M a n - A p r . H 7 f c

Newsletter of the Southern Willamette O r n i t h o l o g i c a l Club Volume 2, Number 2

MEETING5 The next meeting of SWOC w i l l be Saturday, May 1, 1976 (note - not the

usual Monday n i g h t ) a t Room 167 of the Erb Memorial Union ( i n the new a d d i t i o n ) , This w i l l be an afternoon meeting, beginning a t 1:00 P.M. and ending about 4:00 or 5:00. This meeting w i l l be an organizing conference f o r a statewide o r n i t h o l o g i c a l o r g a n i z a t i o n . For more complete d e t a i l s see elsewhere i n t h i s issue.

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I n a review of my paper, "The d i s t r i b u t i o n and occurrence of the b i r d s of Jackson County, Oregon, and surrounding areas" (North American Fauna N8. 70, 1975) by L.B. McQueen (SWOC TALK, Nov.-Dec. 1975) several i n c o r r e c t remarks were made concerning the value of the Jackson County p u b l i c a t i o n . Chip Jobanek ( i n l i t t . ) suggested t h a t any comments t h a t I might have would be welcome. I accepted the o f f e r since I be l i e v e t h a t the review of my paper u n f o r t u n a t e l y contains several u n q u a l i f i e d remarks t h a t may be misconstrued by some readers. My remarks are b r i e f , however, since I am sure t h a t most of the readers of SWOC TALK are w e l l informed and should not be belabored by discourse on an unadvised review.

McQueen seems t r o u b l e d by my choice of using p l a n t communities instead of h a b i t a t . Very b r i e f l y , most h a b i t a t names are based upon p l a n t community names. An examination of most f i e l d guides t h a t give h a b i t a t d e s c r i p t i o n s use terms t h a t include the names of p l a n t communities. Furthermore, the r e l a t i o n s h i p s of b i r d d i s t r i b u t i o n to t h a t of p l a n t communities are w e l l known t o almost everyone. Related to t h i s matter i s my l i s t of c e r t a i n species t h a t I r e s t r i c t e d t o c e r t a i n avian communities. McQueen apparently f a i l e d to read t h a t these l i s t s are of breeding species r e s t r i c t e d t o p l a n t communities only i n Jackson County. Also, I included r i p a r i a n areas i n the Chaparral-Oak Community, a p o i n t overlooked by the reviewer. The examples t h a t McQueen stated t o be c o n t r a d i c t i o n s i n species being r e s t r i c t e d to a p l a n t community i n the l i s t s i n the v e g e t a t i o n s e c t i o n of the paper vs. the species accounts borders on chicanery.

Omission of c e r t a i n species were both d e l i b e r a t e and by o v e r s i g h t . As McQueen c o r r e c t l y p o i n t s o u t , there i s a nesting record of the Spotted Owl from Jackson County. The omission of the Swainson's Thrush was a s u r p r i s e t o me since t h a t species account was i n the g a l l e y proof but was somehow l o s t d uring p r i n t i n g . Also, McQueen i s c o r r e c t i n my c o n t r a d i c t i o n of the p l a n t community designations concerning the Winter Wren.

Other species and c e r t a i n "records" of them were d e l i b e r a t e l y excluded. One of the primary reasons f o r these exclusions c o n t r a d i c t s McQueen's " c o n v i c t i o n " t h a t i t i s an author's r e s p o n s i b i l i t y to acknowledge a l l references whether these are acceptable or not. The so-called h y p o t h e t i c a l l i s t s of a v i f a u n a l p u b l i c a t i o n s would be r i d i c u l o u s l y long i f every unsubstantiated s i g h t records were included. I elected t o exclude several records from Jackson County and other l o c a l i t i e s since I believed them t o be unacceptable. Many of these were published records t h a t have appeared i n Aud. F i e l d Notes and Amer. Birds and by t h e i r very nature such records are o f t e n times u n r e l i a b l e . This opinion i s one t h a t i s shared by others and should be considered by anyone using such data.

