Birders,

The male GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE which was present in Kelowna, B.C. in
June and July has been rediscovered. From October 6 through yesterday,
October 23, it has been seen almost daily in and near the Orchard Park
shopping mall on Highway 97, not far east of downtown Kelowna. I was
able to find the bird in less than 20 minutes on October 20. It has
been singing loudly and has therefore usually been easy to locate.

This is only the third record of GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE for B.C. The
first was a female seen and photographed by Jack Bowling in May 1979
at Cape St. James in the Queen Charlotte Islands, and the second was
another female found at Vernon, B.C. by Phil Gehlen in November 1993,
which remained into early 1994.

We are hoping that the Kelowna bird will stick around for the Kelowna
Christmas Bird Count. Chris Charlesworth of Kelowna has been providing
regular updates on the grackle. If anyone on TWEETERS or OBOL is
interested in coming to Kelowna to look for the bird, you can contact
Chris for current information at chriskelly65 at hotmail.com .

Wayne C. Weber
Kamloops, BC
wayne_weber at bc.sympatico.ca