Michael,

Is there a break anywhere up the Fraser Valley between coastal and
interior crow populations? Judging by CBC data the species boundary is
sharp and parallels the international boundary, as all Washington CBCs
(or most) simply report "crow sp." in protest while all coastal BC counts
report "Northwestern Crow."

Gene Hunn.

On Mon, 3 Jul 1995, Michael Price wrote:

> Hi Tweeters,
>
> Jim Ha Says:
>
> (snip)
> >We hope to make those recordings later this summer... any
> >suggestions for crow roosts in the Portland to Vancouver Island coastal
> >area, anyone?
>
> As far as Vancouver BC stands as a possibility for these recordings, how
> about the Still Creek pre-roost staging area in Burnaby BC, the municipality
> immediately to the E of Vancouver BC in the Greater VCR conurb? In
> non-breeding season, *Tens* of thousands of Northwestern Crows (NOCR) gather
> there in the evening before heading to their roost sites on Burnaby
> Mountain. The scene is just nutso.
>
> There's been a few American Crows (AMCR) here, usually in winter. Though no
> AMCR sighting has ever been accepted by the local rarities committee, a
> distinctly-larger crow giving a distinctly-higher-pitched yelp in a flock of
> smaller NOCR's all uttering their typical deeper dry bark seems a pretty
> straightforward ID to me, but, as usual, I'm open to compelling evidence
> that things are never as simple as they appear on the surface.
>
> One of the local Unsolved Mysteries seems to be the contact zone between
> NOCR & AMCR in southwestern BC, especially to the east and north.
> Intuitively, it would be where the Fraser Delta ends in the E near Hope BC,
> and the N end of Howe Sound to the N, but I get a different answer depending
> on who I ask. Is there a cline in either direction? Does anyone *know*?
>
> Michael Price
> Vancouver BC Canada
> michael_price at mindlink.bc.ca
>
>