Date: 2/7/26 9:44 pm From: Paul Conover via groups.io <zoiseaux...> Subject: Re: [labird] 30 May pelagic news
Labird,
Van has updated that the number of pelagic seats is down to 4.
Late May is always a promising time, with the thought that
northern-nesting migrants like Arctic Tern, the two pelagic phalaropes,
the jaegers, and Sabine's Gulls might be possible, but it might also be
a good opportunity to get a different look at migrants from the east:
Cory's/Scopoli's shearwaters. Reading Flood's excellent ID analyses on
the pair and looking at photos of Louisiana birds in eBird, it seems to
me that the overwhelming majority of our fall birds are Scopoli's, so
maybe spring could offer a better chance for Cory's. I'm wondering how
many Cory's we actually get here, though. While some specimens
apparently indicate Cory's, I didn't see any Louisiana photos that seem
to clearly be Cory's, and Cory's will be more difficult to ID given the
fast, distant looks we often get of these shearwaters. Many Scopoli's
are said to show as little pale at the base of the primaries as
Cory's--including an appreciable percentage of Scopoli's with solidly
dark primaries--so in terms of plumage, the Scopoli's with a good amount
of white in the outer primaries will be the easier and safer of the two
species to call. The overlap in bulk and bill size mostly seems to occur
on the Cory's end of the spectrum as well, so obviously daintier
Scopoli's will be the most distinctive. Cory's will take some work. It
will be interesting to try to sort the birds out in light of the
evolving ID picture. Let's hope some show up and pose well in May. Only
4 seats left!
Paul Conover
Lafayette
On 2/7/26 6:41 PM, Paul Conover via groups.io wrote:
> This from Van:
>
> "I have 6 spots left on an all-day pelagic trip out of Venice on
> Saturday 30 May. Cost ca. $200, or $190 if we can fill the boat.
> Contact me directly if interested or need more details.”
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