Danish bird collection comes to UAF

We are delighted to announce the arrival of an invaluable gift—the Erritzoe collection from the House of Bird Research in Denmark. Dr. Johannes Erritzoe has been a Research Affiliate of the University of Alaska Museum (Ornithology) for over 20 years, and his bird collection is an amazing scientific resource. Developed over decades of careful work, this research collection has already been important for scientific productivity. Its importance and use will grow considerably now that it is in Fairbanks, because it has not historically been online or in a public lending institution. The scientific gains for the Museum, for UAF, for this collection, and for ornithology are considerable.

The Erritzoe collection comprises over 8,800 meticulously prepared bird specimens and is highly complementary to the current UA Museum bird collection. A large proportion of Alaska birds are Holarctic in distribution. Many more are the easternmost representatives of Eurasian populations and their close relatives. As such, the Erritzoe collection, most of which is from the northwestern Palearctic, is an important scientific addition to our current holdings. In short, we cannot understand the similarities and uniquenesses of Alaska birds without using complementary material like this—much of which we’ve had to borrow in the past to work in the appropriate comparative framework. This collection is also a fantastic research resource for the study of northern birds and the ways in which climate change affects them.

The permitting and moving of such a large collection was especially challenging, and we thank the many people both in Denmark and the U.S. who helped us accomplish this task. Our next steps are to get the collection catalogued, integrated, and online so that it is widely available to researchers.

(See longer story below, with images.)

Continue reading →

Comments on the 2024 Checklist of Alaska Birds

ADD Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus, based on one bird observed at Shemya Island, Aleutians, on 29 May 2023 (Z. M. Pohlen, photos AKCLC).

ADD Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus, based on a partial specimen salvaged at Attu Island, Aleutians, in Jun 1999 (see Gibson and Byrd 2007). DNA analysis has demonstrated (J. J. Withrow MS in prep.) that this specimen is indeed C. cyaneus and not the Northern Harrier C. hudsonius. These two harriers were split by Chesser et al. (2017).

ADD Eurasian Goshawk Accipiter gentilis, based on two goshawks observed at Shemya Island, Aleutians, one in May and one in Sep 2001, the second of which was entirely off-white, and thus characteristic of Russian Far East subspecies albidus (see Gibson and Byrd 2007). The Eurasian Goshawk and the American Goshawk were split by Chesser et al. (2023).

ADD Eastern Wood-Pewee Contopus virens, based on one bird at Douglas Island, se Alaska, 4-24 Jul 2023 (S. Lewis and many others, incl. T. G. Tobish Jr. and R. L. Scher; photos and audio-recording AKCLC).

Siberian House-Martin Delichon lagopodum—to which species all Alaska records of Delichon are now assigned—was split from Common House-Martin D. urbicum by Chesser et al. (2023).

*Status of Stejneger’s Scoter is changed from casual to rare.

*Status of Red-backed Shrike is changed from accidental to casual (with a third Alaska record at Adak, 2023).

*Status of Song Thrush is changed from accidental to casual (with a third Alaska record at St. Paul, 2023).

*Following Chesser et al. (2023), the English name Rufous-tailed Rock-thrush is to be so spelled because the species (in Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers and Chats) has not ever been maintained in the family Turdidae (Thrushes).

Literature Cited 

Chesser, R. T., Burns, K. J., Cicero, C., Dunn, J. L., Kratter, A. W., Lovette, I. J., Rasmussen, P. C., Remsen, J. V. Jr., Rising, J. D., Stotz, D. F., and Winker, K. 2017. Fifty-eighth supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Auk 134:751-773; doi 10.1642/AUK-17-72.1

Chesser, R. T., Billerman, S. M., Burns, K. J., Cicero, C., Dunn, J. L., Hernández-Baños, B. E., Jiménez, R. A., Kratter, A. W., Mason, N. A., Rasmussen, P. C., Remsen, J. V. Jr., and Winker, K. 2023. Sixty-fourth supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Ornithol. 140:1-11; doi org/10.1093/ornithology/ukad023

Gibson, D. D., and Byrd, G. V. 2007. Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Series in Ornithology No. 1. Nuttall Ornithol. Club and American Ornithologists’ Union.

