[obol] Understanding the new ABA pelagic guidelines
- From: Christopher Hinkle <christopher.hinkle2@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: OBOL <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 1 Apr 2014 20:56:04 -0700
On the heels of its decision to adopt the "closest point of land" rule for
pelagic birding (as was discussed recently on OBOL), today the ABA revised
the new rule.
Because state jurisdiction extends 3 nautical miles offshore from the mean
low tide, the ABA has modified its "closest point of land" rule so that
pelagic species are only counted for the closest state up to three miles
out. Up to 200 miles offshore--the limit to federal jurisdiction--birds can
be counted for your ABA list but not your state list.
I haven't tallied my new state list but I think I'll be losing about ten
birds--pretty much everything I've seen on a pelagic but not from shore.
The ABA does not deal with county lists, but Oregon birders might want to
consider eliminating all offshore water from county listing to conform with
the general new ABA policy: birds may be counted on your list for a given
area only if that region has legal jurisdiction over where you saw the
bird. Because counties have no jurisdiction over offshore water, birds seen
offshore shouldn't be counted for your county list.
Good birding and good luck re-tallying your lists,
Chris Hinkle
Other related posts:
