White-winged Scoter

The White-winged Scoter is one of the world’s three scoters, all of which are seen in winter along the Washington coast.  They are all in the genus Melanitta from the Greek melas, black, and netta, a duck.  Heinrich Boie (1794-1827) Latinized the Greek word for duck and misspelled it.  However, the principle of priority allows the error to stand

Bullock's Oriole

Bullock's Oriole

Anyone who has grown up in the eastern United States knows about the Baltimore Oriole as a woodland and garden bird and the mascot of the baseball team with the same name. Less well known, however, is Bullock’s Oriole, the western North American counterpart to the Baltimore Oriole Icterus galbula.