Hi everyone,



Plumage color anomalies are of course fairly common in a number of species, but it's still interesting to see when one shows up.? In the rather large and bustling Dark-eyed Junco (DEJU) flock that has been frequenting our yard?this fall and winter, one unusual visitor shows up periodically.? This bird is a normally-plumaged Oregon subspecies DEJU in all respects except around his eyes.? The bird has white feathers surrounding?both eyes.? The diameter of the white circle is probably more than twice the diameter of the visible eye, so it's quite noticeable.? This bird has proven to be a major challenge to photograph in his frequent but brief appearances, but if I eventually succeed in getting an image, I'll post it.? Additionally, the junco flock contains at least one Slate-colored subspecies bird.? I have counted as many as 45 DEJU's in the yard at one time, and considering neither the white-eyed or slate-colored birds are always present, it makes me think the total number of individual DEJU's frequenting our neighborhood could be quite a bit higher than the maximum visual count we've had.



John Tubbs

Snoqualmie, WA

johntubbs at comcast.net