Hallelujah ! Now to split Yachats Crow….
Alan Contreras
acontrer56@xxxxxxxxx
Eugene, Oregon
www.alanlcontreras.com
On Mar 18, 2020, at 6:55 PM, Amy S <als466@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I didn’t see this reported on OBOL yet. Sorry if it’s already been posted.
From Nathan Swick in ABA.org:
“Treat Northwestern Crow Corvus caurinus as conspecific with American Crow C.
brachyrhynchos
Lumps have been out of fashion for some time, but this is one that many
birders have been expecting nonetheless. Northwestern Crow has been
controversial since it was described in the 19th Century. The crows of the
northwest coast differ slightly from American Crows in behavior and
vocalization, and the ABA Area birders have tied themselves in knots trying
to find a “pure” Northwestern Crow for decades. A recent study that looked at
the genetics of crows in northwestern Washington and southwestern British
Columbia makes clear what many birders have suspected, that hybridization is
extremely common among American Crows and “Northwestern” Crows in moderns
times. While the populations may have been diverging thousands of years ago,
they have been coming back together for some time now. At least we don’t have
to pretend anymore.”
Amy Summerfelt
Dallas, TX/Newport, OR
