Figure1. Currentand historical taxonomic breakdown of Artthusrubescerts

A.0.U. 1957 WaterPipit (Artthus spinoletta)

A.0.U. 1983 WaterPipit RockPipit Buff-•e•liedPipit(B.0.U.) (A. spinoletta) (A petrosin) or AmericanPipit (A.0.U.) ! i (A r.•ens) A s. splnoletta A. p. pe•rosus Subspecies A. s. coutelll A. p. littoralis A. s. blakistoni "AmericanPipits" "SiberianPipit" A. r. rubescerts •r. japonicus A. r. alticola

Figure2. Field-basedsketch of a SiberianPipit seen on 29 October2001 in Ventura, California. Illustration by Andrew Birch.

Figure3. Field-basedsketches of a Siberian(left) and American (A. r. pacificus) Pipit (right) seen on 23 November 2001 nearPerds, California. Illustration by Cin-TyLee.

388 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Noteson the distribution,vagrancy, and field identification of American Pipit and "SiberianPipit" Cin-TyLee eachother dosely. For thisreason, we referto A. r.japonicus as "Siberian Departmentof EarlhScience, MS-126 Pipit" in this paperand to the threeNorth Americansubspecies collec- RiceUniversity tively as "AmericanPipit" (Fig. 1; see illustrationsof basic-plumaged R O. Box 1892 birdson frontcover of thejournal). Webelieve that thischoice of com- Houston,Texas 77251 mon terminologywill reduceconfusion if Siberianand American Pipits (email:ctlee•rice.edu) areaccorded status as separate species in the future. When we consider both formstogether, we hereemploy the namepreferred for all four in Andrew Birch the Palearctic the"Buff-belliedPipit complex. • 1037South Ogden Drive SiberianPipit is a vagrantto Europe,the Middle East,and alongthe LosAngeles, California 90019 Pacificcoast of North America,whereas American Pipits vagrate to west- (emaJl:[email protected]) ern Europe(rubescerts) and are possiblyrare winterersin easternAsia (pacificus).In greaterdetail, however, the vagrancypatterns of Siberian Introduction and AmericanPipits are poorlyknown, as there is a gapin the literature The pipit Anthusrubescens-•called American Pipit by the American regardingthe subspecificidentification of themembers of the Buff-bellied Ornithologists'Union (A. O. U. 1998),Buff-bellied Pipit by the British Pipitcomplex. To our knowledge,the onlyrecent sources to addressthe Ornithologists'Union (B. O. U. 1986)•is currentlydivided into four complexare Parkes(1982) and Phillips(1991). However,both sources subspecies:japonicus, pacificus, ahicola, and rubescerts (A.O.U. 1957). The focusprimarily on identificationof thethree American subspedes in alter- first subspecies,japonicus, may be a candidatefor full-speciesstatus nateplumage. Alstr6mand Mild (1996), Lewingtonet al. (1991), and accordingto theAmerican Ornithologists' Union (A.O.U. 1989)because Beamanand Madge(1998) discussthe identificationof SiberianPipit in of its separatebreeding range in easternAsia and its divergentplumage relationto the rubescenssubspedes of AmericanPipit but do not address characters.The otherthree subspecies (pacificus, ahicola, and rubescerts)the degreeof plumagevariation within American Pipit subspedes.This breedentirely within North America and western Greenland and resemble articleattempts to remedythese gaps in theliterature.

Rgures4. Thistypical Siberian Pipit shows the flaring submalar sl]ipe, heavily sbeaKed underparts (especially the sides), white underparls, white eye-ring, white mediancoverts, and pale legs. Though a bitpaler ban someindividuals (cf. Figs. 8, 9), the birdis typicalin otherrespects. Photographed along the Tamu River, Tokyo,Japan 31 January1998. Photograph by TakashiKoike.

VOLUblE 56 (ZOOZ), NUblBER 4 389 Figure5. Thesame Siberian Pipit as in Figure4, showingthe eye-ring and wingbars to betteradvantage. Photograph by TakashiKoike.

Figure7. ThisSiberian Pipit tends toward the pale end, and the eye-ring is notespecially pronounced, but other characters indicate Siberian. Photographedin Japan in winter,date unknown. Photograph by TakashiKoike.

Figure8. Thisphotograph depicts a SiberianPipit with fairly •ong contrast Rgure6. AnotherSiberian Pipit, photographed 1 December 2001 in South betweendark brown upperpads and whitish underparts, which in turn contrast Korea.They eye-dng is well-defined,likewise the coalescenceof dark withdark streaking below. The streaks of the underpads coalesce longitudinally, streaksbelow the malararea and the starklymarked underpads against a givingthe bird a stripedappearance. The white tips to themedian coveds con- whitishbackground. Photograph by KimHyun-Tae. trastnot only with the dark upperparts but also with the slightly • greater mediancoveds, a commonfeature in SiberianPipits. Photographed 15 December 1996in Japan. Photograph byTe•su Sato.

390 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Americanand SiberianPipits

While plumagevariation within thevarious American Pipit subspecies probablyprecludes field identificationof individualsto the levelof sub- species,at leastat a reasonablelevel of confidence,separating Siberian fromAmerican Pipits in basicplumage within the contextof subspecific variationin the threeAmerican Pipit subspeciesis feasible(cf. Sibley 2000). Our analysesbelow incorporate examinations of approximately 300 museumspecimens (Museum of VertebrateZoology, University of California,Berkeley; Harvard Museumof ComparativeZoology; Los AngelesCounty Natural History Museum),hundreds of hoursof field observations(primarily of AmericanPipits; several field observationsof SiberianPipit in the United States),and examinationof approximately 15 photographsof SiberianPipit.

