Rare and Endangered Animals of Puerto Rico — a Committee Report. U.S. De¬ partment of Agriculture-Soil Conserva¬ tion Service and Department of Natural Resources, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Raffaele, H.,J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A Guide to the Birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Remsen, J. V, Jr., and T. A. Parker, 111. 1990. Seasonal distribution of the Azure Gallinule ( Porphyrula flavirostris ), with comments on vagrancy in rails and gallinules. Wilson Bulletin 102: 380-399. Ridgway, R. 1884. Description of a new species of coot from the West Indies. Pro¬ ceedings of the United States National Mu¬ seum 7: 358. Riley, J. H. 1916. Two new ralliformes from tropical America. Proceedings of the Bio¬ logical Society of Washington 29: 103-104. Roberson, D., and L. F. Baptista. 1988. White-shielded coots in North America: a critical evaluation. American Birds 42: 1241-1246. Seaman, G. A. 1955. Wildlife resources sur¬ vey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpub¬ lished quarterly report (June), St. Croix. - . 1957. Wildlife resources survey of the Virgin Islands No. 4-R: Unpublished quarterly report (September), St. Croix. - . 1973. Sticks from the Hawk’s Nest. Pres¬ tige Press, St. Croix. - . 1980. Ay-Ay: an Island Almanac. MacMillan, London. - . 1993. Every Shadow is a Man: a Jour¬ ney Back into Birds and Time. Antilles Graphic Arts, Gallows Bay, St. Croix. Sladen, F W. 1992. Abundance and distribu¬ tion of waterbirds in two types of wet¬ lands on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Or- nitologia Caribena 3: 35-42. Stattersfield, A. J., and D. R. Capper. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edi- cions, Barcelona, Spain. Steadman, D. W., R. L. Norton, M. R. Brown¬ ing, and W. J. Arendt. 1997. The birds of St. Kitts, Lesser Antilles. Caribbean Jour¬ nal of Science 33: 1-20. Sugden, L. G. 1979. Habitat use by nesting American Coots in Saskatchewan park- lands. Wilson Bulletin 91: 599-607. Taylor, P. B. 1996. Family Rallidae (rails, gallinules, and coots). Pp. 108-209 in Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 3: Hoatzin to Auks (del Hoyo,J., A. Elliott, and J. Sargatal, eds.). Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. (© © ABA-Endorsed Tours American Birding* ASSOCIATION CANADA, NORTH AMERICA, ABA AREA Northern Alberta Rocky Mountains and Boreal Forest: Up to 20 singing warbler species, including Palm, Mourning Connecticut, and Canada; as many as 18 singing sparrows, including Baird's, LeConte's, Nelson's Sharp-tailed, and Swamp. Nesting Red-necked Grebe, White-winged Scoter, Boreal Chickadee, and Three-toed Woodpecker. Jasper hosts Black Swift, WT Ptarmigan, Timberline Sparrow, and GC Rosy-Finch, plus bear, bighorn, moose and mm. goat. All tours max at 6-7 people. July 7-16, 2006. Contact: Stephen Shunk, Paradise Bird Tours for Bird Lovers, http://www.paradisebirding.com, 541-549-8826 (home), 541-408-1753 (cell), 541-549-8937 (fax). Gambell, Nome, and Pribilofs Bird spring migration at the Pribilofs (St. Paul Island), Gambell, and Nome with a small group of hearty birders. Peak time for vagrants and Alaskan specialties. Stay in Siberian Yupik Eskimo home in Gam¬ bell; search for Bristle-thighed Curlew outside Nome; seabird colonies and fur seals rookeries on St. Paul. Small group, reasonable price. Pri¬ bilofs, May 2006; Gambell and Nome, May-June 2006. Contact: Wilderness Birding Adventures, 5515 Wild Mountain Road, Eagle River, AK 99577; (907) 694-7442; wildbird@alaska.net. PRE-ABA CONVENTION TOUR Bicknell's Thrush - Southern Maine and White Mountains, New Hampshire. loin Paul Lehman on a short tour visiting the southern Maine coast and the beautiful White Mountains of central New Hampshire. Targets the very local and threatened Bicknell's Thrush. We'll begin at Portland, Maine, the evening of June 16. Will visit coastal marshes, mudflats, and rocky coasts at Scarborough and Bid- deford. Drive(s) up Mount Washington for Bicknell's Thrushes, Ruffed Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied and Alder Flycatch¬ ers, Boreal Chickadee, and some 15 species of warblers possible. Will arrive at the start of the convention in mid-afternoon. June 16-19, 2006. Contact: WINGS, Inc., 1643 N. Alvemon