Dennis rightly points out the need for good ID and good documentation of =
Common GE nesting in this area of our State.

My 'what-I-did-on-summer-vacation' post to the list noted Commons at Big =
Meadow Lake, as well as what I'm fairly certain was a hen + brood at =
Bayley Lake. There were Barrow's goldeneye hens with broods at both =
places, as well as at a number of other lakes we visited (Crawfish Lake =
above Tonasket, etc), that I didn't comment on because they are =
relatively common.

The distinction between hens of the two species can be difficult (for me =
at least.. :-) ) at much of a distance. Up close and personal though, =
the head shape and shape of the bill is pretty definitive. =20

The bird I saw at Bayley Lake on the Little Pend Orielle wildlife refuge =
caused me quite a bit of confusion. The head shape wasn't right for =
either, but the hen had the relatively longer bill of the Common, and =
the greater amount of white on the wing coverts finally persuaded me =
that I was seeing a Common goldeneye there. (I've still never been able =
to tell the ducklings apart - does anyone have an ID solution for that =
one?) I wrote Mike Smith that I was "85%" confident of my sighting at =
Bayley Lake.

Sometimes, there are birds we just can't identify for certain. =
Reporting those less-certainly identified birds in the 'soft literature' =
of a bird listserver should probably best be done with all sorts of =
qualifiers. Folks like museum curators and Gap Project staff need good =
documented records of the unusual, especially with nesting records like =
these darned goldeneyes. But, if we don't note what we've seen, the =
liklihood that someone else can help verify a sighting goes back down =
toward zero.

My vote is to report what we see (or think we see). If there's =
confusion about the validity of a sighting, somone will call us on it. =
I certainly welcome constructive criticism - mainly because I tend to do =
my best learning that way - and it teaches me to better document what =
I've seen.

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Wash.
festuca at olywa.net