Acknowledgments

As with any project of this scope, a great many people contributed to the book in your hands. First among these were the seminal figures in California ornithology, whose ambitious pioneering efforts set down the foundation upon which all modern-day efforts rest. Especially influential are the works of Rollo H. Beck, William L. Dawson, Laurence M. Huey, Joseph Grinnell, Alden H. Miller, and A. J. van Rossem. In particular, Grinnell—the unchallenged father of California ornithology—has left an indelible mark on everything that the Committee accomplishes. Let us next acknowledge the past and present Committee members (Table B, page 10) and every last individual who has contributed information to the Committee (Appendix E), all of whom have helped to build the CBRC’s exhaustive database. Past Committee Chair Matthew T. Heindel was especially supportive and helpful in the final stages of this project.

Richard A. Erickson, Shawneen E. Finnegan, Kimball L. Garrett, Matthew T. Heindel, Guy McCaskie, Peter Pyle, Don Roberson, Stephen C. Rottenborn, and Scott B. Terrill penned initial drafts of various species accounts. Building upon this foundation, Michael A. Patten and Robert A. Hamilton acted as the principal writers of the introductory material and species accounts. Hamilton wrote the original descriptions of geographic ranges, which were vetted and improved upon by Paul E. Lehman and Jon L. Dunn. Hamilton, Patten, and Erickson edited the species accounts and compiled the records, making use of a master list first brought together by Don Roberson and thereafter corrected and updated extensively by Patten. Erickson was primarily responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the record tables within species accounts. Hamilton, with considerable assistance from Erickson, Patten, and Lehman, incorporated the reviewers’ comments and attempted to establish consistency in language and tone across the species accounts. Western Field Ornithologists hired experienced copy editors Philip Unitt and David M. Compton to polish the final drafts.

The book’s layout was Hamilton’s responsibility, with timely technical assistance from Allan Der and Sabrina Nichols. Larry Sansone, with help from his wife Pamela, contributed considerable time and talent in his role as photo editor. Peter LaTourrette prepared for publication the images in color plates 1–55, and Hamilton prepared the rest. Mike San Miguel performed an early search for published photos of review-list birds. Patten prepared the charts depicting species’ seasonal and annual occurrence. Peter J. Pang and Virginia Maynard prepared the maps, with Erickson’s assistance. Erickson and other employees of LSA Associates provided numerous other technical and production services throughout the process; LSA’s contributions of tools and materials were also substantial. The Oklahoma Biological Survey underwrote much of the time Patten spent on this project in recent years.

In addition to recognizing his particular contributions to this book project, we cannot pass up this opportunity to acknowledge the profoundly important roles that Guy McCaskie has filled on behalf of the CBRC. After completing his 27th year as a voting member in 1999 (still four years more than anyone else, as of 2006), he has proceeded to tack on another seven as the Committee’s nonvoting secretary. In this latest capacity—a time-intensive job that only a hardy few have taken on during the CBRC’s long history—McCaskie has once again led by example at a crucial time in the Committee’s development. Whatever success this book achieves, a great deal of credit belongs to Guy.

Among those who examined early drafts of this book, reviews by Jon L. Dunn, Guy McCaskie, Michael M. Rogers, and Peter Pyle were especially salutary. Pyle’s work included assessing the age and sex of the birds depicted in this book’s photographs and sketches, as well as homogenizing the treatment of age and sex in the tables of records. We also received useful early input from Luke W. Cole, Steve N. G. Howell, Tristan (Bert) McKee, Steven G. Mlodinow, Joseph Morlan, David Vander Pluym, and Alan Wormington.

In 2003 Lehman came on board to serve as the project’s managing editor, a job that included conducting a thorough review of the manuscript and recruiting the following expert reviewers to do likewise: Matthew T. Heindel, Marshall J. Iliff, Tony Leukering, Curtis A. Marantz, Guy McCaskie, and Don Roberson. Whether fortuitously or through Lehman’s grand design, their comments and critiques tended to complement, rather than duplicate, each other. The review by Marantz was especially detailed. Richard G. Jeffers became involved later in the process and improved the many accounts he worked on, as well as the Literature Cited. Readers who appreciate this book’s accuracy, consistency, and completeness owe each of these gentlemen a debt of gratitude.

The following people made a special effort to check the accuracy of this book’s cited references: David M. Compton, Kimball L. Garrett, Richard G. Jeffers, Guy McCaskie, David E. Quady, Thomas P. Ryan, and Mike San Miguel. Jeffers and McCaskie deserve special mention for their contributions in this respect.