Way, Suite 109, Tucson, AZ 85712; 888-293-6443 (toll free); wings@wings- birds.com; www.wingsbirds.com. POST-ABA CONVENTION TOUR The Gaspe Peninsula of Canada. Led by Wayne Petersen, our Gaspe Peninsula Uip offers a combination of boreal landbirding, an unfor¬ gettable seabird experience, beautiful mountain and coastal scenery, and fine French cuisine. The rugged Chic-Choc Mountains teem with nesting warblers, flycatchers, thrushes, and finches, and are home to such large mammals as moose, black bear, and a relict population of woodland caribou. Will visit famous cliffs of Bonaventure Island, where tens of thousands of Northern Gannets, Common Murres, Black-legged Kittiwakes, and other seabirds nest. Highlights include Ruffed and Spruce (rare) Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Razorbill and Atlantic Puffin (rare), Gray Jay, Boreal Chickadee, Olive-sided and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, Swainson's and Gray-cheeked Thrushes, Philadelphia Vireo, 20 or more species of warblers. June 26-July 4, 2006. Contact: Field Guides Inc., 9433 Bee Cave Road, Building 1, Suite 150, Austin, TX 78733; 800-728-953; fax: 512-263-0117; fieldguides@fieldguides.com; www.fieldguides.com. Eastern Oregon Malheur Weekends Spring at Malheur Refuge features Clark's Grebe, Ross's Goose, Franklin's Gull, Sandhill Crane, Prairie Falcon, Gray Flycatcher, Canyon Wren, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Lazuli Bunting Green-tailed Towhee, Sage Thrasher, Bobolink, Yellow-headed Blackbird. Fall uips include autumn colors of Steens Mountain for Black Rosy-Finch, Townsend's Solitaire, and abundant migrating raptors, plus Trumpeter Swan, Varied Thmsh, Red-naped Sapsucker, Ferruginous Hawk, and migrant songbirds at Malheur Refuge. All tours max at 6-7 people. SPRING — May 4-7 or May 18-21, 2006. FALL— September 14-17, 2006. Contact: Stephen Shunk, Paradise Bird Tours for Bird Lovers, http://www.paradisebirding.com, 541-549-8826 (home), 541-408-1753 (cell), 541-549-8937 (fax). Woodpecker Wonderland Weekend Up to 11 species each of woodpecker and flycatcher, including Three¬ toed, Black-backed, and White-headed, 3 sapsuckers, and up to 6 Empids, plus Barrow's Goldeneye, Calliope Hummer, Pinyon lay, Cassin's Vireo, Hermit Warbler, Nor. Pygmy-Owl, Gre en-tailed Towhee, Calliope Hummer and Vaux's Swift. All tours max at 6-7 peo¬ ple. June 8-11, 2006. Contact: Stephen Shunk, Paradise Bird Tours for Bird Lovers, http://www.paradisebirding.com, 541- 549-8826 (home), 541-408-1753 (cell), 541-549-8937 (fax). joy Very S p e c i a 2006 CARIBBEAN Puerto Rico Endemics: Puerto Rico has widely varying ecological zones, from xeric thorn forest to salt marshes to moist forests to high mountains. Of course that results in a wide variety of birds. There are 17 Puerto Rico endemics, and we usually see nearly 100 species. Led by lose Colon. 25-29 March 2006. Contact: OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292-2739; observ- tours@bellsouth.net; www.observtours.com. Dominican Republic Endemics: Our oldest West Indies tour takes you to the southwest portion of the country, where dry thorn forest covers the lowlands and moist forest clothes the great Baharuco Moun¬ tain range. There is even a huge salt lake below sea level. As always, diversity of habitat leads to diversity of bird species. There are 25 Dominican endemics, and we usually find a total of approximately 100 species. Led by Kate Wallace. 7-13 April 2006. Contact: OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292- 2739; observtours@bellsouth.net; www.observtours.com. MEXICO Mazatlan and the Durango Road After initial explorations near Mazatlan for coastal species we will begin the climb from the seaside to the high, arid plain east of the Sierra Madre Occidental. As we climb through the mountains there is a marked change in flora, and hence, in the birds. The prize endemic of the nip is Tufted lay among the 35+ endemics. Led By PD Hulce, our most experienced leader. Contact: Bob Odear at OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292-2739; observtours@bellsouth.net; www.observtours.com. Baja & Sea of Cortez-Bird & Whale Watching Expedition Join Mexican ornithologist luan Martinez to the famous Gray Whale calving grounds aboard the yachtlike Yorktown Clipper