Winker resigns from the American Ornithological Society

Dear friends and colleagues,

I am resigning from the American Ornithological Society and its committees on which I served. The decision by AOS to change all eponymous English bird names in its jurisdiction is, in my view, a huge mistake for a scientific society. Since its founding in the 1880s this society has had a tremendous positive effect on ornithology in North America and helped expand it enormously. Part of this success has been through its establishment and maintenance of a standardized list of bird names. This list has always included recognition in some English names of people who were deemed to have made important contributions to science or society. Consequently, these names became well established in our shared vocabulary and deeply entrenched in our literature. Today we recognize that some of those names recognize people who might not deserve such recognition. We could have chosen to do a survey to obtain the views of our many stakeholders and the tens of millions of people they represent. We could have chosen to evaluate each of these eponymous names and the people they recognize. Instead AOS leadership has chosen to cancel all of this shared history—because some of it is deemed bad, it all must go.

This politicization of our shared science and shared vocabulary is divisive and polarizing. This we know. What might be gained from it—we do not know. Such dramatic nomenclatural changes are a departure from both societal and scientific norms. I’ve studied these issue more than most and feel strongly that there are better, less divisive, and more inclusive ways forward (see Winker 2022, Winker 2023a, b, referenced below). I am sorry that AOS leadership instead chose this way. In doing so I think they have needlessly politicized our science and that in doing so without adequate data and in opposition to societal norms they have done the opposite of what I think a scientific society should do. We share a strong belief in promoting ornithology and welcoming all to participate. We disagree that this is a good way to achieve those goals.

Sincerely,

Kevin Winker

(Former Life Member, elected Fellow, chair and member of the Committee on Bird Collections, member of the North American Classification Committee, and other committees, and Council, and Associate Editor over the years)

References :

Winker, K. 2022. A brief history of English bird names and the American Ornithologists’ Union (now American Ornithological Society). Ornithology 139: ukac019. https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac019

Winker, K. 2023. Bird names as critical communication infrastructure in the contexts of history, language, and culture. In review. Preprint here: https://osf.io/34bg7/  

Winker, K. 2023. The inordinate unpopularity of changing all eponymous bird and other organismal names. In review. Preprint here: https://osf.io/tnzya/

Presentation given at the Aug 2023 AOS meeting:

Comments on the 2023 Checklist of Alaska birds

ADD Least Tern Sternula antillarum, based on a second-year bird in first alternate plumage observed 21 July-4 August 2022 at Anchorage (B. J. Lagassé, R. L. Scher+; photos AKCLC).

ADD Wedge-tailed Shearwater Ardenna pacifica, based on a lone light-morph bird observed 23 July 2022, 4 miles west of Cape Edgecumbe, Kruzof Island, Alexander Archipelago (C. Goff, photos AKCLC).

ADD Icterine Warbler Hippolais icterina, based on one bird observed 22 September 2022 at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (R. Ungwiluk Jr., photos AKCLC).

ADD Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citrina, based on one bird observed 15 September 2022 at Seward (J. Maniscalco, R. B. Benter; photos AKCLC).

ADD Chestnut-collared Longspur Calcarius ornatus, based on an adult male that flew aboard a vessel on 4 July 2022 in Warren Channel, between Warren and Kosciusko islands, Alexander Archipelago (A. Montgomery photos AKCLC, via G. B. vanVliet, W. S. Gibson).

ADD Lucy’s Warbler Leiothlypis luciae, based on one bird observed 27 July 2022 at Chena Hot Springs (M. Sopoliga, photo AKCLC).

ADD Blackburnian Warbler Setophaga fusca, based on an immature female observed 28-29 October 2022 at Ketchikan (S. C. Heinl, R. L. Scher, B. Limle; photos AKCLC).

Asian Stonechat Saxicola maurus was split from Saxicola torquatus (Linnaeus, 1766) {Cape of Good Hope} [African Stonechat] and from S. rubicola (Linnaeus, 1766) {France = Seine Inférieure} [European Stonechat] by Chesser et al. (2022). Thus S. maurus simply replaces S. torquatus on the Alaska list.

Literature Cited

Chesser, R. T., Billerman, S. M., Burns, K. J., Cicero, C., Dunn, J. L., Hernández-Baños, B. E., Jiménez, R. A., Kratter, A. W., Mason, N. A., Rasmussen, P. C., Remsen, J. V. Jr., Stotz, D. F., and Winker, K. 2022. Sixty-third supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Ornithology 139:1–13; doi.org/10.1093/ ornithology/ukac020.

