[obol] Buttonquail vagrancy

[Jeff Gilligan]

This is an example of a bird where there was direct evidence that it was not
of wild provenance.  In addition, as I was reminded this evening, at least
some waterfowl collectors indicate that geese and swans that have escaped
from captivity are not good fliers, as was the case with the swans to which
you are referring.


On 7/19/07 9:40 PM, "Joel Geier" <joel.geier at peak.org> wrote:

> P.S. Just to throw out a real-world example:
> 
> Recall the Whooper Swans that were observed near Suver Junction in Polk
> County in the winter of 2005-06 (and one again last winter), associating
> with wild Trumpeter Swans.
> 
> If not for the serendipitous happening, that OBOL subscriber Mike
> Lippsmeyer once happened to stop to help the owner of the swans off a
> state highway, and if not for the fact that Mike made the effort to bend
> my ear when he saw the OBOL reports, these swans would in all likelihood
> have gone on record as "true vagrants."
> 
> Well of course, the species has a well-established pattern of vagrancy
> along the west coast of North America, well-known long-range migratory
> tendencies, and the birds in question were associating with clearly wild
> birds (even went so far as to form pair bonds, according to Mike).
> 
> Is the new threshold for "wild origins" going to be, "Not positively
> known to have been chased off a state highway with a stick by an OBOL
> subscriber"? 
> 
> It would be helpful to know the answer to this question as I'm headed
> for Sweden again in a few months, and would be happy to bring back a few
> more wagtails for the folks who unfortunately missed the last one ...
> and maybe a wheatear for myself since I missed that one.
> 
> OK, I'm being facetious here, but hopefully it illustrates the point. I
> would personally welcome a shift by the OBRC toward reducing Type II
> errors, if it were done consistently. Unfortunately it sounds like this
> shift is happening in the least defensible realm: exotic waterfowl
> species that are known to be widespread in captivity, which frequently
> escape, and for which our collective track record for discerning escapes
> is demonstrably not very good.
> 
> Good birding,
> Joel
> 
> --
> Joel Geier
> Camp Adair area, vagrant Amherst Pheasant capitol of Oregon
> 
> 
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