The 1999 annual meeting of the Texas Bird Records Committee was held at the Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, on Saturday, 20 November 1999. In attendance were Members Election of Members Terry Maxwell's and Barry Zimmer's 1st terms expired in the fall of 1999, this left two vacancies to be filled at the meeting. There were two nominations for the two positions: Terry Maxwell and Barry Zimmer. Lockwood, Lasley and Arnold were again nominated for the positions of Chairman, Secretary and Academician. Lasley (Freeman: second) moved that the positions be filled by acclamation. The motion carried unanimously. Current membership and term of service are as follows: • Mark Lockwood, Chair - Term expires fall 2000; can
be re-elected Regular Agenda Items 1. 1995-17 Lesser Black-backed Gull Revision of Mailing Sequence New mailing sequence is as follows: Fast Tracking Returning Birds Lasley discussed a circulating record of Lesser Black-backed Gull from Seadrift, Calhoun County (TBRC 1996-170). The record had completed two rounds with 7-2 votes on both circulations. The gull was believed to be a returning bird that has been accepted the previous year (TBRC 1995-135, TPRF 1489). In the context of this discussion, Reid introduced the idea of fast-tracking returning birds. Discussion centered on the level of documentation needed for returning birds. Maxwell (second: Reid) moved that returning birds be fast-tracked if the secretary received detailed documentation. It would be up to the Secretary's discretion to determine if the record was a candidate for fast-tracking and if the documentation provided was adequate. The Secretary would notify all committee members by e-mail of any record considered for fast-tracking. If any member wanted the record circulated it would be. All fast-tracked records would receive a TBRC number. The motion passed unanimously. After acceptance of the motion, the committee voted 6-1 (Arnold dissenting) to accept TBRC 1996-170 under this provision. Motion to Remove California Gull from the list of Review Species Lockwood (second: Lasley) moved that California Gull be removed from the Review Species list. Lockwood provided a listing of the number of accepted records since 1989. California Gull exceeded the minimum requirement for inclusion on the Review List. The motion carried 7-0 to remove the species from the Review Species list. Motion to Remove Black-legged Kittiwake from the list of Review Species Lockwood (second: Reid) moved that Black-legged Kittiwake be removed from the Review Species list. Lockwood provided a listing of the number of accepted records since 1989. Black-legged Kittiwake exceeded the minimum requirement for inclusion on the Review List. The committee voted 7-0 to remove the species from the Review Species list. Motion to Remove Sabine's Gull from the list of Review Species Lockwood (second: Lasley) moved that Sabine's Gull be removed from the Review Species list. Lockwood provided a listing of the number of accepted records since 1989. This species did not meet the minimum requirement to be removed from the Review list. There was no disagreement about the removal of the species. The committee voted 7-0 to remove the species from the Review List. These birds, as with all species removed from the A list of review species, were placed on the B list. Definition of Upper, Central and Lower Texas coasts Freeman discussed the need for the TBRC to define the Upper, Central and Lower Texas coasts. He related that he was frequently asked how these areas were defined by the committee. The committee referred to the Checklist of Texas Birds (TOS 1995). Within that publication, these areas are defined. The dividing line between the upper and central coasts is the Brazoria-Matagorda county line. The dividing line between the central and lower coasts is the Nueces-Kleberg county line. Texas Ornithological Society Checklist Freeman introduced the need to begin the process of updating the TOS checklist. The level of revision that would be required was discussed at length. The fact that TOS may not have sufficient funds to pay for the reprinting was also discussed. Freeman, as the chair of the publications committee, had discussed having the checklist published through an academic press with the editor of Texas Birds magazine, Shannon Davies, prior to the meeting. Freeman agreed to investigate further the feasibility of having the checklist published outside of TOS. Status of White-cheeked Pintail on the Texas List The status of the single accepted record of White-cheeked Pintail for Texas (TPRF-141) was revisited. Since the 1997 Annual Meeting Lockwood had contacted Robert Norton, the regional editor for the West Indies region of North American Birds about inter-island movement of White-cheeked Pintails. Norton related that White-cheeked Pintails routinely moved between islands depending on the availability of fresh water. Lockwood also noted that in recent publications that movements of White-cheeked Pintails between islands in the Bahamas were noted. No motion was made to change the status of the species on the Texas state list. Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society Several members of the committee expressed concern about the continued publication of the TBRC Annual Report in the Bulletin after an e-mail from Bulletin editor to the Secretary suggesting that the Annual Report be placed on the Internet rather that formally published. The committee found this suggestion unacceptable. Lockwood agreed to draft a letter to TOS President Lily Engles that would express the committee's support of the Bulletin and the need for the continued publication of the Annual Report in a peer-reviewed journal. Adjournment There being no other formal business on the agenda, the meeting was adjourned at about 3:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Greg W. Lasley GWL:mwl
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