Report of the Records Committee for 2001

Ann M. Johnson

The Records Committee reviewed 36 records from 2001 including one old record from 1997. Of these, 30 were accepted and 6 were not.

Committee members for 2001 with years in which their terms expire were: James L. Fuller (2002), Matthew C. Kenne (2003), Paul Hertzel (2004), Jim Sinclair  (2005), Thomas H. Kent (2006), Lee Schoenewe (2007) and Ann M. Johnson (secretary, appointed by the committee).  James Dinsmore was nominated by the Committee and appointed by the Board of Directors to fill a regular term beginning in 2002.

Use of the Internet for committee business continues to grow.  This year saw the addition of an on-line documentation form, which will hopefully encourage more people to write details of rare sightings.

The four-digit number (year and sequence number) assigned to each record reviewed by the Records Committee is included for future reference. Records are classified as follows: A = Accepted (-S = specimen, -P = photograph, -R = recording, -D = documentation) and NA = Not Accepted. In order to be Accepted, a record must receive 7 votes on the initial review or 6 votes on a subsequent review. The subcategories A-S, A-P, and A-R indicate that physical evidence supports the identification, and records are subclassified based on a majority vote. References to IBL are the page of the Field Reports in Iowa Bird Life where the record is cited. P- numbers refer to the IOU Photo File entry number. Published notes and previous citations may contain more details. An * indicates a previously uncited documentation.

2001 RECORDS ACCEPTED

Clark’s Grebe: 28 Apr to 7 May at Hallet’s Q., Ames in Story Co. (01-11, P-1007, IBL 71:121); 12 May at Trumbull L. in Clay Co. (01-12, IBL 71:121); and 2 Dec at Spirit Lake in Dickinson Co. (01-30, IBL 72:101).

Tri-colored Heron: 25 May to 28 May at Forney Lake in Fremont Co. (01-17, IBL 71:122).

Glossy Ibis: 23 May at Horseshoe Bend, Mark Twain N.W.R. in Louisa Co. (01-16, IBL 71:122).

Brant: 16 Dec to 19 Dec at Beaver Valley Wetland in Black Hawk Co. (01-34, IBL 72:103 [see also IBL 72:84]).

Ferruginous Hawk: 27 Nov at Hitchcock N.A. in Pottawattamie Co. (01-18, IBL 72:34).

Gyrfalcon: 3 Mar at Union Hills WMA in Cerro Gordo Co. (01-03, IBL 71:124) and 9 Mar in Hartley at O’Brien Co. (01-05, P-1005, IBL 71:124).

Black-necked Stilt: 27 Apr at Cone M. in Louisa Co. (01-10, IBL 71:125).

Red Knot: 21 Aug at Runnells W.A. in Marion Co. (01-20, IBL 72:36) and 12 Sep to 19 Sep at Coralville R. in Johnson Co. (01-21, P-1008, IBL 72:36).

Least Sandpiper: 6 Dec at Runnells W.A. in Marion Co. (01-31, IBL 72:108).

Red Phalarope: 8 Sep at Coralville R. in Johnson Co. (01-22, IBL 72:37).

Laughing Gull: 12 Mar at Red Rock R. in Marion Co. (01-07, IBL 71:126).

Black-headed Gull: 6 Oct to 20 Oct at Spirit Lake in Dickinson Co. (01-28, IBL 72:37).

Iceland Gull: 24 Dec at W. Okoboji Lake in Dickinson Co. (01-35, IBL 72:108).

Eurasian Collared-Dove: 2 Aug at Sunbury in Cedar Co. (01-23, IBL 72:38); 14 Sep at Albia in Monroe Co. (01-24, IBL 72:38); and 16 Oct at Ogden in Boone Co. (01-25, IBL 72:38).

White-winged Dove: 1 Oct to 6 Oct at Spirit Lake in Dickinson Co. (01-26, P-1009, IBL 72:38).

Say’s Phoebe: 20 Apr near Mason City in Cerro Gordo Co. (01-09, P-1006, IBL 71:128).

Blue-headed Vireo: 15 Dec at ISU Horticulture Farm in Story Co. (01-29, IBL 72:110 [see also IBL 72:84]).

Mountain Bluebird: 9 Mar in O’Brien Co. (01-06, IBL 71:129).

Bohemian Waxwing: 24 Feb at Waterman Creek Watershed in O’Brien Co. (01-02, IBL 71:92) and 13 Dec at Hawkeye W.A. in Marion Co. (01-33, IBL 72:111).

Lark Bunting: 1 Jan to 8 Jan at Perry in Dallas Co. (01-01, IBL 71:93 [see also IBL 71:188]).

Painted Bunting: 12 May at Arney Bend W.A. in Marshall Co. (01-13, IBL 71:133).

Eurasian Tree Sparrow: 7 Apr near Paton in Greene Co. (01-04, IBL 71:133).

OLD RECORDS REVIEWED FOR THE FIRST TIME

Lark Bunting: 19 Sep 1997 at Bacon Creek in Woodbury Co. (01-AA, *Jerry Probst).

2001 RECORDS NOT ACCEPTED

Gyrfalcon: A second-hand report was suggestive but too brief to be conclusive.  The committee struggles with reports from someone other than the original observer and everyone should be encouraged to write the details as they see them. (01-19, IBL 72:34).

Gyrfalcon: A fly-by of a rare bird that has no distinct markings was again suggestive but not conclusive. (01-32, IBL 72:107).

Greater Prairie-Chicken: The identity of a dead bird found along the roadbed in the spring was never in question.  Recent history has shown this species to occasionally appear in Northwest Iowa in the winter but so far there has been no modern day evidence of a breeding population in this area.  After much discussion, the committee could not be certain of the origin of this specimen. (01-14, IBL 71:124).

Thayer’s Gull: The description of a spring bird could not conclusively eliminate a worn Herring Gull.  (01-08, IBL 71:127).

Three-toed Woodpecker:  Possible confusion with a juvenile Hairy Woodpecker, combined with an unusual date for such a vagrant, put this record in the tantalizing but unaccepted category.  (01-27, IBL 72:39).

Indigo X Lazuli Bunting: The committee believed the description best fit an incompletely molted Indigo Bunting and that there were really no hybrid characteristics described. (01-15, IBL 71:133).

STATUS CHANGES

The committee met in October and approved the following status changes to the official checklist:

• Clark’s Grebe — Accidental to Casual
• King Rail — Regular to Casual
• Black-necked Stilt — Casual to Regular
• Greater Prairie-Chicken — Accidental to Regular (for introduced populations)
• Laughing Gull — Regular to Casual
• Little Gull — Casual to Accidental
• Black-legged Kittiwake — Regular to Casual
• Eurasian Collared-Dove — Accidental to Regular
• Rufous Hummingbird — Accidental to Casual
• Black-billed Magpie — Accidental to Casual
• Townsend’s Solitaire — Regular to Causal
• Evening Grosbeak — Regular to Casual

LITERATURE CITED

Brees, A. 2002. Iowa Christmas Bird Count — 2001 - 2002, Iowa Bird Life 72:78.

Myers, B. 2001. First Winter Record of Lark Bunting in Iowa, Iowa Bird Life 71:188.

© Iowa Ornithologists’ Union