1998 News and Decisions
from the Records Committee (BOURC)
8 October 1998
New BOU Records Committee Member
The BOU is pleased to announce that Ian Lewington has joined the BOU’s
Records Committee (BOURC) (as a co-opted member) to replace Keith Vinicombe
who left the Committee in April. Ian, who lives in Oxfordshire, is best
known as one of the world’s leading bird illustrators, is especially
interested in identification, photography, birding and field sketching at
home and abroad, where he has travelled widely.
Ian has illustrated a large number
of books including The Birds of the Western Palearctic (BWP) Vols. 6
and 8, The Handbook of the Birds of the World, Rare Birds of
Britain and Europe and more recently, Auks of the World. He has
been County Bird Recorder for Oxfordshire since 1994.
Ian’s proven identification
skills and detailed knowledge of birds, gained through his experience as a
talented and well-travelled bird artist, will be particularly valuable to
the Committee.
Changes to the British List
The following changes have been made to the British
List and take effect from publication in Ibis in January 1999
Add to Category A
Canvasback Aythya valisineria
First-winter male, Welney and Wissington, Norfolk, 18 January to 10 March
1997 intermittently; sight record; photographed (Birding World 10:
16-18).
An earlier record of a bird at
Cliffe, Kent, on 7 December 1996 is still under consideration.
Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus
Summer-plumaged adult, Pagham Harbour, West Sussex, 14-16 August 1997; sight
record; photographed (Birding World 10: 294-297).
The identification of this bird
was confirmed by photographs. It showed characters of the atrifrons group
of races (atrifrons, pamirensis and schaeferi) which breed in
Central Asia and winter along the coasts of East and South Africa and
Southern Asia. There are at least nine previous European records of the
species.
An earlier record of a bird on the
Don Estuary, Aberdeenshire, on 18-19 August 1991 which was identified and
accepted by BBRC as a Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii is
being reconsidered by BBRC.
Change to Category A
Indigo Bunting Passerina cyanea
First-winter male, Ramsey Island, Dyfed, 18-26 October 1996; sight record;
photographed (Birding World 9: 398).
Prior to the decision to separate
Irish from British records, this species was in Category A of the British
and Irish List on the basis of a record from Cape Clear Island, Co.Cork,
Ireland, 9-19 October 1985 (Irish Birds 3: 331). Four previous
records, currently placed in Category D, were reviewed, but no case was
found for upgrading any of these individuals (Fair Isle, Shetland, August
1964; Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex, September 1973; Holkham Meals, Norfolk,
October 1988; and Flamborough, North Humberside, May 1989).
Transfer from Category B to Category A
Following the decision to redefine Category B in line with
recommendations adopted by the Association of European Rarities Committees,
Category A now includes records dating back to 1950. As a consequence, two
species are transferred from Category B to Category A.
Magnificent Frigatebird Fregata magnificens
One on Tiree, Inner Hebrides, in July 1953.
Summer Tanager Piranga rubra
One on Bardsey Island, Gwynedd, in September 1957.
Transfer from Category A to Category B
Following the decision to separate Irish from British records, one
species is transferred from Category A to Category B.
Bulwer’s Petrel Bulweria bulwerii
The species was in Category A of the British and Irish List on the basis of
one off Cape Clear Island, Co. Cork, Ireland, in August 1975. However, a
subsequent record of one off South Walney, Cumbria, on 17 April 1990, has
now been accepted by BBRC and will be reviewed by BOURC to determine whether
it should be reinstated in Category A.
The following have also been considered
Fulvous Whistling Duck Dendrocygna bicolor
Four at Ditchford and Stanwick Gravel Pits, Northamptonshire on 1 October
1997. The species is commonly held in captivity and there is no reason to
suppose that these birds were other than of captive origin.
Little Tern Sterna albifrons antillarum
Rye Harbour, East Sussex, many dates between 1983 and 1993. Colne Point,
Essex, 29 June-1 July 1991. See Ibis 139: 200.
The Committee has been unable to
obtain reliable data on, or recordings of, the vocalisations of the West
African race guineae of Little Tern. Until these data are available
no definitive decision can be made, and the Committee has, for now, closed
its file.
