Subject: Re: Slate-colored Junco in Oly -Reply
Date: Mar 25 11:27:16 1998
From: CHRIS CHAPPELL - cbmm490 at gwgate.wadnr.gov


Michael, Your comment on the possible hybrid origin of a
Slate-color with a twinge of brown is interesting to me. Every
"slate-colored" that I have seen in Wash has had this feature,
though it is subtle, and I am not familiar with the subspecies
from the heart of its range.

Chris Chappell
chris.chappell at wadnr.gov
Olympia, WA

>>> Michael Price <mprice at mindlink.bc.ca> 03/25/98
11:17am >>>
Hi Tweets,

Eric Kraig writes:

>Funny, we had one show up in our yard on Sunday. Mostly
gray, with just a
>twinge of brown on the back. It stayed around all day, but I
haven't seen
>it since.

The presence of brown on the back of a 'Slate-colored' Junco
suggests an
intergrade origin, Junco hyemalis X oreganus, rather than a
flat-out
hyemalis, which should be solid slate. As with hybrid (or
intergrade, if
some of us have our evil way '-) gulls, where there's a stable
hybrid/intergrade zone, there's usually a continuum of
characteristics from
one parent type to the other.

>Must be some kind of a movement...

Yep. They're on their way.

Michael Price A brave world, Sir,
Vancouver BC Canada full of religion, knavery and
change;
mprice at mindlink.net we shall shortly see better
days.
Aphra Behn (1640-1689)