Comments on the 2022 Checklist of Alaska Birds

ADD Short-billed Gull Larus brachyrhynchus, based on the taxonomic decision to recognize this taxon as a separate, North American species (Chesser et al. 2021) – as originally described – instead of as subspecies of L. canus, the Common Gull (known until now in North America as the Mew Gull). The Common Gull remains on the AKCL in subspecies L. c. kamtschatschensis (see Gibson and Withrow 2015:123). In Laridae, insert L. brachyrhynchus immediately following L. canus.

ADD Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis, based on one bird present 10-11 May 2021 at Gustavus (N. Drumheller; photos AKCLC). In Laridae, insert Thalasseus between Chlidonias and Sterna.

ADD Naumann’s Thrush Turdus naumanni, based on four records — one bird present 22 October 1982 at Adak Island, Aleutians (C. F. and M. Zeillemaker; color sketch); one bird present 20-22 May 2000 at Attu Island, Aleutians (S. C. Heinl and others; photo AKCLC); one bird present 5 June 2015 at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (J. L. Dunn and others; photos AKCLC, and see Lehman 2019:268); and one bird present 30 May 2021, at Shemya Island, Aleutians (Z. M. Pohlen; photos AKCLC). This species was transferred from the unsubstantiated list by a 2021 vote of the AKCLC. In Turdidae, insert this species immediately following T. eunomus.

ADD Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush Monticola saxatilis, based on one bird present 24-25 June 2021 at Utqiaġvik (K. Hansen, W. Klockner, W. S. Gibson, J. Myles, J. Benningfield, R. Van Buskirk, and others; photos AKCLC). In Muscicapidae, insert Monticola between Saxicola and Oenanthe.

*Status of American Black Duck, following a first record in three decades, is changed from Accidental to Casual.

*Removed from Falcipennis, Spruce Grouse is once again Canachites canadensis.

*Status of Little Ringed Plover, with no record in the last 30 years, is changed from Casual to Accidental.

*Status of Common Gull is Casual.

*Cormorant genera have been completely revised: Brandt’s, Red-faced, and Pelagic (in that order) are now, respectively, Urile penicillatus, U. urile, and U. pelagicus; Double-crested is now Nannopterum auritum (the Alaska subspecies is cincinatum).

*Ruby-crowned Kinglet has been removed to the genus Corthylio, which is listed preceding Regulus.

AND Chesser et al. (2021) reorganized the linear sequence of a number of Families:

*The family Vireonidae is now listed following Tyrannidae and preceding Laniidae.

*Paridae is now listed following Corvidae and preceding Alaudidae.

*Acrocephalidae and Locustellidae (in that order) are now listed following Alaudidae and preceding Hirundinidae.

*Regulidae and Bombycillidae (in that order) are now listed following Sylviidae and preceding Sittidae.

*Mimidae, Sturnidae, Cinclidae, and Turdidae (in that order) are now listed following Troglodytidae and preceding Muscicapidae.

Literature Cited

Chesser, R. T., S. M. Billerman, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, J. L. Dunn, B. E. Hernández-Baños, A. W. Kratter, I. J. Lovett, N. A. Mason, P. C. Rasmussen, J. V. Remsen, Jr., D. F. Stotz, and K. Winker. 2021. Sixty-second supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Ornithology 138:1–18; doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukab037

Gibson, D. D., and J. J. Withrow. 2015. Inventory of the species and subspecies of Alaska birds, Second ed. W. Birds 46:94–185.

Lehman, P. E. 2019. The Birds of Gambell and St. Lawrence Island, Alaska. Studies of Western Birds 4. Western Field Ornithologists, Camarillo, CA. 360 pp.

Comments on the 2021 Checklist of Alaska Birds

ADD Hooded Crane Grus monacha, based on one collected in Sep 2020 at Delta Junction (UAM specimen). Insert following Common Crane G. grus.

ADD Pallas’s Grasshopper-Warbler Helopsaltes certhiola, based on a bird present 9–12 Sep 2019 at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (photos AKCLC). Insert preceding Middendorff’s Grasshopper-Warbler (which now is also maintained in Helopsaltes).

ADD Song Thrush Turdus philomelos, based on a bird present 9 Oct 2020 at Utqiaġvik (photos AKCLC). Insert between Redwing T. iliacus and American Robin T. migratorius.