Jackdaw Corvus monedula soemmerringii
On the basis of sight records, this race has been claimed to have occurred
in Britain on a number of occasions. Examination of literature and skins
indicate that plumage characters of Jackdaws are so variable that the
Committee considers that this taxon can be accepted as new to Britain only
if a breeding bird or pullus ringed within its normal breeding range is
recovered in Britain and shows the characters of the race. In France up to
1995, there were 11 recoveries of birds ringed in Poland, Lithuania and
Finland (Ornithos 2: 168-169), and eastern Jackdaws may be expected
to occur in Britain.
Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs africana/ spodiogenys
Fingringhoe, Essex, 9-25 April 1994; presumed same, 2-21 January 1995.
Identification as one of these taxa was not accepted, given several
important anomalies in the plumage which could not be matched by skins in
the extensive collections of the Natural History Museum, Tring, nor in the
Musee d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris.
Files in circulation
Little Shearwater Puffinus assimilis elegans
Specimen found dead at Musselburgh, Lothian,1990.
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus ruber
Review of migration and movements to assess likelihood of natural vagrancy
from both western and eastern populations.
Bufflehead Bucephala albeola
Review of all pre-1958 records, following receipt of new information
relating to the first record (Norfolk 1830).
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus and Griffon
Vulture Gyps fulvus
Review of all records as part of the review of all species currently in
Category B.
Purple Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio
Sandscale Haws, Cumbria, 23-28 October 1997.
Oriental Turtle Dove Streptopelia orientalis meena
Spurn, Humberside, November 1975. Only the nominate race is currently
accepted.
Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe
Slapton, Devon, 22 April 1987. Previously not accepted (Ibis 136:
254); under reconsideration following receipt of further information.
Nightingale Luscinia megarynchos hafizi
Spurn, Humberside, 1991 record currently under assessment.
Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros
Review of all records of one of the eastern group of races ochruros/
phoenicuroides/ semirufus in the light of new information on Common
Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus x Black Redstart P. ochruros hybrids.
Olivaceous Warbler Hippolais pallida
Isle of May, Fife, 24-26 September 1967 and review of earlier records.
Booted Warbler Hippolais caligata rama
Lerwick, Shetland, 22 October-9 November 1993.
Booted Warbler Hippolais caligata annectens
Theddlethorpe Dunes, Lincolnshire,12 October 1980.
Iberian Chiffchaff Phylloscopus brehmii
Following the separation of Chiffchaff into four species (Press Release
dated 19 January 1998), field descriptions and sound recordings of a singing
bird at Brent Reservoir, Greater London, on 3 June 1972, the song of which
contains many elements of the song of this species, are being examined to
determine whether the species should be admitted to the British List.
Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica
First summer, Fair Isle, Shetland, 1-2 July 1992. Previously not accepted (Ibis
136: 254); under reconsideration following receipt of further
information..
Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki
First-winter male, Sunk Island Battery, Stone Creek, Humberside, 16-17
November 1991. Previously not accepted (Ibis 136: 255); under
reconsideration following receipt of further information.
July 1998
New BOU Records Committee Member
Dr Tony Prater has been appointed by BOU Council to succeed Professor
David Parkin who retired from the Committee in May. Tony has worked for the
BTO and RSPB since 1968 in Hertfordshire, Sussex, Norfolk and central Wales,
where he is currently based. He is particularly interested in waders and is
a joint author of Shorebirds and Guide to the Identification and
Ageing of Holarctic Waders. He has been an active birder and ringer
since 1962 and has travelled widely on all continents. He is especially
interested in the taxonomy of species as it relates to biodiversity and
conservation issues.
English Bird Names
Following the pioneering work on English names carried out by the BOURC,
the Committee fed recommendations and comments to a working group reporting
to the International Ornithological Congress (IOC). This group, originally
chaired by Burt Monroe Jr, aimed to produce a coherent world list of English
names which might find international acceptance. The project stalled with
the death of Burt Monroe, but has been actively running again for some time,
and there will be an extensive discussion on English names at the IOC in
Durban in August this year.
