Date: Sat, 17 Jun 2000 12:41:57 EDT Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Mark Hoffman Subject: For 1 million $$, my final answer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable In a message dated 6/15/00 7:53:54 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Miliff@AOL.COM=20 writes: > Also...here's one for Mr. Worcester County: > > Mark, what first Worcester breeding record did Jim and I find and=20 photograph > 11 June? >=20 > Not to put you on the spot... > =20 > And don;t worry, county listers wouldn't be rushing out after this one (i= t > was not Mississippi Kite or Scissor-tailed Flycatcher)... > =20 Time warp to tv-studio in LA .... Regis: Ok, Mr. WC. you've won the $500,000 prize, want to gamble it all for=20= a=20 cool $1 million: Mr. WC: Sure, what the heck, its only money!! Regis: Here we go =E2=80=A6 "What new species did Marshall and Jim confirm as breeding in Worcester=20 County on June 11, 2000" A. American Bittern B. Mute Swan C. Northern Shoveler D. Hooded Merganser E. Ruddy Duck F. Peregrine Falcon G. Sora H. American Coot I. Black-necked Stilt J. Common Nighthawk K. Blue-winged Warbler L. Common Yellowthroat M. Dickcissel N. Vesper Sparrow O. Swamp Sparrow Sorry, you have no life-lines left. Remember you used your last one to call=20 Bob Ringler regarding the Kent County high-count for House Finches in July= =E2=80=A6 Mr. WC: Wait a minute Regis, I thought I only had to pick from four=20 possibilities?? You gave me a list of 15! Regis: For a million dollars, we are going to make it a little more=20 difficult. That cash comes right out of my bonus! Mr. WC: Ugh! And something is screwy with the answers, that "L. Common=20 Yellowthroat" can't be right, yellowthroats are one of Worcester's most=20 common breeders. Regis: Hold on, I'll confer with our panel of experts. =E2=80=A6.. We are us= ing that=20 authoritative publication, the Field List of the Birds of Maryland by Iliff,= =20 Ringler and Stasz as our data source. On page 41, it clearly shows no "B" in= =20 the Worcester box for Common Yellowthroat. Mr. WC: Take it from me Regis, remove it from the list. Did you note the=20 authors?? Regis: Point well taken, we'll remove the masked-bandit bird. The clock is=20 now ticking =E2=80=A6 Mr. WC: Let me think =E2=80=A6 American Bittern-may have bred historically, less common in MD than in the=20 past, no reports from Vaughn, not likely. Mute Swan-very likely, but given this species was Marshall's 300th Worcester= =20 County bird, I think he would still be too embarrassed to highlight another=20 ornithological milestone with the white terror bird. Northern Shoveler-have not seen any late reports from Vaughn. =20 Hooded Merganser-ditto. Ruddy Duck-ditto. Peregrine Falcon-none have been hanging around any OC hotels lately. Sora-have not seen any late reports from Vaughn or Truitt's. American Coot-very likely, at least one in Vaughn in late-May on multiple=20 occasions. Black-necked Stilt-Very possible, but Marshall's late-May bird was probably=20 not in a breeding location, no reports at the West OC pond or Vaughn. Common Nighthawk-much rarer now, probably bred on AI historically. Blue-winged Warbler-not confirm from Colburne area, no reports this year. Dickcissel-Very likely, WC had a late summering bird during the last "big=20 dick" year. Have not heard of any WC singers this summer, but Jim and=20 Marshall love driving around unknown back-roads looking for field birds. Vesper Sparrow-Possible, but mid-shore population never seems to get this fa= r=20 south. Plus Marshall still needs it for his Worcester list!! His ego would=20 have gotten the better of him and he would have posted the details. Swamp Sparrow-Very possible, breeds just to north and west. Regis: Enough analysis, give us your answer! Mr. WC: I'm ready. My answer is American Coot. Regis: IS THAT YOUR FINAL ANSWER? Mr. WC: Yes, for the cash (and reputation), American Coot. And I don't know=20 why Marshall implied no one would want to chase it, I need it for my June=20 Worcester County list!! Regards, Mark Hoffman ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================