DELETE Northwestern Crow Corvus caurinus.

AOU/AOS Supplement 61’s (Chesser et al. 2020a:16) precipitate reclassification of the Northwestern Crow Corvus caurinus as “a geographical trend, rather than a species or subspecies”presented a nomenclatural lapsus, one in which the coastal crows from Kodiak Island to Washington State were left without a scientific name. Correcting that error, Chesser et al. (2020b)—in press in the final 2020 number of The Auk [to be renamed, after 137 years, Ornithology]—now state instead that the taxon caurinus is to be maintained as a subspecies of the American Crow, C. brachyrhynchos caurinus.

Following Johnston (1961) and Mattocks et al. (1976), who a half century ago published the same conclusion to be articulated soon by Chesser et al. (2020b), the ongoing “Inventory of the species and subspecies of Alaska birds” (see Gibson and Withrow 2015) now recognizes two subspecies of the American Crow instead of two species of crows. (The second subspecies, C. b. hesperis, of interior British Columbia and points south, is known in Alaska only from Hyder.)

*Status of Lesser White-fronted Goose, with a third Alaska record, is changed to Casual.

*In the family Trochilidae, species in the genus Selasphorus are re-ordered so Calliope Hummingbird Selasphorus calliope now precedes Rufous Hummingbird S. rufus.

*The family Scolopacidae is now identified (only) as Sandpipers.

*In the family Phalacrocoracidae, species are re-ordered so Double-crested Cormorant Phalacrocorax auritus now follows Pelagic Cormorant P. pelagicus.

*In the family Locustellidae, Lanceolated Warbler Locustella lanceolata is moved to precede River Warbler L. fluviatilis.

*In the family Turdidae, the two subspecies of the former Dusky Thrush Turdus naumanni are elevated to species status: the Dusky Thrush Turdus eunomus is casual in Alaska and the Naumann’s Thrush T. naumanni is added to the Alaska unsubstantiated list.

*Status of Lesser White-fronted Goose, with a third Alaska record, is changed to Casual.

*Status of Blue Grosbeak, with a third Alaska record, is changed to Casual.

*The Unsubstantiated List now comprises 19 species (including one species-pair) with the additions of Murphy’s Petrel Pterodroma ultima and Naumann’s Thrush Turdus naumanni.

_____________________________________________

Chesser, R. T., Billerman, S. M., Burns, K. J., Cicero, C., Dunn, J. L., Kratter, A. W., Lovette, I. J., Mason, N. A., Rasmussen, P. C., Remsen, J. V. Jr., Stotz, D. F., and Winker, K. 2020a. Sixty-first supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. The Auk: Ornithological Advances 137:1–24; doi: 10.1093/auk/ukaa030

Chesser, R. T., Billerman, S. M., Burns, K. J., Cicero, C., Dunn, J. L., Kratter, A. W., Lovett, I. J., Mason, N. A., Rasmussen, P. C., Remsen, J. V. Jr., Stotz, D. F., and Winker, K. 2020b. Addendum to the sixty-first supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Ornithology 137:XX–XX; doi: 10.1093/ornithology/ukaa074

Gibson, D. D., and Withrow, J. J. 2015. Inventory of the species and subspecies of Alaska birds, Second ed. W. Birds 46:94–185.

Johnston, D. W. 1961. The biosystematics of American Crows. Univ. Washington Press, Seattle. 119 pages.

Mattocks, P. W. Jr., Hunn, E. S., and Wahl, T. R. 1976. A Checklist of the Birds of Washington State, with recent changes annotated. W. Birds 7:1–24.

Thoughts on changing the name of the Auk and Condor

(Our discipline’s flagship journals are considering a name change after more than a century of success and global recognition. I am opposed, because the potential gains are illusory. A survey [now closed] on this is available here. This change has now been made; with 2021 the experiment begins.)