To gain an understanding of b i r d d i s t r i b u t i o n one needs t o have some i n s i g h t of the data upon which conclusions are based. Any r e l i a b l e review of such conclusions should be by someone i n a s i m i l a r f i e l d or a t l e a s t someone who understands t h a t f i e l d . I am sure t h a t among the readers of SWOC TALK there are many persons who are f a m i l i a r w i t h avian d i s t r i b u t i o n and are q u i t e capable i n making sound decisions on the worthiness of my p u b l i c a t i o n on the b i r d s of Jackson County.

M. Ralph Browning

THE 1975 OREGON CWRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS

Oregon birdwatchers conducted twenty-one Christmas B i r d Counts during the count period extending from 20 December 1975 to 3 January 1976. Of these twenty-one counts, the d e t a i l s of twenty are l i s t e d i n t h i s issue of SWOC TALK. A new count at Antelope could n ot be included because of i n s u f f i c i e n t time t o contact the compiler.

The m a t e r i a l i n the t a b l e s was provided by the count compilers. I n some cases t h i s m a t e r i a l i s not e x a c t l y as what w i l l l a t e r appear i n the Christmas Count issue of American B i r d s . One compiler expressed sentiments probably shared by a l l o f us when he complained t h a t an e d i t o r of American Birds seemed t o be more concerned w i t h count fees than w i t h count t o t a l s ; i n t h i s p a r t i c u l a r case, the count submitted to SWOC TALK includes feeder t o t a l s which w i l l not be included i n the American Birds p r i n t i n g . Also, I t was not possible to p r o p e r l y review questionable species. One compiler supplied w i t h the count r e s u l t s a copy of a l e t t e r from the r e g i o n a l e d i t o r i n d i c a t i n g which species were t o be dropped; these were dropped as w e l l from t h i s l i s t . For the f i n a l f a t e of such species, see American B i r d s . F i n a l l y , a t l e a s t one compiler made some a d d i t i o n e r r o r s which might r e s u l t i n d i f f e r e n c e s between the SWOC TALK and American Birds versions of the count.

I t was not possible t o i n d i c a t e i n the tables unusual species or numbers. For these, consult American B i r d s . I n the f o l l o w i n g t a b l e s , an "X" i n d i c a t e s t h a t the species was found i n count week but not on count day.

Several compilers sent w i t h t h e i r count r e s u l t s a short comment on t h e i r count. These are included a f t e r the t a b l e s . Following these, are Larry McQueen's remarks on Washington and Oregon b i r d counts. This a r t i c l e w i l l appear w i t h the remarks of other r e g i o n a l e d i t o r s i n the A p r i l Christmas B i r d Count issue of American B i r d s . I t i s p r i n t e d here by permission of the author.

F i n a l l y , my sincere thanks to a l l compilers who responded t o my request f o r count r e s u l t s . Chip Jobanek

Common Loon Arctic Loon Red-throated Loon loon sp. Red-necked Grebe

3« 3 3 X

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Horned Grebe Eared Grebe Western Grebe Pied-billed Grebe Dou-cr. Cormorant

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96 97

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3

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30 5 . 1

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547 //3

/ca i

/4o 64

545 179

31 49

38

Red-wgd. Blackbird "Bullock's" O r i o l e

3o 1173 /as I4-5S 16904 4 /

11/ aq

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Brewer's B l a c k b i r d Br-hdd. Cowbird Evening Grosbeak

375

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173

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386 S"o 3 3

1795 /

116

3450

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7 39 3 7 57 r c 3 33 House Finch Pine Grosbeak

/ a i /o7 5o 706 loo 18 1675 73 X 35

Gr-crnd. Rosy Finch 461 6 Common Redpoll Pine S i s k i n

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Lesser Goldfinch Red C r o s s b i l l

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136 65

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146 6<?

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397 71

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4345 lai+o 547 1631 559

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lo Northern Shrike Loggerhead' Shrike S t a r l i n g Hutton's Vireo Orange-crnd. Warbler

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ICS

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413

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36 4 5 9

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Com. Yel l o w t h r o a t Wilson's Warbler House Sparrow West. Meadowlark 573

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743 89

306 39

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OREGON BIRD COUNTS IN SUMMARY

Count Date Species I n d i v i d u a l s P a r t i c i p a n t s Compiler(s)