Systematicsand nomenclature In thissection, we review the historical taxonomy of the Buff-belliedPipit Figure9. Thougha bit softin focus,this photograph captures all of the fea- complexin brief(Fig. 1). In 1957,the Buff-bellied Pipit complex was con- turesof SiberianPipit nicely: the verydark streaks below, darker than the sideredconspecific with a numberof Eurasianforms under the hierarchi- upperparts'color, extend noticeably along the flanks.The streaks below the calspecies Water Pipit (A. spinoletta).Water Pipit was subsequently split malarcome together and flare to theside of theneck, similar to Richard'sPipit into threesubspecies: Buff-bellied Pipit (A. rubescens),Rock Pipit (A. pet- (Antbusfichardi). Photographed 15 January1993 in MiyagiPrefecture, Japan. rosus),and Water Pipit (A. spinoletta)(B. O. U. 1986).Vaurie (1959), Hall (1961), andWilliamson (1965) originallysplit A. spinolettainto two eco- logicalgroups, "Water Pipits;' which breedin mountainousregions in Europe,Asia, and North America,and "RockPipits;' which breed along rockycoastlines in northwesternEurope. These two groupswere consid- ered to be separatespecies by Bannerman(1953) and Oreel (1980). However,Nazarenko (1978) showedthat two subspeciesof the "Water Pipits;'blakistoni and ]aponicus,overlapped in termsof their breeding rangein centralAsia but that theypreferred different habitats. As a result of thisstudy, Glutz (1985) brokedown the "Water Pipits" into two more species,"Water Pipit" and "Buff-belliedPipit," producing a total of three species;this split is supportedby geneticstudies as well (Zink et al. 1995). Throughoutthe 1980s,in fact,man), other authorities supported this new taxonomicarrangement: Devillers (1980), the BritishOrnithologists' Union RecordsCommittee (1986), Alstr6m and Mild (1987), and Knox (1988)all suggestedthat the entirecomplex be dividedinto threespecies: Rock (A. petrosus),Water (A. spinoletta),and Buff-belliedPipit (A. Figure10. SiberianPipits in the collectionat the Museumof Vertebrate rubescerts).Alstr6m and Mild (1996) further showedthat Rock,Water, and Zoology,Berkeley. Note the heavyventral streaking (almost striping) in all Buff-belliedPipits can be distinguished from each other based on plumage individuals,all of whichare in basicplumage. Photograph by Cin-TyLee. characters,regardless of species status. The latter is the taxonomy also cur- rentlyrecognized by theAmerican Ornithologists' Union (1989). Within eachof thesethree species, there is geographicand subspecific variation.Rock Pipit (A. petrosus)consists of nominatepetrosus--breed- ingin Ireland,Britain, and northwestern Francesand littoralis, breeding in Fennoscandiaand northwestRussia (Cramp 1988). Williamson(1965) alsorecognized two other Rock Pipit races potentially worth), of subspecif- ic status:"kleinschmidt?' (breeding on theFaeroe Islands and possiblythe outer Scottishislands) and "meinertzhageni"(breeding on the Outer Hebrides).However, the British Ornithologists' Union Records Committee (1986)did not recognizethese forms. The Water Pipit (A. spinoletta)con- sistsof threesubspecies: A. s. spinoletta,breeding in southernand central Europe;A. s.coutellii, breeding in AsiaMinor; and A. s.blakistoni, breeding in CentralAsia. The Buff-belliedPipit (A. rubescerts)complex currently consistsof A. r.}aponicus, A. r. pacificus,A. r. alticola,and A. r. rubescens.

DISTRIBUTION OF SUBSPECIES IN THE RUFF-RELLIED PIPIT COMPLEX Figure11. AmericanPipits of the subspeciespacificus in the collectionat Breedingrange Museumof VertebrateZoology, Berkeley. The comparatively light streaking The breedingand wintering ranges of the four subspeciesof Buff-bellied (almostspotting) of thesebirds never coalesces into a longitudinally"striped" Pipitare poorly understood owing to difficultyin subspecificidentifica- appearancebelow, nor is the contrastwith the underpartsquite as st•oogas tion. in Siberian.Photograph by Cin-TyLee.

