[NatureNS] 6 Reasons to Go See the Common Myna in Pubnico

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Date: Thu, 4 Jul 2013 17:58:51 -0700 (PDT)
From: Clarence Stevens <birder_ca@yahoo.com>
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=0A=0A=0A=0A________________________________=0A=0A6 Reasons to Go See the C=
ommon Myna =0A=0A=0AReason # 1. Eye Candy - In the field guides this specie=
s is a very distinctive patterned species but this is one of those birds th=
at until you see it in real life, it is hard to appreciate just how beautif=
ul they are. I've seen thousands of Common Mynas before and I would have to=
 say this particular bird is a very brightly plumaged individual. =0A=0A=0A=
Reason # 2. Incredible Antics - This bird has very quick jerky type movemen=
ts. In a space of a few minutes we watched the bird assume several differen=
t positions, in rapid succession. This behaviour gave the bird a almost car=
toon-like quality that was very entertaining to watch. =0A=0A=0AReason # 3.=
 Great Opportunity - For most, if not all Nova Scotia birders, this will be=
 their first opportunity to see a Common Myna in Nova Scotia, and who knows=
 when the next opportunity will come along. =0A=0A=0AReason # 4. Very Relia=
ble. - This is a very reliable individual. Local residents report that this=
 Common Myna has been seen daily in the same small area for about the month=
 now. =0A=0A=0AReason # 5. Very Easy to Find and See. - From Hwy 103, take =
Exit 31. Turn onto the 335 and drive though all the West Pubnicos (Upper We=
st, West, Middle West and Lower West) towards Pubnico Point. Exactly where =
the pavement ends you will see a blue house. In all my excitement I did not=
 see a house number but really you can't miss this house. =0A=0AThis bird i=
n very starling-like in its behavior, so it spends a good deal of time sitt=
ing on the overhead wires, walking around in the open, (in front of the hou=
ses or in the field across the street) and makes various starling-like soun=
ds. This is a very active bird, always doing or saying something. =0A=0A=0A=
Reason # 6 -You may be asking yourself is this bird countable ? - My advice=
 is to go see the bird now and you can always decide later. However if you =
do not go and at some later date it is determined that this particular bird=
 is countable then you are out of luck. =0A=0ATo further aid you in your de=
cision making process I am providing the following favourable facts and sta=
tements about the status of Common Myna in North America. =0A=0AFavourable =
Fact # 1. Ratified as a Countable species by the ABA since 2008. =0AIn 2008=
 Common Myna is added to the ABA Checklist as a Code 2 Species. The ABA pro=
vided the following definition for a code 2 species : =0A=E2=80=9CCode-1 an=
d Code-2: Regularly occurring North American avifauna. Includes regular bre=
eding species and visitors. There is no firm designation between Code-1 and=
 Code-2 species, except that logically Code-1 species are more widespread a=
nd are usually more numerous. Code-2 species have a restricted North Americ=
an range, are more widespread, but occur in lower densities, or are quite s=
ecretive making their detection often difficult. We readily acknowledge tha=
t some Code-2 species are harder to find than some species that have higher=
 codes. =0A=0AFavourable Fact # 2. Common Myna VS Hill Myna =0AThe Common M=
yna should not be confused with the closely related Hill Myna which continu=
es to be a popular cage bird because of its ability to mimic human speech. =
Although small numbers of Hill Mynas have escaped captivity and are now liv=
ing in parts of Florida and California their populations are not viable eno=
ugh to be currently countably in North America. =0A=0AIn regards to these t=
wo species an article in the magazine 'Birding' September 2011 edition had =
this to say, =E2=80=9CPerhaps surprisingly, birders in Florida often confus=
e Hill Mynas with Common Mynas; Common Myna is a countable species based on=
 the Florida population (Pranty, B. 2007b. Status and distribution of Commo=
n Myna (Acridotheres tristis) in Florida. North American Birds 61:658=E2=80=
=93665.).=E2=80=9D =0A=0AFavourable Fact # 3. Rapidly Expanding Population.=
 =0AIn The Sibley Guide to Birds, he classifies the status of the Common My=
na on page 417 of his guide as =E2=80=9CRapidly increasing population in so=
uthern Florida=E2=80=9D. =0AIn recent visits to Florida I also observed lar=
ge flocks of these birds in central Florida and smaller numbers in northern=
 Florida. =0A=0AFavourable Fact # 4. Other Sightings Outside of Florida =0A=
In a very quick internet search I found the following reports. I am sure th=
at a more thorough search would turn up additional accounts. =0A=0A1. The l=
ongest established Common Myna population in North America is not in Florid=
a but in Hawaii where the birds where introduced in 1866 and by the 1970's =
they had spread to all of the Southeastern Hawaiian Islands. =0A=0A2. May 2=
002 a Common Myna is reported from Sapelo Island, Georgia, and is believe t=
o be an early indication of dispersal from Florida. (Pranty 2008). Pranty a=
lso stated at that time that =E2=80=9C Mynas have been found in Florida up =
to 500 kilometers from the Miami area=E2=80=9D. =0A=0A3. Outside of Nova Sc=
otia, the most current myna report I could find was from June 23, 2013 of C=
ommon Mynah sighted at Wingfield Park in downtown Reno, Nevada. =0A=0AFavou=
rable Fact # 5. Not Just Another Exotic. =0ABill Pranty the leading expert =
on Common Mynas in Florida has this to say of behave on the ABA's decision:=
=0A=E2=80=9COf the 957 species currently on the ABA Checklist, 936 (98%) ar=
e native to the ABA Area or have naturally strayed from other regions. Very=
 few exotic species have been added to the Checklist, and five of these hav=
e been removed because their North American populations have been extirpate=
d. Thus, there is always trepidation when the Committee votes to add anothe=
r exotic to the ABA Checklist. The Common Myna has a moderately large and g=
reatly expanding=0Apopulation in Florida, and the species has successfully =
colonized many temperate and tropical areas of the world. Based on these fa=
cts, the Committee considers the Common Myna to be established in the ABA A=
rea. Clewiston, Florida; 27 April 2008. =C2=A9 Bill Pranty.=E2=80=9D =0A=0A=
Countable or not, I think it would be well worth anyone's while to go to se=
e the Pubnico Point Common Myna. =0A=0ADad and I wish to express Special Th=
anks to to Johnny & Sandra Nickerson for providing us with additional detai=
ls as to where to look for the bird and to Ronnie D'Entremont & Sharon for =
being on site and literally pointing to the bird so we could effortlessly e=
njoy Dad's 400th lifer for Nova Scotia. Congrat