Antelope

Baker County

Baker V a l l e y

Bend

Coos Bay

C o r v a l l i s

Cottage Grove

Dallas

Eugene

12/21/75

12/27/75

12/20/75

12/21/75

12/22/75

12/27/75

01/02/76

12/28/75

Gold Beach 12/20/75

Hart Mountain 12/29/75

22

53

62

127

97

82

87

123

119

28

NO DETAILS -

597

7916

3321

25220

51000

7488

42875

68896

6765

224

11 L a r r y Rourapf

11 L a r r y Roumpf

33 Bambi Hargreaves

31 Ben Fawver

49 Fred Ramsey

15 Mike Patterson

22 Gerald Smith

74 Chip Jobanek Dan Gleason

32 Fred Bowen

8 L. Richard Mwaldt

V

" S l - c l r d . " Junco "Oregon" Junco Tree Sparrow Chipping Sparrow H a r r i s 1 Sparrow Wh-crnd. Sparrow Gld-crnd. Sparrow Wht-thrtd. Sparrow Fox Sparrow Lincoln'8 Sparrow

1763 1360 3o48 748

4

338 366 33

4

/8 4

5C+0 iq

i 4 3

61 33 3 5 1708 16 63G 33 6 4^93 14 a.

33 /£ 80+0

77 1

5 * 15 a

77 1 98 q

349 6aa /59

1

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3 0

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633 IIHO

3 4 0 /7

4 74

33

3o 361

toa

380 4 44 4

TFT" 4o6

I 56

Swamp Sparrow Song Sparrow Lapland Longspur Snow Bunting

95 a

67o

a

7 3

a

3o

130 353

OREGON BIRD COUNTS IN SUMMARY

Count Date Species I n d i v i d u a l s P a r t i c i p a n t s Compiler(s)

Malheur NWR 12/20/75 59 4817 19 L a r r y Napier Medford 01/03/76 110 ' 28080 90 Otis Swisher Oakridge 12/30/75 76 5428 31 Chip Jobanek

Joanne Ralston Portland 12/27/75 114 40192 ? ? James Olson Roseburg 12/27/75 98 18212 ? ? Donna Mecum Ruggs-Hardman 12/22/75 65 4333 ?? Steve Brownfield Salem 12/27/75 105 40320 76 Harold Scheyer Sauvie I s l a n d 12/21/75 128 109488 43 J e f f G i l l i g a n Tillamook Bay 12/20/75 127 45894 ? ? B i l l Thackaberry Yaquina Bay 01/03/76 107 9603 ? ? ? ? ? ?

Baker and Baker County: We had an unusually l a r g e number of Bohemian Waxwings t h i s year. Mallards were up considerably. S t e l l e r ' s Jays were way up. We had l o t s of hawks, probably because we had an unusually l a r g e number of mice i n the f i e l d s t h i s year. There was a dearth of Robins; however, a week l a t e r down on the Snake River there were thousands.

• L a r r y Roumpf

Eugene; I n recent years, w i t h increased p a r t i c i p a t i o n and advanced equipment, the Eugene Christmas B i r d Count has established a long s t r i n g of counts r e c o r d i n g over one hundred species of b i r d s - i n f a c t , any count f a i l i n g t o exceed one hundred species would have t o be judged a major disappointment. This year's Eugene b i r d count maintained t h a t s t r i n g e a s i l y w i t h 123 species.

I n almost a l l regards the 1975 Eugene Christmas B i r d Count was the second best Eugene count ever. 123 species i s second only t o 1973's 130 and t h i s year's 68,896 i n d i v i d u a l s again second to 1973's 78,521 i n d i v i d u a l b i r d s ( o f which 43,239 were S t a r l i n g s ) . Only i n the number of human p a r t i c i p a n t s d i d t h i s year's b i r d count f a i l to exceed most recent counts. For t h i s , the compilers must accept a l l blame, having f a i l e d t o complete o r g a n i z a t i o n of the count u n t i l the n i g h t before (though we d i d s u f f e r from some vacations u n f o r t u n a t e l y planned f o r the count p e r i o d ) .

