Just to append my own response to Byron Butler's posting, I'll point out
that even if you aren't in the least bit interested in bird sex and
parenting, there are northbound migrant birds moving through the Northwest
into the first week of June, and returning southbound migrants starting the
last week of June. Included among them, of course, are a smattering of
those rare birds that so intrigue the birder. But even without rare birds
among them, there are a lot of bird movements going on that both delight
the senses and need to be better documented and understood. For those who
can't countenance the thought of sex in birds (extrapair copulations? tsk
tsk), a suggestion for the middle two weeks of June: watch dragonflies or
butterflies or hang out in air-conditioned espresso bars.

And, parenthetically, I think most of us in this enlightened region do
indeed appreciate bird biology enough so that we don't need Byron's
remonstrances. However, he has found a niche as a birding iconoclast, and
he obviously delights in making people attempt to *think* about just what
it is they are doing when they watch birds. I commend him for it.

Dennis Paulson, Director phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416