Subject: [Tweeters] New Species for Discovery Park??
Date: Jun 10 13:05:45 2014
From: Wayne Weber - contopus at telus.net


Mike and Tweeters,



As an eBird regional editor for part of British Columbia, I felt compelled to respond to your message.



eBird DOES NOT use ABA standards of ?countability? to determine what sightings should and should not be reported. The ABA has a very conservative standard in determining when a non-native species is ?established?, and thus countable on lists submitted to ABA. eBird, on the other hand, encourages birders to report sightings whenever there is a ?persistent population? (i.e., the species has been reported in the same locality repeatedly for at least 3 or 4 years); however, such a population may be a long way from being established or self-sustaining. As you point out, it is important to track the occurrence of non-native species before they become established, and this is one of the things that eBird hopes to do.



For example, in the 1980s and 1990s, there was a free-flying population of Mandarin Ducks in and around Vancouver, BC; up to 12 birds together were reported. This population subsequently died out and did not become established. However, the records are still there on the eBird maps.



On the other hand, Chukars, despite being well-established in much of eastern Washington, have never shown any signs of having a persistent population in western Washington, which does not offer any suitable habitat for them. All we have is a few records of usually single birds-- obviously recently released or escaped from captivity? which should NOT be reported to eBird.



Northern Bobwhites are a different story. There was for many years (and may still be) a persistent population in Pierce County, in and around JBLM. These birds should be reported. By way of contrast, Steve Taylor?s recent report of a Northern Bobwhite from Whatcom County is a very long way from Pierce County, appears to be a recent escapee, and should not be reported to eBird. If it were, an eBird editor would be expected to ?invalidate? such a record, or ask the observer to withdraw it, which I have done in numerous cases.



eBird is not the place to report every recently-escaped Chukar, Ringed Turtle-Dove, Budgerigar, Ruddy Shelduck, canary, or whatever. (We get flooded with such reports around Vancouver, BC where I live.) On the other hand, it is an appropriate place to report sightings of persistent populations of non-native species, whether or not these species are ?ABA countable?.



All the best,



Wayne C. Weber

Delta, BC

contopus at telus.net









From: tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu [mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Mike Clarke
Sent: June-02-14 12:41 PM
To: Tweeters
Subject: Re: [Tweeters] New Species for Discovery Park??



I can't think of a reason that a bird like this wouldn't be "confirmed" on eBird unless it's existence or identification was in question. eBird should not be thought of as an ABA listing vehicle where "non-countable" birds are of no interest. I'm a bit disturbed to have heard tell of eBird editors that do, in fact use this as a criteria for confirming sightings. Tracking the establishment of invasive species, for instance, will be much easier if those "non-countable" species are entered and tracked in eBird. Just my two cents.



Mike Clarke

Pullman



On Mon, Jun 2, 2014 at 12:30 PM, Josh Adams <xjoshx at gmail.com> wrote:

Hello Tweets,

I suspect someone has replied privately to David, but since this issue has popped up a few times in the last year or so without any public replies I figured I'd add the little I know.



My understanding is that live upland game birds such as Northern Bobwhite, Chukar as well as the more expected California Quail and Ring-Necked Pheasant are used by hunters to train their dogs. The dogs actually learn the scent of the birds and use that to find and flush them. I'm not 100% sure of the process, but the end result is that birds end up escaping and are occasionally encountered by birders. Typically these birds are found in places used during hunting season, but I suppose someone could use Discovery Park for training, although I'm not certain of the legality. These birds are not countable for those who care about that although I have seen some get "confirmed" on eBird for whatever reason.



In a post I dug up from a couple of years ago, Martha Jordan mentions people have been keeping them as pets as well:

https://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/htdig/tweeters/2012-July/091996.html



Josh Adams

Lynnwood, WA


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