Subject: [Tweeters] Franklin's Gulls in WA
Date: Dec 22 21:12:34 2006
From: Wayne C. Weber - contopus at telus.net


Steve, Mike, and Tweeters,

Unlike the situation in western WA, there has been no recent upsurge
in sightings of Franklin's Gull in southwestern BC. They have been
quite rare for more than a decade, to the point that it is now a
difficult bird to find for one's "year list" in the Vancouver area.
This situation would have been unthinkable 20 years ago, when
Franklin's Gulls could be easily found in small numbers every fall.

This remarkable decline has occurred despite a dramatic increase
in northeastern BC, where large flocks can be found in early
summer around Fort St. John and Dawson Creek, although they
are not known to breed in that area.

It would be interesting to know the source of Franklin's Gulls that
show up in BC and WA. I presume that the immature birds that show
up west of the Cascades have moved SW from breeding colonies in
Alberta. (More than 90% of sightings in SW B.C. are immatures.)
On the other hand, adults that show up in SE WA (yup, I've seen them
at the Tyson Ponds in Walla Walla Co.) seem more likely to be
northward stragglers from the breeding colonies in SE Oregon.

Wayne C. Weber
Delta, BC
contopus at telus.net




----- Original Message -----
From: <sgmlod at aol.com>
To: <Tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Friday, December 22, 2006 2:21 PM
Subject: [Tweeters] Franklin's Gulls in WA


Greetings All

Washington also saw a sudden drop-off in Franklin's Gull records (at least
on westside); I don't have the data in front of me, but I'd guess about
1998-2003. In the last couple years, such as this, numbers seem to have
bounced back, particularly if one eliminates counts from the Everett STP.

So, whatever caused the dip in w. WA Franklin's Gulls seems to have
reversed.

In e. WA, there has been an increase since the early 1990s, and if I am
recalling correctly, no dip in the years around 2000.

Cheers
Steve Mlodinow
Everett WA
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