VOLUME 56 (2002), NUM•œR 4 391 The SiberianPipit (A. r.japonicus) breeds in centraland eastern Siberia from Tunguskato Kamchatkaand south to northernSakhalin and the Kurile Islands(Gabrielson and Lincoln, 1959,Dement'ev and Gladkov1970, A.O.U.1989). It isnot thoughtto breedin Alaska(A.O.U. 1991). The pacificussubspecies breeds in the PacificCordillera in western NorthAmerica from the mountains of Oregonnorth to Alaska(Miller and Green1987, Campbell et al. 1997),including the Aleutian (Gabrielson and Lincoln1959) and Pribilof Islands (Thompson and Delong 1969). Overall, the breedingrange is primarily consideredto lie west of the Rocky Mountains. The subspeciesalticola, sometimes known as the Rocky Mountain race, breedsthroughout the Rocky Mountains and outlying ranges from south- ern BritishColumbia and Montana, southto New Mexico and Arizona, and westto the easternGreat Basin Ranges (Miller and Green1987). In the southernpart of itsrange, it hasbred in theWhite Mountains of Arizona and the Sangrede CristoRange of New Mexico(Hubbard 1978). More recently,it hasbeen discovered as a breederin California,occurring in the SierraNevada as far north as Mono County and as far southas Tulare County(Miller and Green1987). Isolated breeding pairs have also been reportedfrom the summit of Mount SanGorgonio in theSan Bernardino Figure12. American Pipit, presumably of the expectedeastern subspecies Mountains, California (McCaskie 1978, Miller and Green 1987, Miller rubescens,at NorthBeach, Maryland, in winter.The buffy underparts, some- 1988),and breeding is suspectedabove timberline in theWhite Mountains whatsparsely streaked sides, the lackof a flaring,dark submalar stripe, the and on nearbyTelescope Peak in the PanamintMountains (Small 1994). bullywing-bars, and the graylegs rule out Siberian Pipit. Photograph by James L. Stasz. Howelland Webb (1992) reportedseveral birds, presumably of this sub- species,at 2450m in the SierraSan Pedro Marfir, Baja California, includ- inga maleengaged in songflights through June, well past the time of spring migration.A specimenof alticolawascollected 16 April 1942 at 1700m ele- vationfrom Laguna de LasRanas in E1Salvador (University of California, BerkeleyMuseum of VertebrateZoology #86275). The subspedesrubescerts breeds from northernYukon east to western Greenland,and south to southwesternYukon, northern British Columbia, NorthwestTerritory, northern Manitoba,northern Ontario, northern Quebec,southern Labrador, and Newfoundland(A.O.U. 1983). Breeding mayalso occur in northernAlaska based on thepresence of severalspeci- mensof this subspeciescollected during the summerat Point Barrow, Alaska(University of California,Berkeley, Museum of VertebrateZoology #129421,129422, 134735). Isolated populations of rubescensbreedat high- er elevationson Gasp•Peninsula and on Mount Katahdin,Maine (A.O.U. 1983)and Mount Washington,New Hampshire(Petersen 1991, Veit and Petersen1993). A populationnear Hudson Bay was consideredby Oberholser(1974) to be a separatesubspecies (A. r. ludovidanus),but is essentiallyidentical to rubescensand has not been acceptedby the AmericanOrnithologists' Union. Another potentialsubspecies, A. r. geophilus,breeding primarily in coastalsouthern Alaska, was proposed by Oberholser(1974) basedon slightdifferences in plumage,but this sub- speciesis alsonot recognizedby theAmerican Ornithologists' Union, as it Rgure13. AmericanPipit, presumably of the expectedwestern subspecies is onlymarginally dislinct from pacificus. pacificus,photographed in California in winter.This bird is dearlydistinguish- ablefrom Siberian Pipit by its palerstreaking below (as well as the spotted •V'mteringRanges appearanceof theupper breast), the lack of a boldand flaring submalar SiberianPipit winters in easternChina and Japan (Gabrielson and Lincoln stripe,the lackof strongeye-ring, the graylegs, and the relativelybully 1959, Dcment'evand Gladkov 1970,A.O.U. 1983, Brazil 1991),Nepal underparts.The more oval or roundishbreast spots of pacificusdiffer (Inskippand lnskipp1985), Pakistan(Grimmett etak 1999),northern slightlyfrom the moreelongated breast spats on alticolaand rubescerts India, northern Burma, northern Vietnam, southernChina (A.O.U. 1983), (cf.Rg. 12). Photographby Jim 6ain. HongKong (King and Dickenson 1975), Taiwan (Chang 1980), and South Korea(Gore and Won 1971).It hasbeen recorded as a vagrantas far south asMyanmar (Burma), northeastern Thailand, and western Tonkin, and it maybe regular enough in Israelto beconsidered a rare winterer (Shirihai 1996). AmericanPipits winter in California,Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, souththrough Baja California and Mexicoto Guatemala(A.O.U. 1983,

