No subject

"natural" range, or former range).  Was not listed as known to be present in 
Oregon in May 1997 (in this book at least).

Breeding:
Season prolonged but mainly Mar-Oct in cooler parts of range; in S breeds 
all year round.  Nest is a flimsy platform made of twigs, stems and roots; 
may be bulky at times and materials added when rearing 2nd and later broods; 
placed 2-22 m above ground in bushes, trees, tall hedges and such man-made 
structures as pylons, buildings, roof troughs or gutters.  Lays 2 white 
eggs; incubation 14-16 days; fledging 15-19 days, through occasionally young 
may stay in the nest for as long as 24 days.  In one study in Czechoslovakia 
79.3 % of hatched young fledged successfully; in another study conducted in 
Iraq, of 77 eggs laid, 67.4 % hatched and only 35 % were raised to 
fledging."

...so, there you have it folks; appears to be a Starling-type bird that 
takes advantage of all that we do for the planet.

The last part seems to suggest that it's not an Iraqi plot due to low 
survival rate.

Dennis (north of Grants Pass)


> North Bend, Coos Bay, 1/8/07:
>
> At Jack Thomas' place in the early AM I heard a
> distant E. COLLARED-DOVE calling.  I scoped the trees
> and initially could not find anything. Then suddenly a
> bird flew up and landed on a powerline about 1/2 block
> from the house. Another few seconds and there was 2.
> Another minute or and there was 5 then 8 then 13 and
> finally 15! Egads, the Sky-Ratts are going wild!!!
> Talking with Jack I found out that his son, who lives
> in North Dakota, found his first one there just a few
> days ago in mid-winter.  Alaska, here they come!
>
> Yep, and fog almost the entire day here, feeling kind
> of like summer?
>
> Tim R
> Coos Bay