Subject: Merlin
Date: Sep 4 18:18:40 1995
From: "Dan Stephens" - dstephen at ctc.ctc.edu


I observed a "Black" Merlin (_F.c. suckleyi_) from my front yard Sunday,
Sept. 3. It was the first _suckleyi_ I have seen in Wenatchee in the
five years I have lived here. Merlins are fairly common in town in the
winter, they are _F. c. columbarius_. I've read that _suckleyi_ does not
migrate much, but occationally moves south and east from its breeding areas.
Does this sound correct? Does this seem like a early record? A report
of a _richardsonii_ from the SE corner of the state last week puzzles me.
Do the prairie merlins disperse west and the NW coastal birds move east?

Five minutes later we saw a female Black-chinned Hummingbird at our Cannas.

Saturday I lead the annual NCW Audubon shorebird field trip. We covered
320 miles. Nothing unusual, a juv. Pectoral Sandpiper allowed the whole
group (10 people) to approach within 3 meters at Atkin's Lake. A
suspicious, single Long-billed Dowitcher juv. at the small pond on the
north side of Hwy 26 10.4 miles from Othello (just in Grant Co.); got
photos. The usual shorebirds spots were empty, the ephemeral ponds were
hopping (Yellowlegs, Westerns, Baird's, Leasts). Jon Anderson had a good
post on these ephemeral ponds recently.

Cheers,


Dan Stephens (509) 662-7443
Dept. of Biology fax: (509) 664-2538
Wenatchee Valley College e-mail: dstephen at ctc.edu
1300 Fifth Street
Wenatchee, WA 98801