392 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Americanand SiberianPipits

Howelland Webb 1995), and east through the Gulf statesto the Atlantic thesubspecies level. Phillips (1991) provides some discussion of the sub- coastalplain (Root 1988). Smallnumbers of winteringbirds are found as specificbreakdown of migratoryand vagrancy status. far north as southern British Columbia, northern Great Basin, southern NewEngland, and rarely in theGreat Plains (Root 1988, Veit and Petersen AmericanPipits in westernNorth America 1993,Campbell et al. 1997). On thesouthern end of range,there are mul- In westernNorth America,American Pipits are on the movefrom their tiplerecords of unknownsubspecies from the Bahamas and Jamaica (A. O. breedinggrounds by lateAugust in Alaskaand have mostly departed by U 1998),two recordsof the speciesfrom Belize,both nearPunta Gorda earlySeptember. Peak movements occur in the northernpart of British (singles3 November1999 and 5 November2001; H. LeeJones, in litt0, Columbiaduring early Septemberand from late Septemberto early andfour records from E1 Salvador, the most recent being 2 January(one) Octoberin the southernpart of the province(Campbell et al. 1997) and7 April2002 (5) (Jones2002a, 2002b). We knowof no reportsfrom Interestingly,fall transientsare about eight times more numerous along Honduras,Nicaragua, Costa Rica, or Panama. thecoast than in the interiorof BritishColumbia. Migration is largely Thebreakdown of thewintering range of AmericanPipits by subspecies over in BritishColumbia by the endof October,with stragglerscontinu- ispoorly demarcated at present,primarily because of the lackof knowl- ing into earlyNovember (Campbell et al. 1997). Winteringbirds arrive edgein identifyingthe subspeciesand the declineof specimencollection in Californiaand Arizonaby mid- to late September,with numbers in the latertwentieth century. As we discussin subsequentsections, the peakingin mid-October(Grinnell and Miller 1944,Garrett and Dunn field identificationof basic-plumagedAmerican Pipits to the subspecies 1981,Roberson 1984, Small 1994). Winter arrivalsas earlyas the first levelis difficultand frequentlyimpossible. Thus, the historicaldescrip- weekof Septemberare consideredexceptional (Rosenberg et al. 1991, tionsof subspecificwintering status, which we outlinebelow, should be Small 1994), with arrivalsin late Augusteven more so (Grinnell and considered tentative. Miller 1944). A singlebird on 1 Julyfrom LassenPeak in northern In general,rubescens accounts for mostof the easternwintering popula- Californiawas regarded by Grinnelland Miller (1944) as an earlyfall tions(Oberholser 1974). The A.O.U. (1957) described rubescens aswintering transient,but it may havebeen trying to summer,considering that from"Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, West Virginia (Upshur County), and the breedingcolonies exist in the OregonCascades not far to the north The lowerDdaware Valley south through eastern Mexico to Guatemala,the Gulf earliestarrival date for Sonora,Mexico is listed as 21 Septemberby coast,and Florida." Oberholser (1972) stated that this subspecies was a com- Russelland Monson(1998). monwlnterer in north-centralTexas and as far west as E1 Paso. Pulich (1988) Winterers in the southernpart of their range (e.g., southern confirmedthat at leastsome of thespecimens taken in Texaswere of thissub- California)typically stay until mid-April, with a t•w lingeringuntil early speciesIn Mexico,Miller et al. (1957)reported that this subspecies winters May (Rosenberget al. 1991).Small (1994) statesthat springtransients in primarilyon the Caribbean slope. Californiaoccur from mid-April into May. However,a sharpincrease in Conversely,pacificus probably accounts for most of thePacific Coast pop- the numberof birdsbetween late March and April in BritishColumbia ulatlons(GrinneLl and Miller 1944), with the A.O.U. (1983) stating that win- (Campbellet al. 1997)suggests that wintering birds are on themove well terlngoccurs from "southern coastal British Columbia, Oregon, west-central beforemid-April, and in all likelihoodthe springmigration is protract- Nevada(Lahontan Valley), and southern Utah to BajaCalifornia and western ed. In British Columbia,Campbell et al. (1997) noted that the total Mexico(south to Oaxaca)."Mortson and Phillips (1981) were of theopinion numberof recordsof springtransients is lowerthan the numberof fall thatall wintering pipits in Arizona were of thissubspecies. Oberholser (1972) transientsby a factorof roughlythree. Breeding individuals arrive by the claimedthat pacificus is a fairlycommon winterer in Texas,although Pulich lastweek of April in southeasternAlaska and by the firstweek of May in (1988)recommended that its status in Texasbe reinvestigated. Exactly how northernAlaska (Gabrielson and Lincoln1959). fareast padficus ranges during winter is unknown. The local populations(most likely aliicola;Miller and Green 1987) Accordingto theA.O.U. (1983), the wintering range of aliicolais largely that breed in the Sierra Nevada and San Bernardino Mountains in unknown,but it hasbeen recorded in Decemberfrom Arizona. (Monson Californiaarrive on breedinggrounds between mid-April and early May andPhillips [ 1981], however,were of theopinion that winterers in Arizona (Miller 1988). Thesestay until late Septemberbut occasionallyinto arepacificus.) Grinnell and Miller (1944)described alticola as a rarewin- November(see references in Small1994). ter visitant to California but did not elaborate. Their account includes specnnenscollected from earlyto mid-April. Fivealiicola specimens col- AmericanPipits in easternand centralNorth America lectedbetween 4 Marchand 12April in coastalCalifornia (Alameda, Santa Individuals in the eastern two-thirds of North America are on the move Clara, and SantaCruz Counties)are in the Universityof California, fromtheir breeding grounds in northernCanada by lateAugust, as evi- BerkeleyMVZ collections(#5334, 37925, 56704, 90691, 146678). dencedby arrivalsof fall transientsin Ontariobetween the first weekof Oberholser(1974) indicatedthat this subspecies had occurred in Texason Septemberthrough October (Speirs 1985). Sadlerand Myres(1976) 22 Marchand 10April. However,these dates coincide with the timingof notedmovements during late August in Alberta.In the southernpart of springmigrants (see below), and thus do not necessarilyimply that win- Ontario,the earliestarrivals occur in earlySeptember and peak during teringoccurs in Texas.Pulich (1988) was unable to relocatethese speci- mid- to late October(Speirs 1985). Interestingly,in New York,earliest mensto verifythe report. Miller et al. (1957)state that this subspecies isa arrivalsare 2 Augustand 13 Augustin in]andand coastalcounties, httle-knownWinter visitant in Mexico,citing records from Oaxaca, respectively(Bull 1974),with an extremedate of 13 June(Levine 1998), Guanajuato,the Distrito Federal, San Luis Potosi, and Tlaxcala. The lack of numbersof transientspeak in October. In Alberta,transients pass knowledgeon thewintering status of aliicolais partlydue to the difficulty throughEdmonton during the lastweek of Septemberand havecom- in identifyingthe American Pipit subspecies in basic plumage. pletelypassed through by earlyOctober (Sadlet and Myres 1976) In Minnesota,earliest arrivals appear by mid-September,and in Missouri TIMING OF MIGRATION AND VAGRANCY by mid-September,peaking in earlyto middle October(Robbins and The migratorystatuses of Siberianand AmericanPipits are described Easterla1992). Fall transientspass through Massachusetts primarily here Thevagrancy of AmericanPipit subspeciesis described as a whole duringOctober (Veit and Petersen1993), and throughCape May, New becauseso little is knownabout the distributionand migratory status at Jerseyfrom Octoberthrough November (Stone 1965, Sibley 1997)

