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Posted by Bill Pranty on 22:16:25 10/15/06
In Reply to: Re: Did anyone see the Cuban Emerald today? posted by donna
Good evening Donna,
First off, my apologies for having overlooked your previous post. (And thanks to those who pointed out my lapse).
To answer your question, there have been several "reports" of the Cuban Emerald in Florida, including yours, but there is no verifiable "record," which is to say an observation that is supported by a photograph, videotape, or specimen of unquestioned identification and provenance. (Sight-only observations are often listed as "hypothetical" sightings).
The authors of the "several field guides" to which you referred must have taken a very liberal interpretation of what has been reported to occur in Florida or the US, and could not have been following the "official" Florida list that is maintained by the Florida Ornithological Society**. (The official list for the birds of North America, as maintained by the American Birding Association, available at http://www.americanbirding.org/checklist/abachecklist.pdf also is based solely on verifiable records).
The authors of most (all?) of the North American field guides published recently (say within the past six years, e.g., the Sibley Guides, the 4th and 5th editions of the National Geographic guide, and the new "Complete Birds of North America" also by National Geographic) follow the current Florida and ABA lists, and thereby do not include the Cuban Emerald.
**The "semi-current" official Florida list -- with at least one error: the "Variegated Flycatcher" was reidentified as a Piratic Flycatcher several years ago -- is available at (http://www.fosbirds.org/RecordCommittee/StateListFebruary2005.htm).
Sorry again for overlooking your earlier post.
Best regards
Bill Pranty
Bayonet Point, Florida
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