A Check-List of the Birds of Idaho

BY

M. DALE ARVEY



UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS PUBLICATIONS
MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

Volume 1, No. 10, pp. 193-216
November 29, 1947



University of Kansas
LAWRENCE
1947

University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History

Editors: E. Raymond Hall, Chairman, H. H. Lane, Edward H. Taylor

Volume 1, No. 10, pp. 193-216
Published November 29, 1947



University of Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas



PRINTED BY
FERD VOILAND, JR., STATE PRINTER
TOPEKA, KANSAS
1947

21-6960

A Check-list of the Birds of Idaho

By

M. DALE ARVEY

There is comparatively little literature dealing with the avifauna of Idaho, mostly because relatively few persons have done field work in the state. In the ornithological literature, there is nothing even comparable to a "state list," so that when birds supposedly unreported previously from Idaho are found, it is difficult to know whether or not they should be recorded as "new" to the state. The present paper has been prepared in the hope that it will stimulate additions to, and corrections of, the list. It is, admittedly, a beginning.

Material for the present article was obtained from personal collecting in the five years and ten months in which I resided in the state (October, 1938-September, 1944). Also, the published reports that could be found have been drawn upon; these publications are listed in the appended bibliography. Taxonomic problems, of which many are unsolved, are not here considered, since this is merely a list indicating whether or not the species or subspecies, as now understood, is known to be present, whether it is common, and where it might be found.

The nomenclature is that of the Fourth Edition of the American Ornithologists' Union Check-list and its supplements, except where a revision has been made that is seemingly valid but which has not yet been acted upon by the A. O. U. Committee. For each species or subspecies the objective is to give at least one reference to occurrence, as to date and place, as accurately as possible.

Reference is made to southern, central, and northern Idaho. These references denote the Snake River Plains, characterized by sagebrush desert; the wooded regions immediately to the north of this and in the foothills, extending to Idaho County in the west; and the so-called Panhandle, respectively. In all, 292 kinds of birds are recorded in the following list.

LIST OF SPECIES

Gavia immer elasson Bishop. Lesser Loon. Uncommon resident in the lakes of northern Idaho, and generally distributed. Merrill (1897:350) states that the species is common and resident at Fort Sherman.

Gavia stellata (Pontopiddan). Red-throated Loon. Davis (1935b:234) records specimens taken in migration in Minidoka County at the Minidoka Irrigation Project, and Rust (1915:121) states that this species is rare in Kootenai County.

Colymbus grisegena holböllii (Reinhardt). Holboell Grebe. Merrill (1897:349) records this species as common in migration at Fort Sherman.

Colymbus auritus Linnaeus. Horned Grebe. Uncommon resident. Davis (1935b:234) records the bird as a summer visitant at the Minidoka Project.

Colymbus nigricollis californicus (Heermann). Eared Grebe. Fairly common resident along rivers and in lakes. Rust (1915:121) records one specimen taken on Lake Coeur d'Alene in October, 1912.

Aechmophorus occidentalis (Lawrence). Western Grebe. Uncommon resident. Merrill (1897:349) records one specimen from Fort Sherman.

Podilymbus podiceps podiceps (Linnaeus). Pied-billed Grebe. Common resident. Merrill (1897:350) states that it is common at Fort Sherman in the spring and autumn.

Pelecanus erythrorhynchos Gmelin. White Pelican. Resident along the Snake River; large nesting colonies are to be found in Bear Lake County. See Davis (1935b:234) for nesting dates.

Phalacrocorax auritus albociliatus Ridgway. Farallon Cormorant. Davis (1935b:234) records this bird in the Minidoka Project as a regular migrant and gives dates of occurrence. The resident population at the Bear Lake Refuge has been reported as subspecies auritus by Behle (1944:68), but probably is albociliatus.

Ardea herodias treganzai Court. Treganza Great Blue Heron. Common resident in suitable localities. (Dale Arvey 1505, 7 mi. NE Moscow, Latah County, Idaho, February 19, 1940.)

Leucophoyx thula brewsteri (Thayer and Bangs). Brewster Egret. Davis (1935b:234) records one specimen from the Minidoka Project, taken on September 16, 1919, and Hayward (1934:39) reports the species as breeding at Bear Lake Valley in Bear Lake County.

Nycticorax nycticorax hoactli (Gmelin). Black-crowned Night Heron. Common locally. Hayward (1934:39) reports the bird as resident in Bear Lake Valley.

Botaurus lentiginosus (Montagu). American Bittern. Fairly common resident in suitable localities. Merrill (1897:351) records the American Bittern as rather common at Fort Sherman.

Plegadis mexicana (Gmelin). White-faced Glossy Ibis. Vagrant. Recorded as common at the Minidoka Project by Kenagy (1914:122).

Cygnus columbianus (Ord). Whistling Swan. Resident in the winter in the larger lakes, and transient along the Snake River. (D. A. 1783, 1 mi. S Hagerman, Gooding County, February 1, 1940.)

Cygnus buccinator Richardson. Trumpeter Swan. Merriam (1891:91) states that Bendire found this swan breeding on Henry Lake in 1877, and that two were collected in August of that year. Rust (1915:123) records the species as a rare fall migrant on Lake Coeur d'Alene. There are no recent records.

Branta canadensis (Linnaeus). Canada Goose. Fairly common resident. See Aldrich (1946b) for records of each subspecies.

Branta hutchinsii hutchinsii (Richardson). Hutchins Cackling Goose. Migrant. See Aldrich (1946b) for the status of this goose.

Branta bernicla nigricans (Lawrence). Black Brant. Davis (1935b:234) records this species as a regular migrant in Minidoka County, and indicates that some remain all winter.

Anser albifrons albifrons (Scopoli). White-fronted Goose. Uncommon migrant. Jones (1943:120) records a specimen from "about 10 mi. north Pocatello, Bingham County."

Chen hyperborea hyperborea (Pallas). Lesser Snow Goose. Fairly common transient along the Snake River. Two specimens are in the State Game Department's mounted collection from the Snake River, probably from near Payette, Payette County.

Chen rossi (Cassin). Ross Goose. Transient along the Snake River. The Game Department collection has two mounted skins from "along the Snake River."

Anas platyryhnchos platyryhnchos Linnaeus. Mallard. Very common resident. (D. A. 1753, Boise River, 1 mi. S Middleton, Canyon County, November 24, 1940.)

Anas acuta tzitzihoa (Vieillot). American Pintail. Resident and common during migration. (D. A. 1752, Snake River, 1 mi. S Hammett, Elmore County, November 16, 1940.)

Anas carolinensis Gmelin. Green-winged Teal.