where whale¬ watching and snorkeling will be combined with birding for Baja spe¬ cialties. While looking for whales will be the emphasis with chances for humpback, finback, and blue whales likely, birds too will be stud¬ ied. 25 Fcbruary-4 March 2006. Contact: Clipper Cruise Line, (800) 814-9393 x 6813 or (800) 456-0020; csperry@intrav.com or groupres@inUrav.com. Central Veracruz Sierra Beginning in coastal Veracruz, we head immediately to Xalapa, Capi¬ tal of the state. Birding from there, we explore various elevations and rainfall zones. There are 18 endemics in this area, a place of great civility and beauty. Bob Odear and Bob Snaub lead. 9-24 May 2006. Contact: OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292-2739; observtours@bellsouth.net; www.observtours.com. Southern Veracruz and the Tuxtlas And the Tuxtlas. At one time this area produced the highest Christmas count in the world. The parts of the area have been converted to agri¬ cultural uses, but this remains one of the most productive birding areas in Mexico. We cover the coastal plain as well as the Tuxtla vol¬ canic complex. There are 26 species of special interest. Bob Odear and Bob Snaub lead. 15-21 May 2006. Contact: OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292-2739; observtours@bellsouth.neri www.observtours.com. EUROPE Scottish Isles to Iceland Embark Edinburgh Scotland for and expedition on board the Clipper Adventurer. The legendary Orkney Islands of Scotland will be explored on the way to Fair Isle and Mousa of the Shetland Islands, Denmark's Faroe Islands, and finally to Westmann and Flatey Islands in Iceland. Exceptionally good for seabirds. 21 June-4 July 2006. Contact: Clipper Cruise Line, (800) 814-9393 x 6813 or (800) 456-0020; csperry@intrav.com or groupres@intrav.com. PACIFIC OCEAN Eastern Australia AusUalia, the island continent, has an incredible number (338) of endemic bird species and endemic bird families. Our tour starts in Tasmania with beautiful forest birding and a pelagic uip. We then visit the mainland with arid bushland, wet sderophyll hill forest, coastal heathlands and beaches, before ending with Uopical and high¬ land rainforests, and the savanna grasslands of northern AusUalia. 28 August- 14 September 2006. Contact: Chris Doughty's Pere¬ grine Bird Tours, 2 Drysdale Place, Mooroolbark 3138 Victoria, AusUalia Tel 613 9726 8471; fax 613 9727 1545; info@pere- grinebirdtours.com; www.sub.net.au/~vwspbt01/. / B i r d i n g ASIA Spring Birding in Japan loin Englishman Chris Cook on a spring tour the includes the islands of Honshu, Kyushu, Tobishima, Hachijo, Kagoshima on Kyushu and the famous Lake Mi-ike. The endemic Izu Islands Thmsh, Ijima's Leaf Warier, and the Fairy Pitta are some of the target species. 20-30 May 2006. Contact: Siemer & Hand Travel, 750 Batterv St. Suite 300, San Francisco, CA 94111 (800) 451-4321; (415) 788-4000; fax (415) 788-4133; travel@siemerhand.com. Islands of the Russian Far East loin John Sylvester on board the Clipper Odyssey cruising from Tokyo, lapan to Peuopavlosk on the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula. With stops in the Kuril Islands many Asian species the "might" get to the U S. outer islands may be encountered. White-tailed and Steller's Sea-Eagles, Blakiston's Fish Owl, Spectacled Guillemot, Vega Gull, and lots of cliffs with nesting seabirds. 11-23 June 2006. Contact: Clip¬ per Cruise Line, (800) 814-9393 x 6813 or (800) 456-0020; csperry@intrav.com or groupres@intrav.com. AFRICA South Africa "Fairest Cape to Kruger." South Africa is a mega-diversity country with 58 endemic and near-endemic birds, more than any other African country. Sensational birds such as the African Penguin, Blue Crane, Cape Rockjumper, a suite of small endemic bustards, the African Black Oystercatcher, Knysna Turaco and at least 30 species of endemic larks and chats. Species include a host of storks and vultures, spectac¬ ular raptors and a host of bee-eaters, hombills, kingfishers, barbets, sunbirds, iridescent starlings, waxbills, and bush-shrikes. We will search for elephants, lion, leopard, buffalo, rhinos, and other mega¬ fauna. We can expert to see at least 400 birds species. Contact: Trop¬ ical Birding, Africa and Asia Division, 17 Toucan Tropics, Blou- bergrise, 7441, South Africa. Tel/fax: +27-21-556-4124 / 557 6575. Fax: + 27 21 557 6575. Mobile: + 27-82-400-3400. tropi- calbirding@telkomsa.net. Birding on the Nile Breeding birds and migrants. 