Several unusual species were recorded on t h i s year's b i r d count, i n c l u d i n g a Red-throated Loon, An A r c t i c Loon (count week), two Blue-winged Teal drakes, one immature Bald Eagle a t Fern Ridge (an Osprey was seen a t t a c k i n g an a d u l t Bald Eagle f o u r days a f t e r the count), one Burrowing Owl ( a t l e a s t two s t i l l i n the area, three a t one t i m e ) , one Clark's Nutcracker a t the Eugene a i r p o r t , one House Wren, a Common Yell o w t h r o a t (count week), two Chipping Sparrows, two H a r r i s ' Sparrows, two White-throated Sparrows, and an i n c r e d i b l e Swamp Sparrow found by La r r y McQueen and party on Gibson I s l a n d , Fern Ridge Reservoir. The Swamp Sparrow s i g h t i n g i s only the second record f o r the area, the f i r s t b i r d also appearing on a Eugene Christmas B i r d Count.

More i m p o r t a n t l y , record highs were established f o r several species, despite the f a c t t h a t there were fewer counters i n the f i e l d t h i s year. Record highs were set f o r W h i s t l i n g Swan, Glaucous-winged G u l l , Anna's Hummingbird, S t e l l e r ' s Jay, B u s h t i t , Winter and Bewick's Wrens, Ruby-crowned K i n g l e t , Red-winged B l a c k b i r d , House Finch, Rufous-sided Towhee, White-crowned, Fox, L i n c o l n ' s , and Song Sparrows.

Few species were obviously low i n numbers. Only 275 D u n l i n , one Greater Yellowlegs, and one peep-type sandpiper are a l l low counts. Ten Water P i p i t s are but a small f r a c t i o n o f what we should have counted. The low numbers, how­ever, probably do not c a r r y ominous connotations but merely r e s u l t from missing large f l o c k s , something e s p e c i a l l y easy to do w i t h p i p i t s .

I t s mentioned every year but worth repeating again t h a t almost a l l of the t o t a l s recorded on a b i r d count are underestimates. I wrote i n the newsletter of the Oakridge Audubon Society i n discussing t h e i r b i r d count t h a t both Eugene and Oakridge should be recording 5000 Golden-crowned K i n g l e t s y e t t h i s year we counted but 764. Perhaps next year we should have someone concentrating on these t i n y b i r d s , j u s t to see how many can be counted on a b i r d count. (Oakridge came closer to r e a l i t y w i t h 992 k i n g l e t s . )

Chip Jobanek

Bend; T h i r t y - t h r e e counters p a r t i c i p a t e d i n our 1975 Count. I t was down from the previous year (72 species, 1 a d d i t i o n a l race) but was our second-best record w i t h 62 species and 1 a d d i t i o n a l race.

Some of the h i g h l i g h t s were: C a l i f o r n i a Q u a i l , 393 (high—1973—207, l o w — 1969— 19); Mourning Dove, 1 — t i e d w i t h l a s t year and only second year seen on Count; only 1 Great Horned Owl t h i s year; S t e l l e r ' s Jay, 23 (high— 1 9 7 0—9 , l o w — 1974—2); Common Crow, 6 (seen only once before i n 1973, 4 ) ; Pinyon Jay, 50 (LOW!—and seen only by one team, a t feeder; high—1974—335, low—1969—43); Pygmy Nuthatch, 107 highest ever! ( l o w — 1969&71--1); American Robin, 93 (LOW!; high—1972—2916, low—1969—49); Western Meadowlark, 15 (only seen once before, 1970— 2); House Finch, 107 (high—1973&74—57, low—1970—2); Rufous-sided Towhee, 47 (high— 1 9 7 4—6 , l o w — 2 , on four d i f f e r e n t counts).

Bambi Hargreaves

Gold Beach: With p e r f e c t weather f o r our count day, the 1975 count proved t o be the best ever recorded f o r Gold Beach. This year marked the e i g h t h year f o r Gold Beach t p p a r t i c i p a t e i n the n a t i o n a l b i r d census which was s t a r t e d i n 1900.

On the cool morning of December 20, t h i r t y - t w o b i r d e r s set about t h e i r work and before the day had ended a number of new records were e s t a b l i s h e d . Results show t h a t 119 species were observed and a t o t a l of 6 765 i n d i v i d u a l s were counted, Nine species which had never been seen on the l o c a l census were added t h i s year. With these a d d i t i o n s , a t o t a l of 173 d i f f e r e n t species have been observed on the Christmas B i r d Counts since s t a r t i n g i n 1967.