Pages: 1 2

The 2020 Checklist of Alaska Birds

The following changes to the Checklist of Alaska Birds primarily reflect systematic changes imposed by the Sixtieth Supplement to the Check-list of North American Birds (2019; doi.org/10.1093/auk/ukz042):

ADD Stejneger’s Scoter Melanitta stejnegeri. Following 60th Supplement, in the family Anatidae (Ducks, Geese, & Swans), the White-winged Scoter Melanitta fusca is split into three species. Formerly maintained in Alaska as a subspecies, the (Asiatic) taxon stejnegeri is now maintained as a full species (Stejneger’s Scoter), and the (North American) White-winged Scoter is separated from the (European) Velvet Scoter. The earliest-named species of these three, the Velvet Scoter retains the epithet  fusca; the next-available name for the (North American) White-winged Scoter is deglandi. Thus the two of these species on the Alaska list are now White-winged Scoter Melanitta deglandi and Stejneger’s Scoter Melanitta stejnegeri, in that order. For published discussion of the occurrence of Stejneger’s Scoter in Alaska, see Dunn et al. 2012 (Alaska records of the Asian White-winged Scoter. Western Birds 43:220-228) and Gibson and Withrow 2015 (Inventory of the species and subspecies of Alaska birds. Western Birds 46:111). For online access to those publications go to ‘Journal’ at westernfieldornithologists.org.

ADD Snowy Plover Charadrius nivosus. In the family Charadriidae (Lapwings and Plovers), Snowy Plover C. nivosus is added to the Alaska list founded on one bird observed 7 June 2019 at Egg Island, Copper River Delta, by Mary Anne Bishop, Kirsti Jurica, and Anne Schaefer (photos AKCLC). Following 60th Supplement, species in the genus Charadrius are reorganized; this species is listed last.

ADD Pallas’s Gull Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus. In the family Laridae (Gulls and Terns), Pallas’s Gull is added to the Alaska list founded on an adult observed 2-4 May 2019 at Shemya Island, Aleutian Islands, by Richard A. Fischer, who found the bird dead on 14 May 2019 and salvaged the specimen (UAM, ad. ♀). Following Dickinson and Remsen (2013), the genus Ichthyaetus is listed immediately preceding the genus Larus.

Following 60th Supplement, in the family Hydrobatidae (Northern Storm-Petrels), the two species in Alaska are transferred from the (feminine) genus Oceanodroma to the (masculine) genus Hydrobates, and their (adjectival) species epithets must now agree in gender with the latter. (In the Unsubstantiated List, note as well Swinhoe’s Storm-Petrel, also removed from Oceanodroma to Hydrobates.)

In the family Sulidae (Boobies and Gannets), Red-footed Booby Sula sula, now with a third Alaska record, is maintained as Casual, not Accidental.

In the family Picidae (Woodpeckers), the Eurasian Wryneck Jynx torquilla, now with a third Alaska record, is maintained as Casual, not Accidental.

Following 60th Supplement, in the family Hirundinidae (Swallows), the sequence of genera is reorganized.

Following 60th Supplement, in the family Acrocephalidae (Reed Warblers), the Thick-billed Warbler is moved to the genus Arundinax. Until this species was accepted by AOU/AOS, in 2019, AKCLC followed Dickinson and Christidis 2014 (The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World, 4th ed., Vol. 2: Passeriformes. Aves Press, Eastbourne, England) in maintaining this species in the genus Acrocephalus.

Following 60th Supplement, in the family Locustellidae (Grassbirds), River Warbler L. fluviatilis immediately follows L. ochotensis. Until River Warbler was accepted by AOU/AOS, in 2019, AKCLC followed Dickinson and Christidis (2014) for linear placement in the genus.

Following 60th Supplement, in the family Passerellidae (New World Sparrows), the sequence of genera is reorganized, as is the sequence of species that constitute the genus Zonotrichia. Following 60th Supplement, in the family Parulidae (Wood-Warblers), Tennessee, Orange-crowned, and Nashville warblers are moved from the genus Oreothlypis to the genus Leiothlypis.

The 2019 Checklist of Alaska Birds

Changes in the 25th edition—2019 (downloadable at right)

ADDITIONS TO THE CHECKLIST in 2018 (in taxonomic order)

Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus: Light-morph ad, 15 Nov 2018–2+ Jan 2019, St. Paul Island, Pribilof Islands (B. Lestenkof, B. Pierce, B. Benter, S. Clark).  Photos AKCLC.

Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio: Imm, 3–22 Oct 2017, Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (P. E. Lehman, P. Pyle, N. Moores, J. Hough, and G. H. Rosenberg).  Photos AKCLC.

LeConte’s Sparrow Ammospiza leconteii: One bird, 13 Oct 2018, Sitka (C. Goff).  Photo AKCLC.

