Subject: Historic rarities in Puget Sound
Date: Jan 18 16:19:42 1995
From: "Nunnallee, Dave" - DNUN461 at ecy.wa.gov



I was reading Larrison's 1952 "Field Guide to Birds of Puget Sound" when I
noticed several interesting historical records of rarities. They include:

Blue-footed Booby, 9-23-35 - Puget Sound off Everett
Yellow Rail, 11-16-35 - Mouth of N.F. Skagit River
King Eider, Oct. 1948 - Seattle
Crested Mynah - "rare irregular visitor south to Seattle"

These records raise a few questions:

1. Are these old records considered "confirmed"?
2. Was there something peculiar about the year 1935 that both the Booby and
the Yellow Rail should be seen here?
3. I was unaware that the Crested Mynah ever spread this far south from
Vancouver. How long has it been since it has been seen in Washington?
Also, with it's precipitous decline in Vancouver, is there any speculation
how long before it disappears altogether?

Dave Nunnallee
dnun461 at ecy.wa.gov
Bellevue, WA