Fred Bowen

Hart Mountain: Our t h i r d Hart Mountain B i r d Count e f f o r t included three f u l l and two p a r t i a l days of f i e l d work 26-30 December 1975 by from two to e i g h t observers. Numbers of b i r d s were n o t i c e a b l y down from 1974. Perhaps unusually cold weather i n November and e a r l y December was responsible. With e f f o r t s on three d i f f e r e n t days we f a i l e d t o f i n d the f l o c k of Sage Sparrows which was present d a i l y i n the Warner Valley p o r t i o n of the count area i n 1974. D i l i g e n t study on three days of a very dark Buteo hawk by R.E. G i l l and L.R. Mewaldt convinced us i t was a Rough-legged Hawk and not a Harlan's Hawk. Because of i t s p e r s i s t e n t presence i n one p a r t of the Warner V a l l e y , we t h i n k i t may be the same b i r d we saw i n the same place i n the count period i n 1974 when we c a l l e d i t a Harlan'8 Hawk. The number of Rough-legged Hawks was down somewhat from 1974.

L. Richard Mewaldt

-aa Oakridge: While only the second best Oakridge count i n terms of species, the 1975 count recorded many more i n d i v i d u a l b i r d s than any other count. 5428 i n d i v i d u a l s i s 2025 or 607. over the f o u r year average of 3403 i n d i v i d u a l s . While we can only speculate on the causes of t h i s , i t i s possible t h a t enow i n J the mountains forced b i r d s down i n t o the lower areas; an i n d i c a t i o n of t h i s i s the Pine Grosbeaks seen on LaDuke Road during the count, a species t h a t normally wi n t e r s a t higher e l e v a t i o n s .

Several Oakridge count records were established f o r the number of i n d i v i d ­uals of c e r t a i n species. Species showing the biggest increases include K i l l f l e e r , S t e l l e r ' s Jay, Common Crow, Black-capped Chickadee, Purple Finch, Cassin's Finch, "Oregon" Junco, and Golden-crowned Sparrow.

Special mention should be made of two species: the Mountain Quail and the Golden-crowned K i n g l e t . Oakridge should once again be high i n the country w i t h i t s count of 178 Mountain Q u a i l ; i n f a c t , I believe 178 Mountain Quail establishes a'new a l l - t i m e n a t i o n a l t e c o r d . As i s t r u e w i t h most counts of i n d i v i d u a l s , 178 i s probably an underestimate.

992 Golden-crowned K i n g l e t s should also give Oakridge the n a t i o n a l high f o r t h a t species as w e l l ; Eugene claiming the n a t i o n a l high l a s t year w i t h 919 but only counting 764 t h i s year. I n my o p i n i o n , however, Eugene should be counting 5000 k i n g l e t s each year and Oakridge a t l e a s t t h a t many.

Chip Jobanek

Rngg8-Hardman: The Ruggs-Hardman Christmas B i r d Count might be unique i n t h a t i t i s planned and run by a s p e c i a l i z e d Biology class a t Heppner High School. This c l a s s , which i s c a l l e d F i e l d Biology, i s a c t i v e l y involved i n b i r d i n g during the school year. About 907. of the p a r t i c i p a n t s on the count are high school students.

This year's count was the best count we have had i n the f i v e years t h a t I have been working w i t h i t . The weather was e x c e l l e n t , and the b i r d populations were h i g h . We saw more species and more i n d i v i d u a l s by f a r than on any previous count.

P a r t i c u l a r l y i n t e r e s t i n g was the s i g h t i n g of a H a r r i s ' Sparrow by Butch Taylor (LaGrande). Butch observed t h i s sparrow f o r about f i v e minutes w i t h ten power binoculars at from 15 t o 30 f e e t . We haven't seen a H a r r i s ' Sparrow around t h i s area f o r about three years.

