Arkansas Bird Records Committee - Arkansas Audubon Society

Arkansas Bird Records Committee

One of the objectives of the Arkansas Audubon Society has been to contribute to the knowledge of birds in Arkansas through the permanent maintenance of bird records for the state. The Arkansas Bird Records Committee, a committee of five members chaired by the AAS Curator, is responsible for determining the validity of reports of birds in Arkansas that are rare in the state, difficult to identify, or seen out of season. Noteworthy records that have been accepted by the ABRC appear in the Curator’s report, published each quarter in the AAS newsletter, Arkansas Birds. The ABRC also maintains and periodically publishes the official Arkansas State Bird List.

Brief sketch of the Arkansas Birds Records Committee

I recently went through some files that Doug James has kept on Arkansas Audubon Society, dating back to the beginning in the mid-1950s. Among many items is this report by Doug in his role as the society’s first curator: "1955-56 report of the curator of the Arkansas Audubon Society." The report noted that 60 people (named in the report) had contributed 3,600 sight records that were curated on 3 X 5 inch index cards within the last year. This file eventually grew to 40,000 records, and these formed the basis for the book Arkansas Birds (1986).

As curator, Doug made all decisions about what records were, or were not, acceptable. In terms of how he treated great rarities, most of the older hands from that time agreed it helped a lot to get a record accepted if Doug got to see the bird! Arkansas had many fewer genuinely skilled birders in its early days. Doug’s caution and experienced skepticism helped to maintain the society’s credibility.

Now forward almost 30 years: in the spring of 1984, AAS amended its bylaws and created its first bird records committee. Joe Neal was curator, and the first BRC consisted of William Shepherd, Charles Mills, Max Parker, and Doug James. In a letter (May 21, 1984) I addressed to this first BRC, I wrote, "The purpose of the committee is to help the curator with difficult records. Your yes or no on the records will decide whether or not certain records become a permanent part of our file of bird sightings." This first BRC operated without bylaws.

Under Max Parker’s leadership as curator, the BRC began to operate under bylaws in 1996. These bylaws are reproduced below. Other than founder Doug James, Max Parker was the longest serving curator. Max’s tenure was from January 1986 to October 2007.

Currently, Joe Neal has returned as curator. Members of the BRC are Doug James, Charles Mills, Kenny Nichols, and Chris Kellner.

When Max turned over the society’s files to me in fall 2007, he told me the following: "It’s better to reject a good record, than to accept a poor record." He attributed this statement to Art Johnson of Conway. He followed this philosophy and encouraged me to do the same.

A major component of files Max turned over to me were paper documents -- rare bird documentation forms. Nearly 1000 had been submitted over the years. Since that time, the number has grown to at least 1,015. Accepted documents receive a sequential number, which can then be used as a citation in a scientific paper (e.g., AAS no. XXXX).

All bird records submitted to the curator since 1986 have been entered into a database and all of these are easily searched by visiting the AAS website. Since early 2008, all records are self-service: submitted online by observers, vetted by the curator, then uploaded to the searchable database.

The society also has a collection of documentary images. In past years, these were slides and prints. Since early 2008, most documentary images have been submitted electronically (.JPG files). These images are stored on a hard drive, along with rare bird documents, which are now also electronic rather than paper.

The Bird Records Committee has never had regular meetings of any kind. Meetings, such as they occur, are informal, typically at a society spring or fall convention. The committee’s work was once all done by mail or telephone. Today, most of it is done by email.

-- submitted by Joe Neal May 2009

BYLAWS OF THE

ARKANSAS BIRD RECORDS COMMITTEE (1996)

I. Name and affiliation

A. Name. The official name of this organization shall be the "Arkansas Bird Records Committee," hereinafter referred to as the "ABRC".

B. Affiliation. This is a committee of the Arkansas Audubon Society, Inc.

II. Purpose

A. Determine the validity of reports of birds in Arkansas that are rare in the state, difficult to identify, or seen out of season.

B. Maintain permanently the original documentation of reports submitted, and all results of committee votes and comments for future use by interested parties. [After a reasonable length of time, the material may be deposited in the University of Arkansas Library.]

C. Publish in ARKANSAS AUDUBON SOCIETY NEWSLETTER (a quarterly publication) at least minimal information on all reports receiving a decision.

E. Establish high standards of observation and reporting that will set a positive example for, and encourage, other field observers.

F. Maintain, update and periodically publish the official Arkansas state bird list, following the nomenclature and sequence of the current edition of the AOU Checklist and its Supplements.

III. Membership

A. Number and Definitions. The ABRC shall consist of the Curator, who shall serve as chair, and four other members. The Curator is an elected officer and board member of the Arkansas Audubon Society. The other four members are appointed by the Curator, approved by vote of the Arkansas Audubon Society Board of Directors, and serve at the pleasure of that Board and the Curator. Each member of the ABRC shall have one vote on such reports of birds as shall come before the committee.

