I vote for the White-headed Woodpecker, but then again, I may be a tad
biased. :-)

Jeff Kozma

Yakima

j c r underscore 5105 at charter dot net.


----- Original Message -----
From: "Gary Smith" <gsmith at smithandstark.com>
To: "'Hal Opperman'" <hal at catharus.net>; <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Monday, February 07, 2011 4:58 PM
Subject: RE: [Tweeters] Washington State Bird-- Steller's Jay?


>I think Hal has put it very well.
>
> Several years ago a high school class in Kent took on a project to get the
> Green Darner designated the state insect. They succeeded, though I think
> said position was then unfilled, no palace coup required.
>
> Most bills are filed in response to suggestions from constituents. I'm
> fairly certain there are no guidelines the Legislature is supposed to
> follow
> about designating state symbols, and after all, the Legislature makes the
> rules, so it can proceed according to its collective will. Keep in mind
> also that most bills do not pass. In this case, who knows?
>
> If you put "HB 1817 Designating the great blue heron as the official bird
> of
> the state of Washington" into a search engine you can get info on the
> bill,
> sponsored by Rep. Ross Hunter of Bellevue, with five cosponsors. Going to
> an official legislative site would get you access to phone or email for
> any
> of them, or for your own reps.
>
> I suspect that if the birding community wanted to respond to this issue it
> could influence the outcome, and Hal's idea about using Tweeters to
> marshal
> opinion is wonderful. Plus, I like the Black Swift idea a lot!
>
> --g
>
> Gary T. Smith
> Alki Point, Seattle
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tweeters-bounces at mailman2.u.washington.edu
> [mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman2.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Hal
> Opperman
> Sent: Monday, February 07, 2011 4:31 PM
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Washington State Bird-- Steller's Jay?
>
> Couldn't agree more, Wayne.
>
> As for the current occupant, American Goldfinch: it is also the state bird
> of Iowa and New Jersey. Nice for the kumabya effect, maybe, but hardly
> particular to our region.
>
> BC made a superb choice for its provincial bird, through an ideal,
> participative process. Could Tweeters provide a forum for a similar
> initiative in our state? Any interest out there?
>
> Ross Hunter is my state representative -- in fact, he lives in my
> neighborhood. I'm willing to get in touch with him and ask what's going on
> with the Great Blue Heron bill he's sponsoring, and see if he and his
> co-sponsors are open to putting a hold on it while a Tweeters-initiated
> campaign plays out. If there is sufficient interest in Tweeterdom, that
> is.
>
> If I had an opportunity to propose a new state bird candidate it would be
> Black Swift, found on both sides of the Cascades (a prerequisite, I would
> think, for a Washington state bird). Black Swift is widely if disjunctly
> distributed in western North America, Mexico, and the West Indies, but its
> North American center of abundance is Washington and British Columbia.
> This
> is a very cool species, somewhat mysterious and always a thrill to see. It
> is also a species of conservation concern, without the disadvantage of
> having become a political lightning rod like the Spotted Owl or the
> Marbled
> Murrelet. At least not yet. If its rugged, remote nesting habitat
> requirements have kept Black Swift out of the way of conflict with the
> economic interests of the wood-products industry, the gathering impact of
> climate change may well prove to be a different story.
>
> Please direct thoughts on any of this not to me personally but to this
> list
> as a whole so we can see if enough of a discussion gets started to be
> worth
> continuing.
>
> Hal Opperman
> Medina, Washington
> hal at catharus.net
>
>
> On Feb 7, 2011, at 2:43 PM, Wayne Weber wrote:
>
>> Abby and Tweeters,
>>
>> Ah, but Steller's Jay is the provincial bird of BC- approved in the
>> 1990s
> through a competitive process with major public involvement, from an
> original 6 candidates.
>>
>> If Washington wants a new state bird, it should avoid choosing one which
> is already a State or Provincial bird for another state or province.
>>
>> Wayne C. Weber
>> Delta, BC
>> contopus at telus.net
>
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