16 days at Cairo, Giza, Saqqara, Wadi el Natrun, Faiyum, Wadi El Rayan, Luxor, Aswan, plus 5 days sailing the Nile to get up close and personal with the birds, on an historic dahabeyah (sailing craft) for a unique experience. Tour is guide by ABA member Ellen LeBlanc and our skilled Egyptian staff. 5-star hotels. Small groups (6-12). 516 species recorded in Egypt. 4-18 March 2006. Contact: www.museum-tours.com or call 1-888- 932-2230. Uganda: The Pearl of Africa This tiny country supports more than 1000 bird species. Shoebills at Murchison Falls, or endemics at Bwindi National Park are incredibly rewarding. Mountain Gorillas! We should see over 500 bird species while enjoying the remarkable scenery and wildlife. Uganda has an excellent infrastructure. Great diversity of habitats. Uganda now rivals Kenya as the most visited country in Africa. Ecotourism has been posi¬ tively encouraged for the last decade. Contact: Tropical Birding, Africa and Asia Division, 17 Toucan Tropics, Bloubergrise, 7441, South Africa. Tel/fax: +27-21-556-4124 / 557 6575. Fax: + 27 21 557 6575. Mobile: + 27-82-400-3400. tropicalbirding@telkomsa.net. SHORT TRIPS FOR TARGET SPECIES Colorado Chickens: White-tailed Ptarmigan, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Greater Sage Grouse, Gunnison Sage Grouse, Lesser Prairie-Chicken, Greater Prairie-Chicken. Most are seen on leks at good range. Three rosy-finches at feeders. Blue Grouse is usually seen, as well. From Denver, with Nick Komar leading. 8-14 April and 16-22 April 2006. Black-capped Vireo, Golden-cheeked Warbler: Travel into the Texas Hill Country for the two target birds at the time of year when they are vocalizing and the fields are ablaze with wildflowers. We usu¬ ally get some "Valley" species such as Cave Swallow. From San Anto¬ nio. P.D. Hulce leads. 17-20 April 2006. Contact: Bob Odear at OBServ Tours, Inc., 3901 Trimble Road, Nashville, TN 37215; (615) 292-2739; observtours@bellsouth.net; www.observ- tours.com. For more tours go to www.americanbirding.org/tours This adult Wilson's Plover was seen 8 June 2005 at Grosse lie, Magdalen Islands, Quebec, providing a first record for the province. Other wanderers have turned up recently in New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York, and Massachusetts. Photograph by Donna Gail Gaudet. This Bar-tailed Godwit was present 12-31 (here 1 3) July 2005 at Stephenville Crossing, Newfoundland, a third provincial record of this species. It was identified as subspecies baueri based on the heavily barred underwing coverts and barred lower back. Photograph by Bruce Mactavish. All up and down the Atlantic Coast, but especially in the Southeast, Greater Shearwaters were found inshore in summer 2005, as well as dead or moribund on beaches. This apparently starving bird approached a small fishing boat at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay 7 July 2005. Photograph by Josh Nemeth. This adult male Broad-billed Hummingbird at Colington, Dare County 15 (here) and 16 July 2005 was North Car¬ olina's second, the first being near New Bern in October 2001. Photograph by Jeff Lewis. This drake Garganey, here 1 9 June 2005 at the Brigantine Division of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, was seen at two coastal New Jersey locations on three occasions in June. Photograph by David Larsen. In Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Peregrine Falcons bred successfully for the first time since the late 1950s in a nest box high on one of Pennsylvania Power and Light's Martins Creek power plant smokestacks. This female (here 27 June 2005) fledged two young on 1 1 July. Photograph by Brian Hardiman. 