VOLUME 56 (2oo2), NUMBER 4 393 Wlnterersarrive in Tennesseeby earlyOctober, with exceptionallyearly one,if notboth, of theItaly sightings may in factrefer to SiberianPipits arrivalsin Septemberand even late August (Robinson 1990); in Arkansas (Shirihaiand Colston 1987). Two records of Buff-belliedPipit types exist by lateSeptember, peaking in Octoberand November (James 1986); in for Scandinavia,one in Norwayand one in Sweden,from December and Louisianaduring October (Lowery 1955); in Alabamaby earlyOctober January.The Scandinavianpipits were identified as rubescens, but some (Imhof 1962);in Floridaby October(Kale and Maeher1990); and in featuressuggest Siberian (Brian J. Small,pers. comm.). The western Texasby late September(Pulich 1988). Fall transientsapparently pass North Americansubspecies, pacificus, has been recordedin Okanawa, throughby the end of November,with stragglersor facultativemigrants Japanduring the winters of 1982-1983and 1984-1985 and from January continuinginto Decemberthrough January. Small wintering flocks on to February1987 (see Brazil 1991 for references). the northernedge of winteringrange are occasionallyencountered in Thereis no doubtthat rubescensis a vagrantto Europe.However, the coastalNew York, the Lower Hudson River Valley, and rarely the Finger abovecompilation suggests that pacificus and alticolamay also be prone Lakesregion (Bull 1974,Levine 1998, W. R. Evans,pers. comm.), along to vagrancy,if the aboverecords represent accurate identifications In the shoresof Lake Erie (Speirs1985), and at CapeMay, New Jersey addition,one should not assumethat rubescensdoes not appearon the (Stone1965, Sibley 1997). Wintering individuals have been recorded as Pacificcoast during migration or evenduring winter. lateas February in coastalMassachusetts (Veit and Petersen 1993) and on ChristmasBird Countsin the northernGreat Plains (e.g., Missouri; SiberianPipit: migration and vagrancy Robbinsand Easterla1992). Accordingto Dement'evand Gladkov (1970), Siberian Pipits commence Northwardmigration during spring is probablyprotracted. In south- southwardmigration during late Augustand earlySeptember, but the easternand central North America, pipits have largely departed their win- departurefrom breeding grounds may be quite protracted. Breeders In the tennggrounds by earlyMay (asin Alabama[Imhof 1962], Texas [Pulich mountainsof Kamchatkabegin their descentto lowerelevations In early 1988],and Tennessee[Robinson 1990]). However, spring transients are September,but movementscontinue through September. In northern dearlyon the moveby Marchthroughout much of the interiorUnited Sakhalin,southward migration commences in late August/early September, States,as exemplified by peakmovements during March and early April but in southernSakhalin, the southboundmigrants can depart as late as m Arkansas(James 1986), late March onwardin New York (Bull 1974), mid-December,particularly in warmwinters. The maritimeflight from and mid-Marchin Missouri(Robbins and Easterla1992). At PointPelee, their breedinggrounds in Siberiato their winteringgrounds in Japan Ontariospring transients pass through between late March and late May appearsto occurin Septemberand October(Dement'ev and Gladkov (Speirs1985). On the southernshores of LakeOntario, peak passage 1970).According to Brazil(1991), Siberian Pipits arrive in Japanbetween would seemto be in late April and early May (Levine1998). In lateOctober and November. Northward departure from Japanese winter- Massachusetts,spring transients pass through from lateMarch to mid- inggrounds begins in lateMarch, with the last birds leaving by lateMay May, with peakcounts occurring in April (Veit and Petersen1993). A (Dement'evand Gladkov 1970, Brazil 1991). curiousobservation is that springtransients are extremelyrare at Cape In thePalearctic, Siberian Pipit has probably occurred as a vagrant to Italy May,New Jersey (Stone 1965), but this surely has to dowith the peninsu- and is regularlyseen in the MiddleEast during migration and w•nter la's position,which is set off from the DelmarvaPeninsula by the (Shirihaiand Colston 1987, Shirihai 1996). At Eilat,Israd, Shirihai (1996) DdawareBay. The rdative scarcity of springtransients is alsotrue on the statesthat SiberianPipits arrive during late October(earliest 22nd) and Delmarva, which is cut off from mainland Virginia by the Chesapeake Bay departin Marchto earlyApril (latest 10th). A peakcount of 60at Eftatdur- (Coastal Virginia Wildlife Observatory,in litt.) Likewise, in ing the winterof 1985-1986suggests that SiberianPipit may in factover- Massachusetts,spring migrants are considerably less numerous than fall winterregularly in Israd(Shirihai and Colston 1987), although the num- transientsin Massachusetts(Veit and Petersen1993). In Alberta,spring bersseen each winter appear to varyconsiderably. For example, during the transientspass through during the first weekof April and later(Sadler winterof 1988-1989,only four were discovered in Eilat (Shirihai 1996) The andMyres 1976), but we wereunable to find informationregarding the SiberianPipit is considereda very rare visitor in latefall to Hawaii(Pratt et arrival of breeders in northernmost Canada. Based on arrival dates in al. 1987) and is consideredcasual in Iwo Jima,Turkestan, and western northernOntario around early May (Spelts1985), it is likelythat breed- Alaska(A.O.U. 1989). Paul E. Lehman (pers. comm.) documented several at ersarrive in northernCanada by mid- or lateMay. In the southernpart Gambell,Alaska during the falls of 1999,2001, and 2002, from late August of itsbreeding range, for instanceat GuanellaPass in Colorado(alticola), throughearly October. The vast number of SiberianPipit reports from bird- pipitsreturn during late April to earlyMay (Conry1978). ersvisiting western Alaska are undocumented and may in factpertain to pacificus,which is much more likely (Thede Tobish, pers. comm.). AmericanPipits: vagrancy In NorthAmerica, few Siberian Pipits have been documented away from Publishedextralimital occurrences of the AmericanPipit subspeciesare westernAlaska. The only records outside of Alaskawe are aware are a num- few (Phillips1991). Grinnell and Miller (1944) documentedfour speci- ber of recordsfrom Californiaand one remarkablerecord from Sonora, mensof alticolataken separately during the firsttwo weeksof April in Mexico. The latterbird pertainsto a specimentaken 6 June1958 near California.Bull (1974) describeda specimenof alticolacollected in Naco,Sonora and reported by Monson and Phillips (1981) as an alternate- SuffolkCounty, New York on 10May 1882(AMNH 25964;Levine 1998). plumagedSiberian Pipit. This record represents the first North American Grinnell and Miller (1944) reported no recordsof rubescensin recordoutside of Alaska as well as the only spring record outside of Alaska California,but Rosenberget al. (1991) suggestthat one specimencol- Approximately18 fall vagrants have been noted in California,although lected22 December1902 at Yuma,Arizona might pertainto this sub- supportingdocumentation has not been published for all of thesesightings species.Extralimital occurrences of birdsin the Buff-belliedPipit com- (e.g.,McCaskie 1992). Some of the recordsare listed below. An individual plexIn Bermudaprobably pertain to thissubspecies (A.O.U. 1973). found13 October 1989 in northernCalifornia (Del Norte County) consti- Farther afield,vagrant nominate rubescens have been reportedin tutesthe earliestCalifornia record (Erickson et al. 1990) and coincided Germany,Italy, Iceland, Ireland, and Britain, primarily between the dates with an influxofRed-throated Pipits (A. cervinus)along the entirePacific of mid-Septemberand late October (see Evans 1994 for review).At least Coast(McCaskie 1990). During the fall of 1991,also coinciding with an

