I was able to hold it together until the line about osmotic Peepage Seepage. From that point on, I had trouble reading through the tears! My wife wants to know what's so darned funny in here.

-Rolan

SGMlod at aol.com wrote:
Greetings All

OBOL has had a recent debate about the need to age peeps (juv vs ad) for ID purposes. I believe that Ruth and Patrick forwarded a couple of these posts earlier. I thought that I'd pass along a most entertaining (and in my opinion, absolutely correct) post by Alan Contreras (see below).

Cheers
Steven Mlodinow
SGMlod at aol.com
Everett WA


The Curmudgeon, having heard a Killdeer, declares himself an expert onshorebirds and briefly sets aside the biography of Ulysses Grant that has distracted him from the OBOL discussion of shorebird ageing and identification.The Curmudgeon discerns three main approaches in this discussion. Approach number one takes the view that shorebirds are inherently interesting andthat any observer can learn from watching them, enjoy watching them anddiscern the basic differences between them. To this, the I Can Tell aYellowlegs from a Pectoral school, the Curmudgeon hoists a bottle of Outrageous Ginger Ale in support and appreciation and emits a thunderous"AMEN!" Well, it may have sounded like a belch but in any event it iswholly supportive. Shorebirds are a delight.

Approach number two takes the view that the correct identification ofshorebirds, especially peeps, as to species is often complex, requires a certain level of awareness of their plumages as adults and juveniles (not tobe confused with juvenals) call notes and details of soft parts. To this assertion of moral ascendancy by the astringent brutes of science,near-science and wannabe science, The Curmudgeon nods sagely, says "hey,right-on, bros" and tries to avoid spilling any Outrageous Ginger Ale on his often-opened but as yet unmemorized copy of Paulson's Shorebirds of thePacific Northwest, recumbent in glory above its padded knee-rest. The Curmudgeon found the state's only Eurasian Dotterel (with help from hisfriends) so he doesn't HAVE to care, he thinks, reaching contentedly for asesame cracker.

Approach number three appears to be that anyone can identify shorebirdscorrectly as to species without reference to the characteristics through which they can be distinguished from each other. Casting about in this suddenly rarefied air for an appropriate label for this school ofproto-thought that would be acceptable to his defense attorney, The Curmudgeon tentatively suggests that this method might be called the Semi-Demimonde Least Resistance non-Western Tantric Transferral method, orfor daily usage, the Osmotic Peepage Seepage school of ornithopheromonology.To the latter method, the Curmudgeon frowns (well, he always frowns so thisis not a change), rolls his eyes, shrugs to the extent feasible withoutspilling any Outrageous Ginger Ale on the nearby poetry of Mary Oliver, andmumbles "whatever" while casting a sidelong glance to make sure that Theystay Over There lest any of That be absorbable through the skin.As he writes this, a slithery organ transcription of Grieg's tr!
oll dance
"In the Hall of The Mountain King" comes on the radio. Ah, mood music.The Curmudgeon, done with shorebirds for the time being, goes outside to prune an apple tree and ponder the deeper meaning of Bushtit call notes.




Rolan Nelson
Burley, WA
rnbuffle at yahoo.com

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