As a later data-filtering step, the following local experts reviewed the date spans and overall treatment of records from their “home” counties (identified below by standard county abbreviations; see Appendix C): William G. Bousman (SCL); David M. Compton (SBA); Mark Eaton (SF–mainland); David Fix (DN, HUM); Matthew T. Heindel (KER); Tom and Jo Heindel (INY); Sandy Koonce (SBE); Gary S. Lester (DN, HUM); Thomas M. Edell and Thomas M. Edell and Curtis A. Marantz (SLO); Guy McCaskie (IMP, RIV–Salton Sea, SD); Chet McGaugh (RIV–away from Salton Sea); Kristie N. Nelson (MNO); Don Roberson (MTY); David L. Suddjian (SCZ); and Walter Wehtje (VEN). Most county reviewers also scanned the manuscript for typographical errors, catching a great many. Especially helpful in this respect were Compton, Fix, the Heindels, and Lester.

The following volunteers reviewed the penultimate draft manuscript: Mark J. Billings, Luke W. Cole, David Fix, Kimball L. Garrett, Matthew T. Heindel, Marshall J. Iliff, Richard G. Jeffers, Paul E. Lehman, Gary S. Lester, Guy McCaskie, Peter Pyle, David E. Quady, Michael M. Rogers, Larry Sansone, Brad Schram, and Richard E. Webster. Nearly a year later, Heindel, Iliff, Lehman, Jeffers, McCaskie, and Rogers gave the final draft manuscript one last going-over before it went to press.

For assistance with the CBRC archives, with other necessary research, and with book storage, special thanks to René Corado, Jon C. Fisher, Linnea S. Hall, Chrystal Klabunde, Peg Stevens, and the rest of the staff at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo. We also availed ourselves of the time and talents of the following personnel at their respective museums and institutions: Gerald T. Braden, Eugene A. Cardiff, and Robert L. McKernan at the San Bernardino County Museum; Paul W. Collins at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History; James Dean, Cristián Samper, and Ross Simons at the United States National Museum; John P. Dumbacher, Maureen E. Flannery, and Douglas J. Long at the California Academy of Sciences; Paul M. Finnegan and Ron L. Kettlewell at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History; Kimball L. Garrett and Kathy C. Molina at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County; Tamar Danufsky and Stanley W. Harris at Humboldt State University; Tom Johnson at Princeton Imaging; Carla Cicero, the late Ned K. Johnson, and Craig Moritz at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley; Tina Nance at the Los Angeles Public Library; Alison Pirie and Jeremiah Trimble at the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University; Greg Toffic at Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo; Thomas S. Schulenberg at the Field Museum of Natural History; and Philip Unitt at the San Diego Natural History Museum.

Others who assisted in our research include Kevin Calhoon of the Tennessee Bird Records Committee; Alan Contreras; Troy E. Corman of the Arizona Game and Fish Department; Brian E. Daniels; Kent Fiala, editor of The Chat; Allen Fish of the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory; Rick Fridell of the Nevada Bird Records Committee; Daniel D. Gibson and Thede G. Tobish of the Alaska Checklist Committee; Steven A. Glover; Michel Gosselin of the Canadian Museum of Nature; Scott Gremel of the National Park Service; Roy M. Jones and Mark M. Stevenson of the Arizona Bird Records Committee; Geoffrey S. LeBaron of the National Audubon Society; Harry E. LeGrand of the North Carolina Bird Records Committee; Jim McCormac of the Ohio Bird Records Committee; Steven G. Mlodinow and Terry R. Wahl of the Washington Bird Records Committee; Robert Muller and Dieter Wilkin of the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden; Harry Nehls and David Irons of the Oregon Bird Records Committee; Helen Neuberger and Bill Thompson of Bird Watcher’s Digest; Rick Toochin; Kent Van Vuren; and Sartor O. Williams III of the New Mexico Bird Records Committee.

David E. Quady thoroughly reviewed several species accounts and the index, and through his efforts Chevron Corporation provided funding toward this book’s publication. Mike San Miguel was also instrumental in obtaining this grant. He, fellow past president of Western Field Ornithologists David G. Yee, and current president David Krueper have been champions of this project. Thanks also to California Audubon and its Director of Conservation, Graham Chisholm, for a generous contribution that helps to offset this book’s printing costs. Finally, we express our sincere gratitude to W. David Shuford, vice president Catherine Waters, and the rest of the Board of Western Field Ornithologists.