[obol] [OBOL] grey headed junco

[Darrel Faxon]

Tom
    I didn't know waxwings could be philosophical .  Oh..waxing.  Well anyway, I don't know how rare pure Pink-sided Juncos really are in Oregon, but they certainly are rare here at Thornton Creek, Lincoln County.  I have seen precisely one, a bird which wintered some ten or so years back.  I took several good identifiable photos of it.  Even sent some of them to Skip Russell.  At this point I don't know either the whereabouts of Mr. Russell or the photos.  But the bird had all the proper marks for a "pure" Pink sided.

Darrel
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Tom Crabtree 
  To: Bendher63 at aol.com ; jmeredit at bendnet.com ; COBOL at lists.oregonstate.edu ; 'obol' 
  Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 5:11 PM
  Subject: Re: [obol] [OBOL] grey headed junco


  > Linda Hendrix wrote:  I have a grey headed, dark-eyed junco in my yard.  I believe it's the pink sided. Have never had one before that I've spotted in my yard.  How rare are they here?



   

  Pure Pink-sided Juncos are very rare in Oregon.  More likely is that the bird is a "Cassiar Junco."  This refers to a type of Junco that is essentially an integrade between an Oregon and a Slate-colored Junco.  They have gray heads, but don't have the dark lores or the bright pink sides.  These birds breed in northern British Columbia, Southern Yukon and parts of Western Alberta.  Depending on your source, they are either a subspecies of Dark-eyed Junco, or represent hybrids of "Oregon" and "Slate-coloreds."  These are fairly common in Oregon and Washington.  These "Cassiar Juncos" are one of the main reasons the whole Junco complex was lumped back in the 80s.  

   

  Understand that the Junco complex is just that-complex.  It has caused considerable debate among the experts for years.  They make the Galapagos Finches seem stable and clear cut.  In some birds their parentage cannot be adequately determined.  Some experts say there is one species of Junco (there is no rationale for separating Yellow-eyed and "Red-backed" Dark-eyed Juncos) while others say there are six or even seven species.  We are at one point along the evolutionary parade and stating what is a "species" or a "subspecies" or a "form" is a lot more difficult for some birds than it is for others.  Wait 200 years and things should clarify. . . .

   

  Tom Crabtree, waxing philosophical in Bend, OR 



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