Bay-breasted Warbler Setophaga castanea: Ad male, 6–8 Jun 2018, Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (P. E. Lehman and others).  Photos AKCLC.

CHANGES TO THE UNSUBSTANTIATED LIST

Little Shearwater (Puffinus assimilis) was deleted because, in view of uncertain taxonomic relationships among some small black-and-white shearwaters in the Pacific, the descriptive details on file for the two Alaska reports are now regarded as inadequate to point to this species alone.

Bay-breasted Warbler (Setophaga castanea) was substantiated in 2018 and moved to the main list.

STATUS CHANGES

Solitary Snipe, Red-footed Booby, and Black-throated Gray Warbler are maintained as Casual.

OTHER ALASKA CHANGES FOLLOWING THE 59th Supplement (2018) to The A.O.U. Check-list of North American Birds (Seventh ed., 1998)

In the family Caprimulgidae the Gray Nightjar subspecies known in Alaska is elevated to status as a full species, Caprimulgus jotaka.

The family Hydrobatidae, renamed Northern Storm-Petrels, separates the families Diomedeidae and Procellariidae.

In the family Accipitridae the genera Aquila, Circus, and Accipiter, in that sequence, precede the genus Milvus.

In the family Picidae, the Downy and Hairy woodpeckers are restored to the genus Dryobates from Picoides and are listed following Dendrocopos; the American Three-toed and Black-backed woodpeckers, which remain in Picoides, are listed preceding Dendrocopos.

In the family Tyrannidae, the subfamily Tyranninae (Myiarchus and Tyrannus) precede the subfamily Fluvicolinae (Contopus through Sayornis).

In the family Corvidae, the English name of Perisoreus canadensis is restored to Canada Jay.

In the family Muscicapidae, four species are removed from the polyphyletic genus Luscinia: the Siberian Blue Robin and Rufous-tailed Robin to the genus Larvivora, the Bluethroat to the genus Cyanecula, and the Siberian Rubythroat to the genus Calliope.  In that order, those three genera separate Muscicapa and Ficedula.

DDG and JJW (for the AKCLC), 11 January 2019

Alaska Checklist Committee: Daniel D. Gibson, Lucas H. DeCicco, Robert E. Gill Jr., Steven C. Heinl, Aaron J. Lang, Theodore G. Tobish Jr., and Jack J. Withrow.

The 2018 Checklist of Alaska Birds

Changes in the 24th edition—2018 (downloadable at right)

ADDITIONS TO THE CHECKLIST in 2017 (in taxonomic order)

Nazca Booby Sula granti: Ad, 30 Aug 2017, 13.5 mi/21 km off East Amatuli Island, Barren Islands, entrance to Cook Inlet, at 58° 55ʹ N 151° 35ʹ W (M. G. Levine). Photos AKCLC. The identification of another bird reported as this species one week earlier (Ad, 24 Aug 2017, 40 mi/64 km south of Tugidak Island, Kodiak archipelago, at 55° 58ʹ N 154° 34ʹ W (S. Cobb) was not agreed upon unanimously by the committee; a second vote will be conducted in 2018.

Black Kite Milvus migrans: One bird, 2-3 Jan 2017, St. Paul Island, Pribilof Islands (B. Lestenkoff). Photos AKCLC.

Rock Wren Salpinctes obsoletus: One bird, 3 Jul to at least 18 Nov 2017, Gustavus (B. B. Paige, J. D. Levison, R. B. Benter, N. Drumheller, and others). Photos AKCLC.

Thick-billed Warbler Acrocephalus aedon: One bird, 8-13 Sep 2017, Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (R. Stoll, V. Stoll, G. H. Rosenberg, A. J. Lang, G. Scyphers, and others). Photos AKCLC.

River Warbler Locustella fluviatilis: One bird, 7 Oct 2017, Gambell, St. Lawrence Island (S. Bryer, C. Irigoo Jr., E. Banstorp, P. E. Lehman, and others). Photos AKCLC.

Pied Wheatear Oenanthe pleschanka: SY female, 4 Jul-4 Aug+2017, Cape Nome, Seward Peninsula (A. Harper, J. D. Levison, R. B. Benter, J. Bosler, T. G. Tobish Jr., and others). Photos AKCLC.

