I should have checked more carefully for the facts regarding the bird I
described earlier today. I finally spoke with the person who observed the
bird and found that the original description I posted was pretty, maybe
entirely, inaccurate. The only thing we can describe with certainty is the
egg and the habitat in which it was found. I described the egg earlier. The
rocky area where the "nest" was is a large open area behind a new home in
the large Sunrise development here on South Hill, Puyallup. Although I
haven't seen the area, it sounds like an area that has been, or is in the
process of being graded for further expansion of the development.

I tend to think the egg is that of a Killdeer. Two people have suggested it
on Tweeters so far, and it closely matches the description in "The Birder's
Handbook" (although I'm not sure what "occasionally wreathed or capped"
means). The observer describes a nearly entirely dark bird, but I've had
trouble translating such descriptions before. Perhaps she only saw the bird
from behind, and she did describe a distraction display.

A few years back, a co-worker described for me a bird nesting in her yard.
One bird I suggested was Dark-eyed Junco. I even showed her pictures, but
she seemed pretty sure it wasn't. Then, this past winter, the News Tribune
had a picture of Juncos in the snow one day. She saw the picture and
recognized them as the birds from her yard. We're not talking an unusual
form like Slate-colored, which might help explain the confusion, just the
usual "Oregon" Junco. At least we solved the mystery in that case.

Thanks Tweeters, for all your input.

Michael B. Brown
Puyallup, Washington
H-253-841-4281
W-253-841-8733
C-253-208-9588
borealis at borealis.seanet.com
Nature Trail- http://www.puyallup.k12.wa.us/elem/firgrove/brown/trail.htm
Home Page- http://www.seanet.com/~borealis/Resume.htm

"...I found myself suddenly neighbor to the birds; not by having imprisoned
one, but having caged myself near them."

-Thoreau
_ _
(o!o)
((___))
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