Greg Links wrote, in relevant part:
> As to the Review Species, well, there's not much that could have been done on these - they are defined by the OBRC, so they are all pretty much labeled correctly. I wonder why the Glossy Ibis, Ross's Goose and Cackling Goose for example, are on the review list still (and probably deserve Code 4 status instead of 5), but that is for the committee to figure out.
As a member of the Ohio Bird Record Committee up until last spring, I'll
try to respond to this point. Those three species, together with Rufous
Hummingbird, could well be dropped from the review list. We elected to
retain them on the list because we wanted to encourage continued
documentation, and the close observation that documentation requires, of
these species. Each is easily confused with another species (and, in the
case of Ross's Goose, a hybrid). During my tenure on the committee, we
rejected records of each of these birds, at least as to species, because
the observer failed to eliminate the relevant other species/hybrid.
Removing them from the list is something we discussed every year or two,
and I'm sure the current committee will do the same. Eventually, they'll
probably be dropped from the review list.
At any rate, that's why those species are on the list for now. By all
means, regard them as Code 4 as you devise your strategy for building an
Ohio big year.
On a related point, sharp-eyed readers will no doubt have noted that the
checklist includes 420 species (414 plus 6 extinct/extirpated), but the
official checklist as stated on the OOS web site includes only 419.
That's because the OBRC has accepted a White-throated Swift record, but
the decision has not yet been published in the Ohio Cardinal.
--
--
Ned Keller
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