Steve Brownfield

Salem: December 27, 1975. T o t a l of 105 species and one a d d i t i o n a l race; approx­imately 40,320 i n d i v i d u a l b i r d s . Count period species, none. F o r t y - f o u r f i e l d counters i n 18 p a r t i e s . An a d d i t i o n a l 32 feeder r e p o r t s . Weather was e x c e l l e n t a l l day, m i l d and sunny, w i t h good l i g h t and no wind. A l l water open and food crops e x c e l l e n t . This was a record year f o r number of species (best previous year, 98 i n 1973). We counted f i v e new count species and an a d d i t i o n a l 32 record highs. New count species were Redhead, Glaucous G u l l , Clark's Nutcracker, Townsend's S o l i t a i r e , and Mountain B l u e b i r d . The ex c e l l e n t f i e l d c o n d i t i o n s were c e r t a i n l y a f a c t o r , aided by the l a r g e s t number of f i e l d counters we have ever had. A l l things considered, a very s a t i s f y i n g year.

Harold Scheyer

-23

The f o l l o w i n g a r t i c l e was w r i t t e n by Larry McQueen and w i l l be p r i n t e d i n the Christmas B i r d Count issue of American Bi r d s . I t i s p r i n t e d here by per­mission of the author.

The P a c i f i c Northwest experienced another m i l d w i n t e r , r e s u l t i n g i n some of the highest counts f o r Washington and Oregon. Grays Harbor, Wash, took the lead over both states w i t h an amazing 142 species, while Oregon's top count of 128 a t Sauvie I s l a n d leads the count of i n d i v i d u a l s w i t h 109,488. A new count f o r Oregon a t Antelope brought the t o t a l to 21 counts, which t a l l i e d 225 species f o r the s t a t e . Thieteen counts i n Washington t o t a l l e d 189 species, making a grand t o t a l of 239 species f o r the two s t a t e s .

I n Oregon, A r c t i c Loons were found i n l a n d a t Sauvie I s l a n d and Eugene (count week), w i t h a Red-throated a t Eugene. Two Red-necked Grebes a t Roseburg were an i n l a n d s u r p r i s e , as were the Surf Scoter and Harlequin Duck a t Oakridge. Oldsquaw even appeared up r i v e r a t Gold Beach and at Roseburg (count week), and over 300 miles from the coast at T r i - C i t i e s , Wash. T r i - C i t i e s also had a Red-breasted Merganser. European Wigeon wintered i n good numbers i n the Puget Sound area and a t Sauvie I s l a n d , Ore. Sauvie I s l a n d , near the western end of the Columbia River, also had f i v e Trumpeter Swans and an Emperor Goose. A Barrow's Goldeneye was c o l l e c t e d there by a hunter during count week. Seattle showed high numbers of Barrow's Goldeneye and Harlequin Duck, plus one w e l l described Black Duck. Ruddy Ducks achieved record numbers on many counts. Several counts i n both states reported Blue-winged T e a l .

Among r a p t o r s , the most outstanding were the reports of Swainson's Hawks. (Yakima V a l l e y , Wash.; Baker, and D a l l a s , Ore.). Unfortunately, no d e s c r i p t i o n s were submitted f o r the s i g h t i n g s and two counts gave no i n d i c a t i o n t h a t they were considered unusual. A few Osprey were sighted i n western Washington (Grays Harbor and Kitsap County), where i n d i v i d u a l s have wintered f a i r l y r e g u l a r l y . Two Turkey Vultures were sighted at Gold Beach, Ore. Recent expansion of the White-t a i l e d K i t e has made i t a r e g u l a r v i s i t o r t o Finley Refuge of w e s t - c e n t r a l Oregon, where i t was counted f o r C o r v a l l i s . Another was found at Coos Bay. Raptors west of t h e i r breeding range i n c l u d e , f o r Oregon, a Ferruginous Hawk a t Roseburg, 2 P r a i r i e Falcons a t C o r v a l l i s and one at Sauvie I s l a n d ; and f o r Washington, a Golden Eagle at Bellingham. Peregrines were encountered on three counts f o r Washington and two f o r Oregon.

Over 200 Sandhill Cranes stayed on Sauvie Isl a n d f o r the count. These b i r d s u s u a l l y depart by l a t e November, but they were feeding on corn planted f o r geese by the Oregon W i l d l i f e Commission. R a i l s were w e l l represented, w i t h V i r g i n i a s i n western Oregon and Soras i n western Washington.