394 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Americanand Siberian Pipits

influxof Red-throatedPipits, nine Siberian Pipits may have been recorded NOTES ON FIELD IDENTIFICATION IN BASIC PLUMAGE in California(McCaskie 1992, Yee et al. 1992):one or 2 at PointReyes (7- The key featureson whichone shouldfocus on when attemptingan 13 October),3 on the FarallonIslands (13 Octoberto 5 November),one in identificationof an AmericanPipit or SiberianPipit in basicplumage Bodega(10 November),one in Irvine (25 October),2 in the TijuanaRiver are: the color and contrast of the median coverts;the size, color, and Valley(26 October,11 November), and one in MissionBay (23 November). shapeof thesubmalar stripe; the color of theunderparts; the degree and Duringthe fall of 2001,Nick Lethaby discovered a Siberian Pipit with a sizeof streaking;the boldnessof the eye-ring;and the colorof the legs. smallnumber of Red-throatedPipits in PortHueneme, Ventura County, Thesefeatures are chiefly of usefor birdsin freshbasic plumage, which California29 Octoberthrough 3 November(McCaskie and Garrett 2002). in AmericanPipit is heldbetween late August and late December or so. Thisbird was also carefully studied by Birch(Fig. 2). Duringthe samefall, The field marksdiscussed below (and generalizedgraphically on the anotherSiberian Pipit was discovered and studied by Leeon 23 November front coverand accompanying the subspeciesaccounts below) are valid nearPettis, Riverside County, California (Fig. 3; cf.Figs. 4-10). Although betweenlate Augustand late January.Between late Januaryand late thenumber of SiberianPipit sightings in Californiais scarce, it appears that March,when birds are undergoing prealternate molt, there is something SiberianPipit recordshave all cointidedwith influxesof Red-throated of a grayzone, in whichintermediate characters will be apparent.Since Pipits(McCaskie and Garrett 2002), and the co-vagrancyof thesespecies is thefirst prebasic molt occurs on thebreeding grounds, juvenal plumages alsoapparent at Gambell,St. LawrenceIsland, Alaska in the autumn arenot likelyto be encounteredon winteringgrounds or duringmigra- (Lehman,pets. comm.). tion and are therefore not discussed here. Our abovediscussion on thevagrancy status of SiberianPipits in North Americais dearlyincomplete, as there may potentially be additional sight- SiberianPipit (A. r. japonicus)versus American Pipit ingsthat werenever formally submitted to rarebird recordscommittees Sizeand overallcoloration--Siberian Pipit is by far the mostdistinc- dueto SiberianPipit's subspecific status. tivesubspecies of the Buff-belliedPipit complex(Figs. 4-10). Overall,it appearslarger and bulkier than pacificus and alticola, and in side-by-side MOLT • bycomparisons, itslarger size relative topacifi- Thetiming of moltis animportant factor in determiningthe age of a bird • cusand alticolamay be noticeable.Siberian andaffects certain field marks as well (e.g.,the appearanceof the median overlapsin sizewith rubescens.Siberian differs andgreater coverts). The molt strategyof AmericanPipits has been stud- • ' from Americanin havingdark olive-brown iedby Pyle(1997a, 1997b) and that of theWater Pipit (A. spinolettaspino- • • upperparts,appearing darker and brownerthan letta)by Jenniand Winlder (1994) and Williamson (1965). We arenot .• the upperpartsof American. The underpartsof awareof anystudies conducted on the SiberianPipit or of anysystematic Siberianare generallywhiter than those of the studyof molt strategiesbroken down to the subspecificlevel of the American.The sidesand chest of Siberianmay AmericanPipits. occasionallybe washedwith buff, but typicallythe throat, centerof Accordingto Pyle(1997a, 1997b), American Pipits have prebasic and breast,and belly are white, whereas these same regions on rubescens,alti- prealternatemolts. The first prebasicmolt occursbetween July and cola,and pacificus are generally buffy or off-white(although pacificus can September,primarily on summeringgrounds. This molt is a partialmolt, be variablywhitish below).Compared to the characteristicallybuffy in whichzero to all mediancoverts are replaced, zero to fourinner greater rubescensand alticola,Siberian Pipit appearsvery white below. The most covertsare replaced (Pyle states that about 55% of individualsreplaced no significantoverlap in overallcoloration is with pacificus,which tends to greatercoverts), and sometimes one to two tertialsare replaced (in about beslightly grayer than rubescens and alticola. However, in mostcases, the 25% of the birds).No rectricesare replaced. underpartsof pacificusare buffy or grayrather than white. Thefirst prebasic is followed by the first prealternate molt, which occurs UnderpartstreakingsSiberian Pipit is distinctlymarked below with betweenJanuary and April, primarily on thewintering grounds or during long and thick streaks,which are dark brown in color (sometimes migration.In the firstprealternate molt, zero to four innergreater coverts appearingblack). The streakson Siberianextend noticeably down the arereplaced, one to threetertials are replaced, and often one to twocentral flanks,more so than on American.The underpartstreaking on Siberian rectricesare replaced.The secondprebasic molt, after which the bird is reminiscentof Meadow(A. pratends),Olive-backed (A. hodgsoni),and attainsdefinitive adult plumage, is complete.The adultprealternate molt Red-throatedPipits (A. cervinus).The darkcoloration of the streakscon- issimilar to the firstprealternate. For comparison, the molt strategyof the trastsstrongly with thewhite underparts and is alsoconsiderably darker nominaterace of theWater Pipit (A. s.spinoletta) isvery much like that of than the gray-brownupperparts. Underpart streaking in Americanis AmericanPipits, but itsfirst prebasic molt may differ in subtleways. In its brownerand lighter in coloration:in part, too,because of their bufflet firstprebasic molt, at mosttwo greater coverts and at mostthree tertials are underparts,the contrastbetween the streaksand underpartsis subdued. molted (Jenniand Winklet 1994). A subtlebut potentiallydistinctive feature of the streakson Siberianis Knowledgeof moltstrategy may sometimes allow one to recognizefirst- thatthe streakstend to coalescelongitudinally, often lending the under- fallbirds by using the presence or absenceof moltlimits in the medianand partsa "striped"appearance. This featureis likelyto be mostuseful in greatercoverts. Molt limitscan be recognizedby the contrastbetween distinguishingthe Siberianfrom pacificus because the streakson pacifi- juvenileand replaced feathers, the former tending to be moreworn by fall custend to be shortand often do not coalescesignificantly, giving pacifi- migration,and the latter tending to befreshet and brighter. As will be dis- cusa somewhatspotted rather than a streakedor stripedappearance cussedbelow, the colorand boldnessof the tips of greaterand median (Figs.3, 11, 13). Rubescensand alticolamay showa slightlystriped covertfeathers are important field characters. However, first-fall birds that appearance,but the degreeof coalescencebetween streaks is smallerthan havereplaced few to noneof the medianand greater coverts may exhibit that on Siberian. substantialwear, potentially reducing the overallsize and boldness of the Medianwing coverts•Themedian coverts of SiberianPipit nearly wingbars.In contrast,fall adults after complete prebasic molt should be in alwayshave white tips, whereas those of Americanare characteristically freshplumage. buffy,especially in rubescens.Moreover, due to Siberian'sgrayer and dark-

