In developing an accepted list of the birds of Ohio, we agree on
evidence from museum specimens, photographs, and careful descriptions to
verify the occurrence of the 400-plus species known to have been present
in the state. One source of evidence to verify
the presence of certain species in Ohio, however, has not been
carefully considered. Specimens collected in Ohio which have ended up in
museums in other states have not been carefully considered.
        More and more museums have made available lists of tag data and even
photographs for specimens in their collections, and this has made
studies of them easier to conduct. As of now, only the Ohio State
University Museum has made available its bird holdings on the internet
in Ohio, but other large museums, such as in Cincinnati and Cleveland,
have for years promised to do likewise. Who knows, we may find new Ohio
species in their care.
        I have tentatively explored the online records, and found that
Ohio specimens of rarities, even species not known to have ever been
collected in Ohio, can be found. Examples are a 1905 Brewer's Sparrow
#90484 from Hamilton County in 1905 now at Univ. Kansas (possibly
dubious), lots of old Ohio records of rarities like yellow rails,
passenger pigeons, Kirtland's warblers, jaegers, gyrfalcons, murres, a
cross of yellow-bellied and red-naped sapsuckers, etc. The Records
Committee needs to troll through the holdings of important museums to
find examples of new Ohio species, as well as occurrences at odd times
of the year, etc.
Bill Whan
Columbus

______________________________________________________________________

Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society.
Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php.
Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.


You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at:
listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS
Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]