B. Duties

1. The Curator will receive and evaluate Verifying Documentation of bird reports; for those requiring action by the ABRC, the Curator shall circulate copies to all Committee Members.

2. All five members shall vote on all documents circulated. A member may not abstain from voting.

C. Alternates. The Curator shall select one or more knowledgeable people to serve as alternate members whenever the committee is considering a report submitted by one or more of the regular members.

D. Votes. Votes shall be to accept or not accept bird reports. A vote not to accept must be accompanied by comments explaining reasons for that vote.

IV. Bird Records

A. Definitions. For purposes of the ABRC and these Bylaws a "report" is a written documentation submitted to the curator to substantiate the identity of a bird that has been sighted, heard, banded, collected, tape-recorded or photographed within the boundaries of Arkansas.

B. Verifying Documentation Form. The ABRC has prepared a preferred form, which is attached. All reports of extraordinary bird records should be submitted on the official form.

C. Policy. Documentations received by the Curator will not necessarily require circulation. All "First, Second and Third State Records" shall be circulated to the ABRC members, but in the case of other documents, discretion of the Curator will determine the necessity for circulation.

V. Decisions

A. A Verifying Documentation that has been circulated shall be considered accepted if it receives no more than one "Not Accepted" vote, or at least four "Accepted" votes; otherwise it is rejected.

B. A Report that has been rejected may be recirculated if the Curator receives additional identification material. All documentation of rejected reports shall remain on file.

C. A Report that has been accepted will be considered a usable record with respect to the official Arkansas State Bird List.

D. On the initiative of the Curator or of any two members of the committee, the committee may re-examine the evidence for any accepted record. In such a case, the standard for retaining/ rejecting the record shall be the same as for a new report, i.e. at least four votes to retain/accept.

VI. Adoption

A. Bylaws. These Bylaws must be approved by a majority vote of the Committee Members.

B. Changes. These Bylaws may be changed or amended by a majority vote of the Committee Members.

The latest Curator's report from the AAS newsletter, Arkansas Birds: Distribution and Abundance of Arkansas Birds - Summer Season- June - July, 2009

Note: Recently, much data has become available about the distribution of birds in Arkansas, where one can relatively easily, compare the past year with previous years. Thus, one can, with some confidence, determine whether a year was a "good" year or a "bad" year for a species, now, whereas in the past, this determination would have been nearly impossible. In order to take advantage of the above information, the most salient deviations from the norm of last fall's birds are pointed out below ‹ even if only common species are involved. These deviations were determined by examining three sources: The Great Backyard Bird Count, Source G; the Arkansas Christmas Bird counts, Source C; and E-Bird, Source E..

The newsletter does not have the space to list all the important records of the season, so only the most striking records are included. But, all records that were accepted by the curator are included in the online data base for Arkansas birds at arbirds.org.

Contributors are mentioned by name the first time in the following report and by initials thereafter. Thank you for submitting reports.

Note: The “numbers of records” referred to below are actually the numbers of entries in the AAS database, and do not always coincide exactly with the real numbers of records.

FULVOUS WHISTLING-DUCK—Eight were found west of Winchester, Drew 7/6, and up to twenty-ﬁve, a large number for Arkansas, were counted at Camp Nine Farm, Desha, where this species was seen throughout the summer; all by Dick Baxter. The Drew birds were at a new location for this species, while the others were also seen last summer at Camp Nine Farm.

NORTHERN SHOVELER—A female was seen at the Joe Hogan Fish Hatchery, Lonoke 7/26 by Jim Dixon. This bird is rare in summer, especially in July. BLACK SCOTER—A ﬁrst-year male was found at Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge 5/31 by Jeff Wilson and Gail King, the latest spring date for Arkansas.

RUDDY DUCK—Fifteen were seen at Treadway’s Minnow Farm, Prairie 7/26 (JD). Not as unusual as most ducks at this season, these are reported in about half the summers.

COMMON LOON—One, in breeding plumage, was found by Dave Specht and Debbie Whitecotton 7/12 and later photographed 7/26 & 7/27 by Carolyn Minson, and John & Marilyn Williams. There are only 3 to 4 other summer records in the last 24 years.

BROWN PELICAN—An immature was seen at Bald Knob, White 7/22 by Kenny Nichols, LaDonna Nichols, Bill Alexander, and Robert Pearrow. There are only two previous summer records; nineteen for all seasons.

LEAST BITTERN—These were found nesting at Camp Nine Farm, Desha and at Frog Bayou, Crawford. One hundred, the largest number ever reported, were estimated to have been present at Camp Nine Farm, 6/27 (DBa, KN). Two birds were seen at Frog Bayou 7/6 (Joe Neal, Scott Michaud), and 4 to 6 adults and one ﬂedgling were seen there 7/11 (JN, David Oakley, Jacque Brown), providing a very unusual nesting record for western Arkansas.

TRICOLORED HERON—One was found two miles north of Kelso, Desha 6/8 (DBa). There are only three other records for this species in June since 1986.

YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON—Two adults and two ﬂedglings were observed feeding on crawﬁsh at Frog Bayou, Crawford 7/3 (JN, JB, DO), and an adult was found at Devil’s Den State Park, Washington 7/27 (Joanie Patterson). The ﬁrst record is only the third report of nesting since 1986, while the second record is a report from nw. Arkansas, where the species is somewhat rare.

WOOD STORK—Twenty-ﬁve were noted at Woodard Lake, Palmer Bayou, Ouachita 6/8 (Kelly Chitwood, Carrie Davis), one of the earliest reports of this species, and the only one for Ouachita in the online database; and four were seen at Raft Creek Bottoms Wildlife Management Area, White 7/25 (KN, LN), a locally early occurrence.

OSPREY—For the tenth consecutive summer a pair were seen occupying a nest at Lake Conway, Faulkner 7/1 (Dan Scheiman). Ospreys are very sparse breeders in Arkansas.

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE—Very rare statewide, one was sighted at Lake Fayetteville, Washington 7/28 by Mike Mlodinow.

NORTHERN HARRIER—A male was discovered 6/7, ten miles east of Malvern, Grant by Cody Fields. This is the ﬁrst June record in at least 24 years.

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK—Leif Anderson found two active nests near Hector, Pope: on one he saw two adults and a ﬂedgling 6/19, while at the other, in a stand of relatively old Shortleaf Pines, on 6/25, he could see only a single adult. This is a very rare nesting species.

PURPLE GALLINULE—Rare, local, and found mainly in southern Arkansas, two were sighted at Bois d’Arc Wildlife Management Area, Hempstead 7/5 (KN, LN); and one to two were observed at Camp Nine Farm, Desha, 6/24 to 7/31, (DBa), the ﬁrst sighting at this location in nineteen years.

COMMON MOORHEN—Three hundred, the third highest count for Arkansas, were counted at Camp Nine Farm, Desha 6/27 (DBa, KN). This is an uncommon species, found mainly in southern Arkansas.

Submit all your bird records to the AAS Curator using our online form .

WILLET—One adult was seen at the Joe Hogan Fish Hatchery, Lonoke 7/28 by Devin Bosler. This species is very uncommon in both spring and fall. There are more records for August than for other months during the southbound migration.

MARBLED GODWIT—Two were seen at Anderson’s Minnow Farm, Lonoke 7/31 (JD, CP, DP, DM). These are rare fall migrants, when they are seen primarily in August and September, August having the most records.

RUDDY TURNSTONE—An adult in breeding plumage was found in sod farms near Kerr, Lonoke 7/30 (KN, LN). These are rare in fall migration, when the species has been reported more in August than in other months.

SANDERLING—One was seen at Anderson’s Minnow Farm, Lonoke 7/28 (KN, LN), while nine were, also, counted at the same location on the same day (DBo). During the fall, September has the plurality of records for this very uncommon migrant.

SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER—One was seen 6/17 at the Centerton Fish Hatchery, Benton (MM, Steve Erwin). The record is an unusually late, spring date.

PECTORAL SANDPIPER—Four were found on 6/17, an unusually late date, at the Centerton Fish Hatchery, Benton (MM, SE).

LEAST TERN—Twenty-ﬁve of this endangered species were found nesting on a sandbar in the Arkansas River near Mulberry, Crawford 7/8 (JN, Richard Stauffacher), an especially unusual occurrence in western Arkansas. Also, sixty-two, a very large number, were found at Anderson’s Minnow Farm, Lonoke 7/28 (DBo).

INCA DOVE—Heidi and Rick Farrar were surprised by one at Burn’s Hill Natural Area, Izard 6/6. This is as far northeast as the species has been reported in the state. It is rare outside of sw. Arkansas.

OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER—One was seen by H. D. Chapman at Lake Fayetteville, Washington 6/9, an unusually late date.

WESTERN KINGBIRD—A pair was found at a nest in se. Little Rock 6/22 by Guy Luneau. On 7/5 four young were seen in this nest (DSc, Samantha Holschbach). This species is a widespread nester in Fort Smith, but is otherwise a very local nesting species. The above location is a new nesting location.

SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER—Still rare in eastern Arkansas, one was observed near Lake Chicot State Park, Chicot 7/27 (KN, DBa).

SEDGE WREN—One was heard singing in the same spot at Lake Fayetteville, Washington 6/6 & 5/24 (MM). Both dates are very unusual for the state.

CEDAR WAXWING—The ninth nest in Arkansas was discovered by (HDC) at Lake Fayetteville, Washington 7/5. All nests have been in the nw. Ozarks.

PRAIRIE WARBLER—One was seen 7/9 at Lake Fayetteville, Washington (HDB) where it does not nest. This suggests that it was an early fall migrant.

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK—One was found at a feeder in Harrison, Boone 6/19 by Sally Jo Gibson. This is the third summer record, and the ﬁrst in 30 years.

Mike Mlodinow

Bird records reporter