VOLUME 56 (2002), NUMBER 4 395 er upperpartsand wings, the white-edged median coverts stand out as havea slightlybolder submalar stripe than pacificus (but not asbold as whiteupper wingbars. Even for thoseSiberian Pipits that are slightly buffy in Siberian).In addition, the streakson rubescertstend to coalescelater- below,we found that the entireupper wingbar appears white. The greater allyin the upperchest region, sometimes forming a continuousband on coverts(lower wingbars) on Siberianvary between whitish and buffy and the chest.In pacificus,the streaksdo not coalesceas much, giving the aretherefore not diagnostic.On American,the colorof the medianand breasta morespotted appearance. greatercovert edges is buffy in bothcases. We believe that the color of the Pacificusis the smallestand grayest of the threeAmerican subspecies upperwingbar and the degreeof contrastwith the wingsmay be poten- (Fig. 13). The streakson its underpartstend to be smalland shortand tiallydiagnostic in the fieldfor Siberian,but furtherstudies in the field _.-• do not coalescetogether laterally or longitudinally.This gives andof museumspecimens are needed. It is possiblethat first-winterbirds havewhiter median and greater covert tips than do adults. • ita Medianspotted and rathergreater than covert streaked tips range orstriped from appearance. gray to buff Eye-ring•Both Siberianand AmericanPipits exhibit a white eye- •-•3-•• buttypically notas buff asin rubescens. Underpart ring.While the thickness or completenessof the eye-ring is quite variable /]' •,• colorationranges from gray to buff. Although in mostsubspecies, the eye-ringtends to standout moreon Siberian .•d• nottypically asbuffy as rubescens, thissubtle becauseof its overalldarker upperparts. differencein the degreeof buffinessseemed noticeable Submalarstripe The submalarstripe on Siberiantends to be thick only in side-by-sidecomparison of museumspecimens, where lighting anddark, strongly contrasting with the whiteunderparts and the brown conditionson all specimenscan be made identical.This featureis upperparts.The contrastbetween the submalarstripe and the upper- unlikelyto be reliablein the fieldor in photographs. partsin Americanis generallynot asstrong, because the submalarstripe Alticola is intermediatein sizebetween rubescens and pacificus.Its on Americanis not as dark. In many cases,the submalarstripe on plumage more closely resemblesthat of rubescensbecause it Americanis concolorouswith upperpartcoloration, whereas the sub- generallyhas a buffy overallcoloration, darker underpartstreaking malarstripe on Siberianis usuallydistinctly darker than the upperparts. •. thanpacificus, and buffy edges tothe median and In addition,the posterior end of thesubmalar stripe on Siberiantends ß • ' greaterwing coverts. Like rubescens,the streakson to be moresolidly colored than on American.In American,the individ- •' _7_-,:-•'J theupper chest appear tocoalesce laterally,often ual streaksmaking up the submalarstripe can often be seen,this effect being more pronouncedon pacificusthan on rubescensor alticola. • Weforming stressthat acontinuous these featuresband ofacross alticola the areupper based chest. sole- Anotherhelpful feature is that Siberian'ssubmalar stripe bulges at its ly on comparisonof museumspecimens. Identification to subsperes lowerend, often flaring into the side of theneck, reminiscent of Richard's wasbased primarily on range.We assumedthat those specimens (n=6) Pipit (A. richardi)and to a lesserextent Red-throatedPipit. While collectedin Texasduring the winterthat appearedbuffier than typical AmericanPipit can also display this feature, the degreeof flaringis gen- pacificuswere alticola.As such, we considerour notes on basic- erallyless, and in manycases, the lowerend of the submalarstripe does plumagedalticola to be preliminary--andpotentially in error.Further not extendbeyond the auriculars.The dark submalarstripe of Red- researchis necessaryto characterizealticola in basicplumage. throatedmay superficially resemble Siberian when seen head-on, so pre- sumedRed-throated Pipits in North Americashould be carefullyscruff- Conclusions nized. Fieldidentification of birdsin the Buff-BelliedPipit complex is difficult. Legcoloration--Siberian Pipit has pink or palebrown legs but never SiberianPipit can generally be separatedin thefield from the American blacklegs. In general,American has brownish, grayish, or blacklegs. In subspeciesusing a combinationof field marks,particularly aspects of this respect,Siberian Pipit more closelyresembles Red-throated Pipit the wingbar'scolor, the overallcolor of plumage,the degree of streaking thanAmerican Pipit. However, we haveobserved pacificus and rubescens ventrally,the thicknessof the submalarstripe, the boldnessof the eye- with palebrown legs. In fact,to seeseveral pale-legged basic-plumaged ring,and the legcolor, whereas the fieldidentification of the American pacificusindividuals in a smallflock is not unusual(cf. Fig. 13). Thus, complexto the subspecieslevel needs further study, but we hopethat whilepale legs may signif• a potentialSiberian, the amountof leg-color this preliminaryoutline of subspecificplumage variation in American variationin Americanmakes it unwiseto useleg color as a basisfor iden- Pipitsbrings us a stepcloser to thisgoal. tification. Acknowledgments AmericanPipit: subspecific variation We thank Carla Cicero (Museumof VertebrateZoology, Berkeley), A continuumof variationprobably occurs in this species,and thus field KimballL. Garrett(Los Angeles County Natural History Museum), Ned identificationof AmericanPipit to the subspecieslevel may not be K. Johnson(Museum of VertebrateZoology, Berkeley), and Raymond possible.Our reasonsfor addressingthis issueare not to encourage Paynter(Museum of ComparativeZoology, Harvard University) for subspecificidentification but to convey the degree of subspecific accessto museum collections.Paul Baicich,Brian J. Small, and Thede variation,thereby refining the ability to separateSiberian from American Tobishprovided valuable insight. Paul E. Lehman,Guy McCaskie,Per Pipitsof all forms. Alstr6m,Steve N. G. Howell,and Allan Phillips provided critical reviews The nominatesubspecies, rubescens, tends to be the buffiestand and insight,while H. LeeJones researched records of the complexfrom largestof thethree subspecies (Fig. 12). The sizedifference is verysubtle, CentralAmerica. We alsothank Surfbirds.corn for publishingan infor- but differenceswith pacificus,the smallestof the subspecies,might be mal internetversion of thismanuscript, which generated a string of help- noticedin the field duringdirect comparison on levelground. ful discussions.We are indebted to TakashiKoike, Toru Akiba, Jim Stasz, Rubescenstends to havebuffier wingbars than pacifmus and JimGain, Kim Hyun-Taeand Tetsu Sato for providingphotographs. We alsothank all the photographerswho suppliedphotos for the original •x--•-•-•-•• alsotendspacificus. tohaveStreaking anoverall on the browner underparts plumagetends tothanbe informal Internet version of the manuscript(Don Desjardinand Scott Robinson). _,,(,• hasslightlya moremore spottedextensiveappearance. thanRubescensin pacificus, may which also

