[mou] "Early" birds
James Mattsson
mattjim@earthlink.net
Thu, 25 Mar 2004 21:13:33 -0600
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This has been a most interesting (and educational) day on MOU-net. There
have so far been reports of 3 species of "early" birds that are not expected for another
month or more, Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Common
Nighthawk. One by one, each was eventually determined to be some other
species that is normal for this time of year (E. Starling, Purple Finch,
and American Woodcock). In at least one of these cases, the observer was contacted by someone from the listserver and asked
for more specific information to be sure that a misidentification was not
involved. In my view, this is a real value of a listserver - information
being provided - and birders contacting each other and discussing potential
ID challenges. Today, each of these reports involved misidentifications,
something that we all do. But people became a bit more educated as a result of
the interaction and that is, I believe, a good thing. And, who knows, tomorrow one or all of these same 3 species may actually
show up somewhere in Minnesota and new records will be established. And that too is a good thing. So for the benefit of novice birders and not-so-novice birders, let's keep the lines of communication open, be respectful of each other's opinions AND the rules of the listserver, and together we'll all learn more about Minnesota birds. I think that's the general idea. And remember...it may be the "early" bird that gets ... oh, never mind.
James Mattsson
mattjim@earthlink.net
Why Wait? Move to EarthLink.
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<DIV>This has been a most interesting (and educational) day on MOU-net. There</DIV>
<DIV>have so far been reports of 3 species of "early" birds that are not expected for another</DIV>
<DIV>month or more, Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Common</DIV>
<DIV>Nighthawk. One by one, each was eventually determined to be some other</DIV>
<DIV>species that is normal for this time of year (E. Starling, Purple Finch,</DIV>
<DIV>and American Woodcock). In at least one of these cases, the observer was contacted by someone from the listserver and asked</DIV>
<DIV>for more specific information to be sure that a misidentification was not</DIV>
<DIV>involved. In my view, this is a real value of a listserver - information</DIV>
<DIV>being provided - and birders contacting each other and discussing potential</DIV>
<DIV>ID challenges. Today, each of these reports involved misidentifications,</DIV>
<DIV>something that we all do. But people became a bit more educated as a result of</DIV>
<DIV>the interaction and that is, I believe, a good thing. And, who knows, tomorrow one or all of these same 3 species may actually</DIV>
<DIV>show up somewhere in Minnesota and new records will be established. And that too is a good thing. So for the benefit of novice birders and not-so-novice birders, let's keep the lines of communication open, be respectful of each other's opinions AND the rules of the listserver, and together we'll all learn more about Minnesota birds. I think that's the general idea. And remember...it may be the "early" bird that gets ... oh, never mind.</DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>James Mattsson</DIV>
<DIV><A href="mailto:mattjim@earthlink.net">mattjim@earthlink.net</A></DIV>
<DIV>Why Wait? Move to EarthLink.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
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