Northern Parula Setophaga americana: Singing male, 28-29 Jun 2017, Ketchikan (S. C. Heinl and A. W. Piston). Photos AKCLC. Transferred from the unsubstantiated list.

CHANGES TO THE UNSUBSTANTIATED LIST
Northern Parula was substantiated in 2017 and removed to the main list.

STATUS CHANGES
The definition of Accidental has been emended to read: “One or two Alaska records, or none in last 30 years.” As a result, we now maintain Cook’s Petrel, American Black Duck, and Fieldfare as Accidental.

Least Flycatcher is now maintained as Rare/annual. Dusky Warbler is now maintained as Casual.

OTHER ALASKA CHANGES FOLLOWING AOU Check-list Supplement 58 (2017)

In the family Anatidae the genus Chen has been submerged in Anser; the Checklist of Alaska Birds now begins with Emperor Goose Anser canagicus, Snow Goose A. caerulescens, and Ross’s Goose A. rossii, in that order.

The dabbling ducks have been extensively revised and reordered. Baikal Teal is now in the monotypic genus Sibirionetta and directly follows Aix. The ‘blue-winged’ ducks – in the order Garganey, Blue-winged and Cinnamon teal, and Northern Shoveler – are removed to the genus Spatula; and Gadwall, Falcated Duck, and Eurasian and American wigeon are now in the genus Mareca and listed in that order. The genera Sibirionetta, Spatula, and Mareca separate Aix from Anas.

In the family Scolopacidae the curlews have been reordered: Bristle-thighed, Whimbrel, Little, Long-billed, and Far Eastern. Bar-tailed Godwit is now listed first in Limosa.

In the family Laridae the former widely-recognized Thayer’s Gull has been submerged in Iceland Gull, as L. glaucoides thayeri. (Since the AKCLC has maintained this taxon that way for years here in Alaska, the only change to the Alaska list is to delete the parenthetic “includes thayeri” after listing for Iceland Gull.)

In the family Ardeidae the genus Mesophoyx has been submerged in Ardea, so Intermediate Egret is now Ardea intermedia.

In the family Accipitridae the subspecies of the former “Northern Harrier Circus cyaneus” have been elevated to status as separate Old World and New World species, the Hen Harrier C. cyaneus and the Northern Harrier C. hudsonius, respectively. The identification of a partial specimen from Attu Island (a salvaged distal left wing tentatively identified long ago at U.S. National Museum by its length as C. c. cyaneus—see Gibson and Byrd 2007) has not yet been confirmed through its DNA, which process we expect to see accomplished in 2018. Only then will we know if the Attu bird provides the only Alaska (and North American) record of Hen Harrier C. cyaneus—or has been an incorrectly identified example of the North American taxon. More later.

In the family Laniidae the former Northern Shrike has been split into two species. Lanius excubitor (Great Gray Shrike) is now regarded as the bird of the western Old World, while the related birds of the eastern Old World and all of the New World are now Lanius borealis (Northern Shrike).

Genera in the family Fringillidae are re-ordered Coccothraustes, Carpodacus, Pinicola, Pyrrhula, Leucosticte, Haemorhous, Chloris, Acanthis, Loxia, and Spinus. House Finch is listed first in Haemorhous.

The former family Emberizidae has been split and now comprises only Old World Buntings. All New World sparrows and allies are removed from to the newly erected family Passerellidae, which directly follows Emberizidae in linear position. The order of genera within Passerellidae remains the same, Pipilo through Junco.

Genera in the family Icteridae have been rearranged in the order Xanthocephalus, Dolichonyx, Sturnella, Icterus, Agelaius, Molothrus, Euphagus, and Quiscalus.

The family Parulidae has been moved to linear position directly following the family Icteridae.

The family Cardinalidae directly follows Parulidae and now concludes the Checklist of Alaska Birds.

It was another busy year. If I have omitted any substantive change here, the omission has been inadvertent.

DDG (for the AKCLC), 6 January 2018

Alaska Checklist Committee: Daniel D. Gibson, Lucas H. DeCicco, Robert E. Gill Jr., Steven C. Heinl, Aaron J. Lang, Theodore G. Tobish Jr., and Jack J. Withrow.

Gibson, D. D., and G. V. Byrd. 2007. Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Series in Onithology 1. Nuttall Ornithological Club and American Ornithologists’ Union.