> Martin Muller writes:
> >This morning I found a Red-breasted Sapsucker at Green Lake, Seattle.
> >I associate this species (in this location, at 155 feet above sea level) with
> >a severe cold snap in December or January.

and Michael Price comments:

> ... They're just so darn quiet that it's hard to see the residents, let
> alone migrants, so the RBSA migration is very difficult to suss out. I guess
...

Maybe I disagree for once with Michael. 2 winters ago, end of January
96, there were suddenly Red-breated Sapsucker around UBC where there were
none before. I do the same walk quite regularly through winter, and
suddenly I saw 2 to 6 sapsuckers a day, for a 5 day period. (i.e. 6
RBSA's on a 500m stretch. This was a) in the middle of winter
b) after a cold spell. It might be difficult to distinguish residents
from migrants up in Cypress Bowl,but down here: you know when they are
here. I prefer to have to find a Red-breasted Sapsucker over any
flitting grey thing in the upperstory!

Reto Riesen
Dept. Chem., UBC
Vancouver, B.C.
riesenr at chem.ubc.ca