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This message is being forwarded to Tweeters (by Dan Victor) because the
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Date: Thu, 3 Dec 1998 18:23:00 -0800 (PST)
From: "T. Hass" <thass at u.washington.edu>

Tweeters,

Since favorable viewing conditions and sightings of dark shearwaters in
winter don't usually coincide, I thought some beached bird data might help
give us perspective on the chances of encountering Short-tailed versus
Sooty Shearwaters when it's bitter-cold outside. Based on Greg Lippert's
censuses (taken in the early 1980's along the Long Beach Peninsula), the
ratio of Short-tailed Shearwaters to Sooty Shearwaters in November was
2:1, and in December 7:1 (12 separate stranding events; 14 birds total).
And of 10 dark shearwaters found in January/February, none were Sooties;
further illustrating the shift in the two species' relative
abundances as the winter months progress. Although relatively few pelagic
trips have been taken over the period described above (especially
November-December), I imagine that Terry Wahl and Bill Tweit's offshore
observations mirror these transitions. If not, I'd love to hear about it.

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Todd Hass, Ph.D.
Program Coordinator, COASST
Zoology Department; Box 351800
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-1800
ph (206) 616-2791
thass at u.washington.edu
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