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  1. Ian Lewis

    Birding in Washington State in late JUne

    HI there, I'm a birder from the UK. I've been to the ABA area on lots of occasions but never to the US states of Montana and Washington. I'll be driving from Yellowstone to Seattle in late June and would be interested in seeing the following species most which would all be life birds for me...
  2. Ian Lewis

    Birding Montana this June

    HI there, I'm a birder from the UK. I've been to the ABA area on lots of occasions but never to the US states of Montana and Washington. I'll be driving from Yellowstone to Seattle in late June and would be interested in seeing the following species most which would all be life birds for me...
  3. Ian Lewis

    House Martins

    Identification, taxonomy and distribution of Western, Siberian and Asian House Martins: Paul Leader, Geoff Carey & Manuel Schweizer. British Birds 111 February 2021 p 72-96 Makes the case for 'Siberian' House Martin Delichon (urbicum) lagapodum to be treated as a full species Ian
  4. Ian Lewis

    Oscine/suboscine vocalisations

    After a lengthy and at time heated debate down the pub last night I wonder if BF members can tell me if any of these statements are true. 1) Oscine passerines calls are innate but their songs are, at least in part, learnt. The complexity of their songs is due to a highly developed syrinx. As a...
  5. Ian Lewis

    Taxonomy anarchy hampers conservation.

    I've been abroad recently and not been following Bird Forum. Has this paper been debated here? Taxonomy anarchy hampers conservation Stephen T. Garnett1 & Les Christidis2 31 May 2017 The classification of complex organisms is in chaos. Stephen T. Garnett and Les Christidis propose a solution...
  6. Ian Lewis

    Lynx - Bird Families of the World

    I have just received my copy of the above and have had a sneek view, although I'm not supposed to open it until the 25th. Non-passerine familes seem to be much the same as per IOC but there are a few additions in the passerines. Sapayoidae - Sapayoa - I know this is accepted by Clements, also...
  7. Ian Lewis

    Nebraska 2015

    My wife and I will be in Nebraska staying in Kearney, Nebraska from March 26 - 29th. Our main aim is to enjoy the large concentrations of cranes and wikdfowl but also would like to ask if anyone has come across any Trumpeter Swans or American Tree Sparrows recently - both of which would be...
  8. Ian Lewis

    Nebraska in March - information wanted

    My wife and I are going on a organised birding tour of Colorado starting on 1st April 2015. We have decided to do a private pre tour trip to Nebraska to see the big concentrations of Sandhill Cranes and wildfowl that occur on the Platte River. Can anyone tell me where are the best areas along...
  9. Ian Lewis

    William Sansom Vaux

    How would William Sansom Vaux have pronounced his surname? On a recent trip to Mexico the Brits on the tour said 'Vow's' Swift, the Belgium tour leader 'Vor's' Swift whilst the Americans called them 'Vawkes' Swift. Ian
  10. Ian Lewis

    Further information requested on birding in the USA

    Hi everyone, my wife and I are going to be birding in the eastern USA from 19th May to 9th June, travelling from North Carolina up to New Hampshire. Most of the itinerary is arranged but I am looking for information on the following sites/species 1) We are staying with friends near Salisbury...
  11. Ian Lewis

    Information wanted for eastern USA birds

    We are flying into Washington about 20th May and leaving from Boston on about 10th June. As well as sightseeing at the major cities and visiting friends I specifically plan to do a couple of Cape Hatteras pelagics and search elsewhere for the following birds: King Rail Black Rail (I know it...
  12. Ian Lewis

    Omani Owl Strix omanensis

    I've known about this for a few days now but have been sworn to secrecy. http://soundapproach.co.uk/omani-owl-diary-of-discovery pdf with full description will be available from tomorrow Ian
  13. Ian Lewis

    Collared and Sacred Kingfishers

    Following my recent trip to Fiji, I have noted that the forms regina, vitiensis and eximius are treated as races of Collared Kingfisher Todiramphus chloris by IOC and in the Clements v6 book but as races of Sacred Kingfisher Todiramphus sanctus in Clements 6.8. Another Fijian race marinus is...
  14. Ian Lewis

    Victoria Masked Weaver

    Victoria Masked Weaver was first described (I believe by John Ash) in 1986 as a new species Ploceus victoriae but was later dismissed as a hybrid Black-headed P melanocephalus x Northern Brown-throated P castanops Weaver. I have just seen this form in Uganda and it appears by all accounts to...
  15. Ian Lewis

    Variable Pitohui

    One change that I haven’t seen discussed on this forum is the split in IOC 3.4 of Raja Ampat Pitohui Pitohui cerviniventris and Southern Variable Pitohui P uropygialis from Northern Variable Pitohui P. kirhocephalus. Looking at the ranges of the three species I notice that Raja Ampat Pitohui is...
  16. Ian Lewis

    Moltoni's Warbler and Rock Partridge sites.

    Hi, I'm off to Austria and Italy for two weeks leaving on 6th July. It is mainly a family holiday but I will get some birding in. I have two main targets, Rock Partridge and Moltoni's Warbler. I know the former is difficult but I have an Austrian contact who says he can take me to a good area...
  17. Ian Lewis

    Spot-backed Antbird

    Another query from the same 2002 trip to Ecuador. Paul Coopmans showed us two apparently identical (on plumage) populations of Spot-backed Antbird Hylophylax naevia a vazera form and a terra firme form, which had different songs and existed parapatrically. It seems two cryptic species are...
  18. Ian Lewis

    Blackish Antbird

    In 2002 the late (and much missed) Paul Coopmans wrote the following in the write up of a trip that he led to Ecuador . Blackish Antbird Cercomacra nigrescens: Two races were encountered. At La Selva’s Cocha Antshrike swamp we heard the darker fuscicauda (the one I called the ‘More Blackish...
  19. Ian Lewis

    Stejneger's Stonechat

    BOU TSC 2011 8/9/11 Mitochondrial DNA sequences of the eastern Siberian stejnegeri are highly divergent from those of western Siberian maurus and are sister to the Saxicola torquatus complex (Zink et al. 2009). At this stage, however, we are unable to support specific rank for stejnegeri because...
  20. Ian Lewis

    Oriental Turtle-Dove

    With the well publicised and heavily twitched nominate race Oriental Turtle-Dove remaining in Oxfordshire and with previous recrds in the UK of race meena I expect Birding World and others will soon be proposing that orientalis and meena are split. Does anyone know if there is much...
  21. Ian Lewis

    House Sparrows

    I see the OSME ORL treats Indian House Sparrow Passer (indicus) domesticus as a potential split. I know the race bactrianus in central Asia is migratory and breeds sympatrically with domesticus but do other races of the indicus and domesticus groups hybridise / intergrade where their ranges...
  22. Ian Lewis

    White Stork

    I have recently found the OSME checklist ORL and am interested in a number of their potential splits. To start with can I ask about the potential split of the central asian rae asiatica, which I have seen in Uzbekistan? The only differences I can find (BWP, HBW) is that this form is larger...
  23. Ian Lewis

    Brown Fish Owl

    From information gleaned from members of the Sound Approach it would appear that the Brown Fish Owls recently rediscovered in Turkey are vocally distinct from populations further east, and have a genetic distance (I presume mitochondrial DNA) of about 2%. I presume this will be published in the...
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