With few exceptions shorebird numbers were high. I t i s i n t e r e s t i n g t h a t again t h i s year Dunlin were a t t h e i r a l l time high at Grays Harbor, Wash. (70,000) and a t another low i n Oregon's Willamette Va l l e y , where they are expected i n good numbers ( C o r v a l l i s and Eugene). A good showing at Grays Harbor includes three Semipalmated Plover and a record number of Greater Yellowlegs. A Lesser Yellow­legs was i d e n t i f i e d at Tacoma. A Northern Phalarope was also found at Tacoma and one a t Tillamook Bay, Oregon. Another phalarope, probably a Red, was found i n l a n d at Medford, Ore. Coos Bay had t h e i r share of species not expected t o w i n t e r i n Oregon, and turned up 5 Whimbrels, 7 Baird's Sandpipers, and 13 Wandering T a t t l e r s ; however, b e t t e r d e t a i l s were wanting on the t a t t l e r s . At Leadbetter Po i n t , Wash., a Red Knot tops the shorebird l i s t .

Heermann's Gulls were a s u r p r i s e .again t h i s year, w i t h one f a r t o the n o r t h at Bellingham, Wash., and one a t Grays Harbor. Also from Grays Harbor, e x c e l l e n t notes describe an immature I v o r y G u l l i n every d e t a i l . As i f t h a t was not enough, a Caspian Tern was encountered theee during count week. Several Glaucous Gulls were reported i n western Oregon,"' but the most s u r p r i s i n g was one i n l a n d , a t Salem.

A l c i d s were w e l l represented i n -the" Puget Sound area, and only Common Murres were found along the Oregon coast.

Band-tailed Pigeons, r a t h e r i r r e g u l a r i n w i n t e r i n the Northwest, were recorded on many counts i n western Oregon and Washington. Rufous Hummingbirds were reported by three counts. Anna's Hummingbirds are q u i t e r e g u l a r now west of the Cascades, and because feeders aEe l e f t out f o r them, other species of humming­b i r d s should be a n t i c i p a t e d .

A Black Phoebe a t Gold Beach and one at Yaquina Bay may i n d i c a t e a change of status f o r t h i s b i r d i n Oregon. A Violetpgreen Swallow a t D a l l a s , Ore. was met w i t h a Barn Swallow (count week) a t S e a t t l e , Wash. Clark's Nutcrackers, unusual f o r the lowlands west of the Cascades, were found a t Eugene and Salem, Ore., and a t Bellingham, Wash. Three Gray Jays were coming to a feeder a t Sauvie I s l a n d , Ore., and one was found a t Cottage Grove. I n c r e d i b l y , a Gray C a t b i r d was found a t Leadbetter Point, Wash. Hermit Thrushes were reported i n good numbers, w i t h a peak of 39 a t Roseburg, Ore. A Swainson's Thrush (w i t h o u t d e t a i l s ) was marked f o r Salem, and one f o r Sauvie I s l a n d . Salem also had one Mountain B l u e b i r d . Bohemian Waxwings achieved record number on many counts east of the Cascades i n both s t a t e s , but only one was found i n western Oregon, at Oakridge.

Coos Bay, Ore. leads the warbler l i s t , w i t h a N a s h v i l l e , a Hermit, and two Wilson's. Another Wilson's was found a t Yaquina Bay, Ore. on count week. Five Palm Warblers were a t Grays Harbor. Common Yellowthroats turned up i n the Willamette V a l l e y , Ore. a t C o r v a l l i s and Eugene (count week). A b r i g h t Northern O r i o l e a t Gold Beach, Ore. i s added t o the l i s t of species not expected t o w i n t e r .

Finches were w e l l represented throughout. East of the Cascades, Pine Gros­beaks, Common Redpolls, and Gray-crowned Rosy Finches were high i n numbers. Spokane, Wash, found a White-winged C r o s s b i l l during count week but could not loc a t e i t f o r t h e i r count. On the west side, large f l o c k s of s i s k i n s were noted, e s p e c i a l l y i n Wash., while House Finches broke records i n Oregon (Salem, C o r v a l l i s , and Eugene). 30 Pine Grosbeaks were a sur p r i s e a t Oakridge. A l l sparrows were high i n numbers. Eugehe, Ore. marked an unprecedented 42 Lincoln's Sparrows. Chipping Sparrows, found on many western Oregon counts, numbered 9 at C o r v a l l i s . Vesper Sparrows were found at Dallas and Roseburg, but i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i s subj e c t t o question. Eugene had a second record of Swamp Sparrow. Lapland Longspur, more expected on coastal counts, occurred a t S e a t t l e , •Wash., and in l a n d i n Oregon a t C o r v a l l i s and Roseburg. Two Snow Buntings wintered a t Portland.

