98-01-18, Jack Bowling writes:

<< Fess up, Richard. Do you really know if ELTEs made it to BC? Sieving
through the 75K words of input from the s. coast of BC people and no mention
of Elegants. >>

It's 4:12am so just a quickie here Jack; I'm a split second from signing off,
packing up Belzebub, and out the door for a week or so birding and exploring
around the 'neighborhood'.

Regarding your query about BC Elegant Terns; personally, no, I have no first
hand experience. All I know or can say about the Elegant Tern reports
(mentioned) in BC was that I either heard about them second hand and/or saw a
few posted comments on Tweeters (I think? I thought?) ...like at least 2 or 3
times in fairly short order if I'm not mistaken. Between my random scrolling
and skimming tweeters off the web, perusing a number of other sites as well,
and scattered conversations when I was briefly in port last Fall, a mention or
two could have slipped by having originated from one or all of those places.
There was 'definitely' multiple mentions somewhere and/or by someone. Sorry I
can't be more specific or even quote a source with certainty because I didn't
really think much to-do of it at the time. I guess I figured it was fairly
widespread local knowledge judging from the source(s) and given the numbers,
build-up, and dispersal in Oregon and Washington, especially in July and
August, after which they all but disappeared and their 'reported' similarly
timed occurrence in BC I just accepted, assumed, and believed at face value
without a blink of an eye to question such.

75K words?? You mean in reviewing the 'Tweeters' archieves or a sum total
from everyone everywhere? Hopefully, this message will soon prove itself as
unnecessary as other tweets and non-tweets will come forward if they have such
information. I guess I must say that I am very surprised by the BC ELTE query
in the first place. Okay! the rest of you SPEAK UP!! If no one comes
forward Jack, then I guess the presence of ELTE in BC (even if true) will have
to be omitted.

This is the second time within a week or so that a query has come up
concerning bird records that through the course of conversation and/or the
internet that I only 'heard and/or read' about and passed on in a posted
report summary when I thought I had no reason to be unusually wary of those
seemingly valid reports. I think in the future unless I have a hard copy
complete with documentation and can quote the source in hand, I think I will
do well to omit mentions or incorporations of any birds or events in the
future that should come from me and may otherwise be unsubstantiated. This is
a very disturbing matter and verges on a credibility issue for me personally
which I need now to give careful consideration and soul searching as to
determine what to report or pass along when it is something coming from
somewhere other than my own first hand experience for which I will endeavor to
provide documentation as need be in the future. Thanks for asking and
bringing the matter up, Jack. Bye for now. --Richard


Richard Rowlett (Pagodroma at aol.com)
47.56N, 122.13W
(Seattle/Bellevue, WA USA)