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[Major updates 25 Feb 2008, adding new information about the introduced Siberian populations] You might think that the words “intriguing” and “House Sparrow sightings” are mutually exclusive, but here’s a case where they go together! In October 2007 a flock of five House Sparrows showed up in the coastal village of Shishmaref in northwest Alaska. […]

[edited 12 Feb 2008]From Texas comes the remarkable news of the discovery of an apparent White-crested Elaenia (Elaenia albiceps) found by Dan and Honey Jones on 9 Feb 2008. Photos, sound recordings, and ID discussion can be found at Martin Reid’s website and some great photos at Erik Breden’s website. The bird was found at

Slaty-backed Gull in Gloucester, MA on 23 December 2007 – Photo by Phil Brown Part 1: On 6 December 2007 at about 8PM, in the midst of an intense winter storm, a resident of Lillooet, BC heard a thump on their front door. Thinking the dog wanted to come in, they opened the door to

The latest Siberian highlight was California’s first Eurasian Kestrel banded in Marin Co. CA on 23 October 2007 but not seen again (photos here). About 10 North American Records. Otherwise, in addition to what I listed previously, a Dusky Warbler and four Eastern Yellow Wagtails in CA, and a Rustic Bunting in BC are the

A fascinating story of two flamingos, one from the Yucatan that provides a very rare undisputed US record of a wild bird, and another from the Old World (via a Kansas zoo) that shows how widely an escaped bird can wander. Details and a great comparison photo are on the Louisiana Ornithological Society website

In my previous post about Siberian birds I made a tenuous connection between an above-average season for vagrants in the Bering Sea and a few vagrants farther south and east. Updates from Gambell by Paul Lehman show a continued surge of Siberian birds, highlighted by North America’s first Sedge Warbler, and even more of the

Update 24 Sep 2007: Seen on the 22nd was Gambell’s 3rd Siberian Accentor, 4th Dusky Warbler, and 6th Little Bunting of the season; while St Paul, Pribilofs turned up their 2nd Siberian Accentor and first Pechora Pipit of the season. And the big news, adding some weight to my tenuous connection – a Common Rosefinch

An eventful few weeks for bird records in North America: The long-anticipated first nesting record of Lesser Black-backed Gull in North America (even though it hybridized with a Herring Gull) – on Appledore Island, Maine. Green Violetear reaches Maine – the farthest northeast record to date. 19 Aug 2007 on Mount Desert Island; photo here

The separation of Trumpeter and Tundra Swans has been a perennial challenge. Both are obviously swans, and given decent looks they are easy to distinguish from Mute Swan, but criteria for separating Tundra Swan from Trumpeter Swan are subjective and often vague, requiring experience and/or direct comparison. Until recently there were relatively few places where