BIRDCHAT for Saturday, April 12, 2008

Messages are displayed in the order they were received.  Subject  From  Time   Toucans, Ramphastidae finsihed!   John Murray Penhallu   1:55am   Re: What variety of fruits are Waxwings feeding on?   Joan E. Collins   5:40am   BirdNote , last week and next--the week of April 14   Ellen Blackstone    9:06am   Costa Rica lodges   mikehigg(AT)optonline.n   3:18pm

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Subject: Toucans, Ramphastidae finsihed!
From: "John Murray Penhallurick" <jpenhall(AT)bigpond.net.au>
Date: 12 Apr 2008 1:55am

Dear friends,

I am delighted to say that I have finished the Ramphastidae, Toucans.  You
will see that in a number of respects I differ from the account by Short &
Horne in HBW 7.  Robin Restall and I are preparing a detailed paper on these
matters, but I have indicated briefly in notes where we disagree with Short
and Horne and why.

For example, Short & Horne (2001 and 2002), followed Haffer (1974), in
merging Chestnut-mandibled Toucan Ramphastos swainsonii Gould 1833 with
Black-mandibled Toucan Ramphastos ambiguus Swainson, 1823.  Haffer (1974)
lumped these, citing specimens from the lower Cauca Valley (Colombia) as
evidence that the taxa interbred (at least formerly) in this location. The
statement by Short & Horne (2002: 271) is somewhat vaguer:” Race swainsonii
often treated as a distinct species, but resembles nominate in behaviour,
voice & morphology, and they apparently [Emphasis added] interbred in former
contact zone in Colombia(lower Cauca Valley).". We also note that Short and
Horne (2001) did not include any illustrations of supposed R. swainsonii x
R. ambiguus hybrids in plate 34, which depicted (inter alia) “Various toucan
intergrades and hybrids…”.We have evidence that Haffer’s diagnosis of
hybrids is unreliable.  Furthermore, even if we accept that hybrids occurred
in the lower Cauca Valley, we have no information on whether phenotypically
pure specimens occurred in the same area, or whether, as in northern
Ecuador, such birds greatly outnumbered the hybrids.  Hilty and Brown
(1986), Stiles and Skutch (1989), Sibley and Monroe (1990),and Ridgely and
Greenfield (2001) have not followed Haffer, and have treated swainsonii as a
distinct species.  Ridgely and Greenfield (2001: 421) stated that the two
are indubitably closely related, with similar, if not identical voices; and
considered them to be allospecies.   Hilty & Brown (1986:330) stated that
zone of integration between R. swainsonii and R. ambiguus, if any, was
unknown.  In the face of this evidence, we prefer to retain
Chestnut-mandibled Toucan R. swainsonii and Black-mandibled Toucan R.
ambiguus as specifically distinct.

Enjoy, it’s free!

 

John Penhallurick

86 Bingley Crescent

FRASER, A.C.T. 2615

AUSTRALIA

S 35° 11' 40.2"

E 149° 03' 26.2"

Home Telephone: (61 2) 6258 5428

Mobile 0408 585428

Please visit my website http://worldbirdinfo.net <http://worldbirdinfo.net/>

 

 

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Subject: Re:  What variety of fruits are Waxwings feeding on?
From: "Joan E. Collins" <jecollins(AT)twcny.rr.com>
Date: 12 Apr 2008 5:40am

Dana/All,

On irruptive years, we have large numbers of Bohemian Waxwings behind our
Potsdam home and in the general area.  (Potsdam is in the far northwestern part
of New York near the St. Lawrence River.)  Twice this past winter, I counted
over 700 birds in one flock.  They seem to exclusively feed on (invasive)
Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) berries.  There is enough buckthorn vegetation in
 the area that it seems to easily feed huge numbers of Bohemian Waxwings
throughout the winter.  In early December, Jeff Nadler, photographer, spent an
hour behind our home with a flock of over 700 birds.  Here is the link to his
beautiful Bohemian Waxwing photographs that includes photos of the birds eating
buckthorn berries:
http://www.jnphoto.net/bohemian.html
Unfortunately, with thousands of Bohemian Waxwings in the area this past winter,
 I am sure that the highly invasive Buckthorn plants' seeds were spread far and
wide.

Joan Collins
Potsdam & Long Lake, New York

> Date:    Fri, 11 Apr 2008 07:05:26 -0400
> From:    Dana <danafox(AT)COMCAST.NET>
> Subject: What variety of fruits are Waxwings feeding on?
> 
> Massbirders -
> 
> I am attempting to more deeply understand what specific fruit trees the 
> waxwings particularly the Bohemian (BOWA) have been feeding on this winter 
> in the northeast - and maybe the sequence of their choice.  Recent posts by 
> Jim Berry, Steve Mirick and Doug Chickering on Massbird have commented on 
> the fact that the current crab apples the BOWA have been feeding on have the 
> fruits strongly attached to the stem.  I agree with Steve that they are 
> likely to be feeding on this variety so late in the season - it is April - 
> since that variety of crab apple is one that does not seem to get mushy and 
> clings tightly to the stem even after a long, cold winter.  It also seems to 
> be a variety chosen by Dunken Donuts and commercial plantings.
> 
> What variety is it?
> 
> What is the order that these birds choose to eat the fruits throughout the 
> season?  Which specific varieties do they like in what order?
> 
> I have assembled a list of recommendations of fruiting trees attractive to 
> birds - the Mass Audubon one and Rick Heil's specific list posted on 
> Massbird and would like to keep refining it. All additions are appreciated 
> and I will forward them to any and all.
> 
> Thanks in advance for your help,
> Dana
> 
> Dana Duxbury-Fox
> No. Andover, MA 01845
> danafox(AT)comcast.net 

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Subject: BirdNote , last week and next--the week of April 14
From: Ellen Blackstone <ellen(AT)123imagine.net>
Date: 12 Apr 2008 9:06am

Hello, BirdChat!

Coming up on BirdNote next week:
We celebrate April 14 as the "International Moment of Laughter Day" with
a story about the chuckling Willow Ptarmigan. Later in the week, we talk
about April bird songs, the Wood Duck, a snipe hunt, and the battering
robin syndrome.
Pix: http://tinyurl.com/5cmky4

Last week, we talked about:
* Pacific chorus frogs--where have they gone?
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=1476
* songbirds migrating by the stars!
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=128
* the American Goldfinch's spring plumage
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=117
* sunning with Mourning Doves
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=1097
* Audubon's Yellow-rumped Warbler
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=130

BirdNote is an audio program, two minutes per episode, which you can
listen to or read on the website. It’s also available as a podcast.
http://www.birdnote.org/birdnotepodcast.xml All episodes are in the
archives, both as a transcript and in MP3 format. Visit the website to
find out more. http://www.birdnote.org
---------------------------------------------------------
Ellen Blackstone
mailto:ellen(AT)123imagine.net
Seattle Washington

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Subject: Costa Rica lodges
From: mikehigg(AT)optonline.net
Date: 12 Apr 2008 3:18pm

Hello all;Does anyone have any recommendations for lodges in Costa Rica?  Thanks
 much.Mike HiggistonLong Islandmikehigg(AT)optonline.net

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