Well, it's intellectually satisfying to attempt to explain why Western
Scrub-Jays are being seen all over the place lately, but it's much more fun
to see one yourself! I finally did that, saw it flying on a northbound
heading past UPS as I pulled into the parking lot at 8:15 yesterday morning
(8 Oct). My first sighting in Pierce Co. I stood in the parking lot for a
few minutes to see if I would see it again or hear it, but instead I saw no
fewer than 7 Steller's Jays fly by, going in several directions. There is
always a lot of Steller's Jay movement in the fall, but this fall I seem to
see them everywhere I go, flying from treetop to treetop. For days now,
they've been coming right over my window, a few each day, the great
majority moving south but occasionally one in a different direction. I
would guess that *thousands* of STJAs are on the move (dispersing) at this
time of year, a much more substantial movement than any published
literature indicates.

Come to think of it, based on what Michael Price said about meadowlark
identification, maybe I should have said "scrub-jay sp." ;-)

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