Unofficial word is out that the AOU Checklist Committee has voted to
split the eastern and western forms of the winter wren as of next July.
This makes a lot of sense to the many birders who have wondered at the
differences in their vocalizations. Apparently this was a major clue to
their genetic differences. You can compare vocalizations of winter wrens
from the west and east coasts, as well as others from China, on the
Borror Lab site http://blb.biosci.ohio-state.edu/database.html  It's
always a treat to listen to winter wrens from anywhere.
Bill Whan
Columbus
p.s. take the time to surf around the Borror Lab site; I stumbled across
the stridulations of the wolf spider and the calls of the square-lipped
rhinoceros, both recorded in Ohio!




http://www.azfo.org/gallery/2009/html1/WIWR_Mesa_Moore_20090124.html
http://birding.typepad.com/peeps/2009/12/winter-wren-proposed-as-two-distinct-species.html
http://www.aou.org/committees/nacc/proposals/pending.php

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