L.B. McQueen

-us-

"Oregon O r n i t h o l o g i c a l Club" .-I \i4C-?

Organizing Conference

The conference w i l l be hel d on^Saturday, • May-1, a t the Erb Memorial Union on the U n i v e r s i t y of Oregon c a p u s ! i n (Eugene." I t w i l l begin a t 1:00 P.M. and l a s t u n t i l about 4:00 or 5:00. depending on ,attendance and.the amount of d i s c u s s i o n . The purpose of t h i s conference i s to organize ,a statewide o r g a n i z a t i o n f o r the study and enjoyment of the b i r d s of Oregon; by al l o w i n g a l l attendees an oppor­t u n i t y to express t h e i r o p i n i o n s on such t o p i c s as the n e w s l e t t e r , f i e l d notes, o f f i c e r s , meetings, f i e l d t r i p s , e t c . When t h i s , the major p o r t i o n of the a f t e r ­noon's work, i s completed to the s a t i s f a c t i o n of the attendees, an opportunity w i l l be a v a i l a b l e f o r d i s c u s s i o n of other t o p i c s , such as Christmas Counts, the Rare B i r d Committee, and a new, updated C h e c k l i s t of the B i r d s of Oregon. R e f r e s h ­ments w i l l be provided, as w i l l o v e r n i g h t housing f o r those coming any d i s t a n c e . I f housing i s d e s i r e d , c o n t a c t the conference coordinators ,in advance i f p o s s i b l e . No v i s i t o r ' s permits w i l l be needed to usd the U of 0 v i s i t o r p arking a r e a s . The EMU B u i l d i n g i s a maze, even f o r those of us who should know our way around i t by now, so conference a s s i s t a n t s w i l l a c t as guides to supplement posted d i r e c t i o n s .

A l l who wish to atten d are welcome, and those with a l i t t l e time on t h e i r hands may wish to t r y the birdwatching a t Fern Ridge R e s e r v o i r , e i g h t m i l e s west of Eugene.

ARRIVING FROM THE: NORTH on 1-5: Eugene-University E x i t onto 1-105, f o l l o w UofO s i g n s a c r o s s

F e r r y S t . Bridge onto F r a n k l i n B l v d . eadt. NORTHWEST on 99: Come c l e a r through Eugene on 7th which w i l l empty onto F r a n k l i n

a t the base of the F e r r y S t . Bridge complex. WEST on 1 2 6 / l l t h Ave.: Turn r i g h t ( s o u t h ) where the t r a f f i c d i v i d e r s l e a v e no

option ( A r t h u r / G a r f i e l d S t . ) and continue to 18th. Turn l e f t ( e a s t ) on 18th fo r about four m i l e s , then t u r n l e f t ( north) on U n i v e r s i t y S t . , which i s j u s t over the c r e s t of the h i l l , 5 blocks past H i l y a r d S t .

SOUTH on 1-5: Eugene/Uof0/DMV-PUC E x i t onto F r a n k l i n Blvd. west. EAST on 126 (through S p r i n g f i e l d ) : S t r a i g h t onto F r a n k l i n B l v d . west.

Conference Coordinators:

AI an Contreras Chip Jobanek 693 E. 16th 38713 McKenzie Highway Eugene, OR 97401 S p r i n g f i e l d , OR 97477 485-8783 747-7598

. Also, remember i;ke Alfred Coop<?r She Ihn dwarj, See

((XSjf i'ssae 0 f 5U/CCTAL|C £>r c/efa / /5 . o r \AJr^ 4D S\JUOC addrnss prfcr 4x> I S May ^ 7 6 fen deW/s. This issue of SWOC TALK was prepared by Chip Jobanek and was p r i n t e d

26 A p r i l 1976 by the Quick Copy Center of the U n i v e r s i t y of Oregon, Eugene.