To prevent confusion at this
stage, the BOURC decided not to change any English names during the
preparation of The British List which was issued earlier this year.
The Committee will be reviewing the question of English names after the
Congress and, if appropriate, making recommendations to BOU Council.
May 1998
< class="fontb3">New Chairman for BOURC
At the BOU’s April Annual General Meeting, Prof. David Parkin retired
as Chairman of the BOU’s Records Committee after serving his four-year
term and seven years in total as a member of BOURC.
BOU Council have appointed
existing BOURC member, Tony Marr, as the new Chairman of BOURC. Tony, an
active birder living in Cley, Norfolk, has been a member of BOURC since
1992. In 1996 he took early retirement to concentrate on his ornithological
interests which include travel, lecturing, writing and photography. He
regularly leads tours to China and Antarctica and seabird trips around
Madeira, the Canaries and off Senegal. He was first Secretary, and later
President, of the Sussex Ornithological Society, and was a driving force
behind the creation of the Local Nature Reserve at Pagham and Rye Harbours.
He has served as a member of the RSPB Council for two five-year terms.
In thanking David Parkin, BOU
President John Croxall said "David oversaw the work of this high
profile BOU committee during a period which has seen many important advances
in both taxonomic and categorisation issues. Under his leadership, they
continued to speed up the decision making of BOURC and a more open
relationship between the BOURC, the popular birding media and wider
birdwatching community, for which the BOU is extremely thankful."
On his appointment, Tony Marr
commented "I am determined that BOURC continues to provide a timely,
fair and objective service to the scientific, birding and conservation
communities. With Avian taxonomy subject to ever-increasing and accelerating
change, I see this as a vital area for the Committee to develop further over
the coming years."
January 1998
Chiffchaff separated into four species
Following earlier work by Christian Erard, Marc Salomon and others,
recent research in Germany by Andreas Helbig, Jochen Martens and colleagues
has shown that the Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita should be
split into at least four separate species. Evidence from acoustics,
morphology and molecular biology has been published in the BOU journal Ibis
(138: 650-666) revealing that birds from Iberia P. brehmii and the
Canary Islands P. canariensis are clearly distinct. Furthermore, the
populations inhabiting mountainous regions of the Caucasus and eastern
Turkey across into Afghanistan are separable into two closely similar forms P.
sindianus and P. (sindianus) lorenzii that are best treated as
subspecies for now, but which future research may show to be similarly
distinct. The birds that inhabit the rest of Europe, from the Pyrenees to
western Russia form a clinal group from the familiar greenish-olive birds (collybita)
of the south-west through Scandinavia (abietinus) into the drab
olive-grey (tristis) of western Siberia. Helbig et al. suggest
that their molecular data do not support the specific separation of tristis
from the other two forms, although again, future research may modify these
conclusions.
Following these findings, the BOU
Records Committee (BOURC) has recommended that Chiffchaff be separated into
four species:
• Common Chiffchaff
P. collybita
• Canary Islands Chiffchaff
P. canariensis
• Iberian Chiffchaff
P. brehmii
• Mountain Chiffchaff
P. sindianus.
There are at present no accepted records of the latter three species from
Britain.
Iberian Chiffchaff and the British list
In December 1997, at a BOU meeting in London, Professor Jochen Martens
discussed some of these findings in a symposium devoted to the study of
avian acoustics. Following the meeting, Prof. Martens was sent a recording
of a singing ‘chiffchaff’ found at Brent Reservoir, Greater London, by
J. H. Wood on 3rd June 1972, and also seen and recorded later that day by Dr
Leo Batten. After analysis, Prof. Martens was able to confirm that this
recording contains many elements of the song of Iberian Chiffchaff P.
brehmii. The field descriptions and the analysis from Germany are now
being examined by the BOURC to determine whether Iberian Chiffchaff should
be admitted to the British list.
Further on any of the above or other BOURC related items please contact:
Tony Marr, Chairman, BOURC Email bourc.chair@bou.org.uk
Ian Dawson, Secretary, BOURC Email bourc.sec@bou.org.uk
Steve Dudley, BOU Administrator Email steve.dudley@bou.org.uk
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