396 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Americanand SiberianPipits

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VOLUME 56 (ZOOZ), NUMBER 4 397 Oreel,G. J.1980. Dutch Birding Association Checklist. Dutch Birding 2: Passeriformes.London. 82-104. Veit, R. R., and W. R. Petersen.1993. Birds of Massachusetts Parkes, K.C. 1982. Further comments on the field identification of MassachusettsAudubon Society. North Americanpipits. American Birds 36: 20-22. Williamson,K. 1965.Moult and itsrelation to taxonomyin Rockand Petersen,W.R. 1991. The nestingseason: New Englandregion. WaterPipits. British Birds 58: 493-504. American Birds 45: 1092-1096. Yee,D. G., S.F. Bailey, and B. E. Deuel.1992. The fallmigration: Middle Phfihps,A. R. 1991.The known birds of North and Middle America: dis- PacificCoast region. American Birds 46: 142-147. tnbutionsand variation,migrations, changes, hybrids, etc. Part 2: Zink, R. M., S. Rowher, A. V. Andreev, and D. L. Dittmann. 1995 Bombycillidae,Sylviidae, to Sturnidae;Vireonidae. Allan R. Phillips, Trans-Beringiacomparisons of mitochondrialDNA differentiation Denver,Colorado. 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Roberson,D. 1980. Rare birdsof the WestCoast. AviSysis a full-featuredworldwide database and reporting system for serious b•rd- WoodcockPublications, Pacific Grove, California. ers.It can be enhancedby addingthe OfficialShawneen Finnegan Worldwide Na- Root, T. 1988.Atlas of winteringNorth American tion ChecklistAdd-On (as providedin BirdAreaby SantaBarbara Software Prod- &rds.University of ChicagoPress, London. ucts),providing the mostauthoritative, highest quality, and most up-to-date check- Rosenberg,K.V., R. D. Ohmart,W. C. Hunter,and B. listsof the 254nations of theworld. The checklists are tightly and seamlessly inte- W Anderson.1991. Birds of the lowerColorado gratedwith AviSys, providing beautiful screen and printed output with seen, seen- RwerValle),. University of ArizonaPress, Tucson, in-nation,and endemic markers, and instant worldwide nation-by-nation range query Arizona. forany species. AviSys produces seen reports, checklists and hit lists of anynation Russell,S. M., and G. Monson. 1998. The birdsof or state,any group of nationsor states,and all ABARegions and Areas. Sonora.University of Arizona Press,Tucson, Youcan instantly reduce the on-screen list from a worldor NAlist to thechecklist of Arizona. any nation,state, county, wildlife refuge, etc., whether provided by AviSysor cre- Sadlet,T. S., andM. T. Myres.1976. Alberta birds, atedby you. Dealwith only the birds you need. Rotate through modes instantly. 1961-1970,with particularreference to migration. OneAviSys user wrote: "OUTSTANDING! I have been a computerprofessional forover 30 ProvincialMuseum of Alberta Natural History yearsand must congratulate you on generating state-of-the-art, convenient to use, effi- OccasionalPaper No. 1. cientand reliable software." Another says: "AVISYS IS A BLAST!"Precisely our objective Shlrlhai H., and P. R. Colston. 1987. Siberian Water -• UnlimitedNumber of Lists:all major geographic lists automatically updated PipItSin Israel.Dutch Birding 9: 8-12. Example:assigning a sighting toyour yard also updates your City, County, State, Sh•rlhai.H. 1996. The birdsof Israel.Academic, Nation,Continent, worldwide ABA Area, worldwide ABA Region, and Life lists. London. • FullABA N.A. Checklist, Clements World Checklist, and Official Tony White Slbley,D. A. 1997.The birds of CapeMay. New Jersey State/ProvinceChecklists, all fully integrated with screen and report facilities AudubonSociety, Cape May, New Jersey. • TheFastest, Easiest and Most Flexible sighting entry--just click on the birds ---. 2000. TheSibley guide to birds.Knopf, New AviSyshas absolutely unmatched search facilities, including World Band Codes! York. • UnlimitedReporting and Listing by date range, season, geography, species, Small,A. 1994.California birds: their status and dis- habitat,behavior, sex, nesting status, heard-only, photographed, key-words, etc tr•bution. Ibis Publishing Company, Vista, ß CensusSpreadsheets for population, sighting, CBC, and ornithology studies. Cahfornia. ß Free!NABA Butterfly, Dragonfly, Reptile/Amphibian, and Mammal data sets! Spelrs,J. M. 1985.Birds of Ontario.D. W. Friesen, ß BirdBaseusers -- askfor our free comprehensive data conversion facility. Toronto. Visitour web site at: www,avisys,net Stone,W. 1937.Bird studies at Old CapeMay. Vol.2. Ordersor info,call 1-800-354-7'755~ 24 hours~ rv1CNISA DelawareValley Ornithological Club. AviSys5.0 for Windows 951981XPINTI2000 ~ $99.95 ~ $&H$4.00 Thompson,M. C., andR. L. Delong.1969. Birds new NationChecklist Add-On (BirdArea) ~ $59.95 ~ ($&H$4.00 if orderedseparately) to North America and the Pribilof Islands,Alaska. 60 daymoney back ~ PerceptiveSystems, PO Box 369, Placitas, NM 87043 Auk 86: 747-749. Fastas a Falcon~ Powerfulas an Eagle~ Friendlyas a Chickadee Vaurle,C. 1959. The birdsof the Palearcticfauna.

398 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS