Subject: egg on face
Date: Feb 9 15:15:59 2002
From: Randall T. Cox - mediate at vcn.com


I have been reading the discourse regarding reporting unusual birds and
questioning of the same. I had the first reported sighting of Blue
Grosbeaks in Northeast Wyoming many years ago, and I told some local
nature-oriented person about it. The next thing I knew the phone rang and
the local matriarch of birders put me through my paces. It was not
unpleasant, but it was a thorough exam. I learned a lot from that, and she
was persuaded that my report was accurate. That was satisfying.

Lest I be too proud, however, three years ago during the CBC I saw a bird
that fit the description of the Northern Wheatear to an absolute match ....
I thought. Needless to say the word of this report spread like wildfire; my
phone has never rung so much. The bird stayed put in a juniper bush while I
looked through my binoculars, but fled when I reached for the camera with
the big lense. It or another bird flew into a tall pine a few minutes later
and I took a few blurry photos. The photos revealed a Northern Shrike, an
exciting sighting in itself, but not a big deal. I concluded, based upon
the laws of probability, that the first bird was probably a juvenile
Northern Shrike. I therefore told everyone who telephoned to not drive 200
or 500 miles because my first report was premature and almost certainly
erroneous.

Lessons:
1. Make thorough field notes before you start leafing through the field
guide. Seeing a rare bird in the field guide can taint your memory quickly.
2. For uncommon birds, check other identification information; don't rely
upon just one field guide. (This means that your notes must be very good.
Memories, especially mine, are not very reliable, and you will need good
notes while you complete your research. I searched through about ten books
before I finally felt confident in concluding that the bird was in fact the
juvenile Northern Shrike.)
3. People do take reports very seriously, to the point that they will take
time off from work and drive hundreds or thousands of miles to see a rare
bird. (I would have had a houseful of people from all over the country if I
had been able to defend my report. Of course that would have been fun, but
......)
4. Don't be afraid to make reports, don't be offended about defending them
(a useful educational process), and don't be afraid to admit you were wrong.
(Everyone who called me was extremely courteous. Many asked probing
questions about markings, behavior, habitat, etc., but everyone was
patient.)
5. Don't feel like you have to be an expert to post sightings. (The
reports posted to "tweeters" are delightful and entertaining as well as
informative. I've been birding for 25 years and I still feel like a
novice.)
6. Most states have a rare bird alert hotline and an informal rare bird
committee. Don't be reluctant to call them to make reports, ask questions
and obtain forms by which unusual sightings can be carefully documented.

Randall T. Cox
Gillette, Wyoming