688 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Western Kingbird is an expected fall vagrant in the East and Mid¬ west, but summer records are far more unusual. This bird 29 July 2005 at Jacksonville, Indiana County, Pennsylvania was enjoyed by many during its short stay. Photograph by Geoff Malosh. This presumed Sandwich Tern x Elegant Tern hybrid was at Sand Island, Mississippi 30 June 200S. These two species have been recently documented in mixed pairs on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Photograph by Stephen J. Dinsmore. Roseate Spoonbill is an extreme rarity in Tennessee, and five near Reelfoot Lake in Obion County (three here, 26 July 2005) was without precedent. Photograph by Jeff R. Wilson. This Tropical Kingbird was at Grand Isle, Louisiana 23 July 2005, a most unusual summer record for the Gulf Coast. Photograph by David P. Muth. These Black-bellied Whistling Ducks were found in Gibson County, Indiana on 14 July 2005, possibly pushed there by the remnants of Hurricane Dennis, which arrived in the area 12 July. This sighting constitutes Indiana's second record. Photograph by Lisa Bowman. These juvenile Swainson's Hawks were probably evidence of local breeding in Vermilion, Louisiana 26 July 2005. Photograph by Charlie Hohorst. A visiting birder from Germany found this Tufted Duck, the Yukon's second, near Rancheria Falls 4 (here 15) June 2005; it remained through 23 June. Photograph by Cameron D. Eckert. Manitoba's first Yellow-breasted Chat in nearly a decade, and about the twentieth overall, was this bird near Grande Clairiere 20-26 June 2005 (here on the latter date). Photograph by Brad Carey. VOLUME 59 (2005) NUMBER 4 689 r I ; A first for South Dakota and the Region, this female Magnificent Hummingbird was a surprise in a Sturgis yard 1 8 June 2005. Photograph by Randy Podoll. Found during a local bird festival and enjoyed by many, this Henslow's Sparrow was a first for Foster County, North Dakota 3 (here) through 7 June 2005 — one of eight reported in the Dakotas this season. Photograph by Dave Lambeth. A Sandhill Crane pair (with colt) was noted at Lower Latham Reservoir, Weld County, Colorado in early May, representing the first successful breeding by this species in modern history on Colorado's Eastern Plains (here 28 May 2005). Photograph by Steve Messick. The presence of apparent hybrid Vermivora warblers has been known for several years from the central Davis Mountains, Texas. These Virginia's x Colima Warblers are large in structure and have an inter¬ mediate song. This summer at least 9 territorial males were found, including this bird 11 June 2005. Photograph by Mark W. Lockwood On 3 May 2005, Dorothy Chamberlain spotted this gull at her home near Frenchtown, Montana. She alerted the local birding community, and seven birders rushed to there the next day to verify the bird's identification — an adult Ross's Gull (here 4 May), a state first. The bird foraged for worms pulled from mudflats; it could not be refound 5 May. Photograph by Terry Toppins. Furnishing first for the Yukon Territory and one of just a few records for Canada, this male McKay's Bunting was a star attraction at Herschel Island from 16 (here 22) July through at least 28 July 2005. Photograph by Cameron D. Eckert. Tantalizing by virtue of its territorial behavior, this singing male Baird's Sparrow near Cheyenne, Wyoming was noted on 16 (here) and 17 June 2005 but not later. The species is not known to nest in the state. Photograph by Pete Hosner. On 1 1 June 2005, Darren Clark and other birders found a Glossy Ibis at Camas National Wildlife Refuge — a first Idaho record and part of the westward expansion by the species. Photograph by Darren Clark. Flammulated Owl was known only as a rare migrant in Wyoming until 2002, when three were found summering in the Battle Creek drainage of the Sierra Madre Mountains. An organized group searched this area 8-10 July 2005 and found ten Flammulated Owls, including this nesting bird 9 July. Photograph by Tim faery This White-faced Ibis nest was one of two found at Whitewater Lake, Mani¬ toba on 7 July 2005, a first confirmation of breeding in this species for the province. Photograph by Ron Bazin. 