On Mon, 6 May 1996, Wes Jansen wrote:
> OK, now I'm confused. I always thought Purple were more common than
> Cassin's around here. Are we to assume if we see one around here, it's a
> Cassin's and not a Purple? Would it be the same over at the coast (Long
> Beach)?
> wjansen

Wes, based on your address I assume you mean that 'here' is Seattle. The
dominant _Carpodacus_ finch here is the House Finch. At low elevations
throughout the state in residential areas, and in appropriate habitat in
the nonforested areas of eastern Washington, this species is the dominant
_Carpodacus_ finch. Elsewhere in conifer-dominated landscapes, Cassin's
occurs east of the Cascade Crest (prefers dry conifers), Purple Finch
occurs west of the Cascade Crest. Along the eastern slope of the
Cascades, Purple Finch has some 'spillover' and occurs in riparian growth.
In these areas all three _Carpodacus_ finches may be seen: Cassin's in
Ponderosa Pine, Purple in riparian areas, and House near houses (of
course!). Check out the BBA data for these species on the Washington BBA
web-site:

http://salmo.cqs.washington.edu/~wagap/birds/birds.html

It will make the trends clear.

-------------
Michael R. Smith
Univ. of Washington, Seattle
whimbrel at u.washington.edu
http://salmo.cqs.washington.edu/~wagap/mike.html