By Roger Lanse
The dark-eyed junco is back in Arenas Valley. An amateur birder reported seeing the first returning dark-eyed junco of the year, of the Oregon race, the morning of Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025. The next morning two of the Oregon race and one of the grey-headed race were noted.
In an annual routine, juncos arrive in our area around the end of October, spend the winter, then leave for more northern climes, either in elevation or latitude, around the first of March.
The junco’s dance appears just the opposite of our hummingbirds, which arrive in Arenas Valley around the end of February, spend the summer, then leave for more southern climes around the first of November. So, just as the hummers arrive the juncos leave and vice-versa. Maybe they just get on each other’s nerves.
An excerpt from the book “Birds in the Back Front Yard” by Roger Lanse, which describes 70 Grant County birds, says this about the dark-eyed junco, “Used to be there were four species of junco commonly seen in Grant County; the white-winged, the grey-headed, the Oregon, and the slate-colored. Now, the ‘lumpers’ have succeeded in placing the four in one species, the dark-eyed junco, Junco hyemalis, with four races. Actually, those knowledgeable about such things say there are about 15 races of junco. Who am I to argue?”
