[TN-Bird] Speculation on Eurasian Collared-Dove in northeast TN
- From: Don Miller <raincrow@xxxxxxx>
- To: Bristol-Birds <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Butternuts <butternuts@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, TN-Bird <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2004 22:47:04 -0400
August 31, 2004
Rick Knight's confirmation of Eurasian Collared-Dove southwest of
Jonesborough in Washington County today adds another piece of evidence
to a rough hypothesis that I've had floating around in my mind for a
couple of months. It seems that a disproportionate number of
collared-dove sightings have either been along Highway 11E or only a
very short distance from it. This pattern holds true for at least one
of the birds observed by Dean Edwards in Jefferson County since 1999; it
holds true for the bird seen by John Rucker in Bull's Gap in Hawkins
County in May and June of this year; it holds true for the one to three
doves observed by me and others in Greene County since July 31 of this
year; and, on Matthews Mill Road in Washington County, the pattern was
borne out again today.
This sequence of sightings may be coincidental, but it seems likely to
me that it isn't necessarily so. The 11E corridor offers a lot of the
kind of habitat that collared-doves prefer: mostly open country
consisting of a combination of residential subdivisions and nearby
farmlands, with abundant scattered woodlots. The road itself is mostly
four-lane and makes an easy path to follow--a long gray ribbon extending
northeast through the region. I think of it as a "dry river."
Since at least the rudiments of a pattern exist for the first phases of
collared-dove infiltration in northeast TN, it makes sense for birders
to note carefully where additional sightings occur. I would be
especially interested to see if this trend continues, and, where it
breaks down, to learn precisely the kinds of other habitats and
locations that occur.
I suggest that Washington and Sullivan County birders keep a close watch
on the 11E corridor in the Austin Springs-Piney Flats-Bluff City areas
north of Johnson City. It might be a good idea also to be aware of the
Highway 354 corridor through the Boone's Creek area from Jonesborough to
I-181. This road is similar to 11E and might represent a connecting
corridor if the birds diverge at Jonesborough.
Don Miller
Greeneville, TN
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