Michael Price asked -

<<<<
> Any idea what proportion of hummers might migrate offshore? I've heard
> reports of migrating hummers as far as fifty miles off the BC coast heading N.
>>>>

Will ask the old salty dog Mike Force about this when he shows up here in a
couple of days and post back with his response. And I'm sure Richard Rowlett
would be able to
provide some input, too, if he were still online.

In interior BC, the accepted wisdom is that the males head up to the sub-alpine
to feed on the newly emerging wildflowers (of which columbine is a preferred
species) in July and head south down the cordillera above the valley floors.
Since the wildflowers were two-three weeks ahead of schedule north of 53N this
year, we have noticed a rapid falloff in males since late June. Whether
coastal birds do the same thing is a good question.

While we are on the subject of sub-alpine, I screwed up when I posted a while
back about the White-crowned Sparrow seen in June in Kootenay Pass, s. BC, being
of the nominate race. According to the latest Pyle, it could only be the
Mountain white-crowned _Z. l. oriantha_, not _leucophrys_. Apparently there is a
population in Idaho and Wyoming with characteristics close to that of the
nominate race, though.

- Jack



------------------
Jack Bowling
Prince George, BC
jbowling at direct.ca


------------------
Jack Bowling
Prince George, BC
jbowling at direct.ca