690 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Several White-eared Hummingbirds ventured into record-high northern latitudes in the summer and fall of 2005. This bird, Col¬ orado's first, delighted birders in Durango from 19 June through 7 August 2005 (here 20 July). Photograph by Bill Schmoker. Semipalmated Sandpipers are rare but regular migrants through the Great Basin. Photographed at Carson Lake, Churchill, Nevada, this bird was a southbound migrant 23 July 2005. Photograph by Martin Meyers. Furnishing a first Arizona record, this elegant Black Turnstone was found at Willcox by Roger Eastman on 2 (here 3) June 2005 and remained until 5 June. Photograph by Mark Stevenson. After an increase in records and multiple nestings in the mid-1990s, Streak-backed Orioles have become scarcer in Arizona in recent years. This bird was observed in Tumacacori 23 (here 25) July through 1 August 2005. Photograph by Keith Kamper. Mark Houston and Tom Munson found Washington's third Blue-headed Vireo (the first to be photographed) at Dry Canyon, Pend Oreille County 15 June 2005; the bird remained until at least 18 July. Photograph by Tom Munson. Washington's first fully documented Red-necked Stint was at Dungeness Bay, Clallam, from 28 (here 31) July 2005 into August. Oregon and Washington together have about eight prior records, all of adults on the westside. Photograph by Ruth Sullivan. A vagrant in the Bering Sea, this Violet-green Swallow was seen at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska 1 June 2005. Photograph by Luke Cole. In a summer that produced a variety of records of species rarely recorded in California in summer, this Philadelphia Vireo — present 30 June (here) through at least 1 3 July 2005 in Mono County — may have been the most noteworthy, as it was the first ever found in the state during summer. Photograph by Chris McCreedy. This adult male Lesser Sand-Plover (of the nominate race) adorned Gearhart, Clatsop County, Oregon from 16 through 18 (here) July 2005. There are three previous records from Oregon, all of adults, the most recent in 1 986. Photograph by Keith Brady. VOLUME 59 (2005) • NUMBER 4 691 This presumed pair of Snowcaps, mist-netted near Las Marias, Departmento Gracias a Dios on 31 July (female) and 1 August (male), provided the first documentation of its occurrence in Honduras. Previous reports in this area have been anecdotal. Photographs by TomJenner. Although reported in the same area in April 2003, this Blue-chested Hummingbird mist- netted at Las Marias in the Departmento Gracias a Dios provided the first photographic evidence of its occurrence in Honduras. Photograph by TomJenner. Totally unexpected was the appearance of this adult Red-necked Stint at China Lake, Kern County, California on 13 June 2005; it was the only shorebird present at this location. Photograph by Bob Steele. The Laguna Mountains of San Diego County felt like southeastern Arizona in summer 2005. A Greater Pewee retained a territory there through most of June (here 24 June), providing a first summer record for California. This singing Red-faced Warbler (left) at William Heise County Park (here 1 1 August) was probably present through much of the summer. And this male Hepatic Tanager (above right), present 16 (here) through 28 June 2005, was in the same area as the Greater Pewee and two Painted Redstarts. Photograph by Kenneth Z. Kurland (center), MattSadowski (bot¬ tom left), and Matthew l Heindel (top right). This male Yellow-winged Cacique at Los Cobanos, Sonsonate Department, El Salvador 25 June 2005 was noted in company with five other males and a female, as well as several nests. This documents an eastward spread of about 70 km along the Pacific coast from the species' nearest range in Guatemala. Photograph by Marvin Rivas. 692 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Birding enthusiasts from all across the country have spotted something truly amazing: Alabama. Whether it’s on our North Alabama Birding Trail or our Coastal Birding Trail, Alabama is host to hundreds of species, from herons to loons, plovers to peeps. And our spring and fall migrations make Alabama truly worth the journey. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL 800-ALABAMA OR LOG ON TO 800ALABAMA.COM. SHARE THE WONDER. The Gyrfalcon Bird Got Its Name and >ete Dunne s essential field guide companion m. of South America Noti-ftiwnwo Rltca> to \Vw*h (lANClSOD jOROl ft RODR'OUtZ MATA MAUftlCt ftUMBOU BRilANNlCA BUTTERFLIES James Fcrgu son-Lees David A. Christie North America Europe, and Atia Stephen Hesi Don Tayloi Check out these exciting new spring titles well as hundreds of other birding books, optics, CDs, DVDs, and birding accessories from ABA Sales. Order online or call customer service for more information. American Birding ASSOCIATION ABA Sales www.abasales.com • 800-634-7736