Tried out the new camera last week here in Brooklyn (Green-Wood Cemetery is a great birding spot for anyone nearby). I have lots of room to improve from a photography standpoint, but I can’t blame anything on a lack of birds (though they seemed intent on showing me their butts)
Female Scarlet Tanager:
Swainson’s Thrush
Northern Flicker:
Brown Creeper:
Golden-crowned Kinglet:
White-breasted Nuthatch:
A pair of juvenile Red-tailed hawks
Great pics!
Believe it or not, we are sitting at 152 species for the calendar year and the golden crowned kinglet and brown creeper are still two we need. Missed them in the early winter, hoping to check them off in the next week or two.
Very bad quality (pic of a pic) but we saw two American Coots this past weekend. Watched them for an hour. Very cool.
Popped out into the yard and spotted a nice Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker
and a Nuthactch stopped by to investigate
Was able to check off another waterfowl.
Common Merganser.
The Merlin Bird ID app is really really good. It links to eBird, and I find myself using it more than the eBird app.
It’s such a good and useful app. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in birds at all. Beginner or expert.
Boy o boy, did we have an afternoon.
Decided to take a lunch break today from office life and head to one of the local boat ramps. We have two about 20 blocks apart. I was heading to one on the south end of town but got a text about a Ross’s Goose at the other location.
Wasn’t able to locate the goose, but with the help of my brother, we were able to ID a female Black Scoter. Last time my brother saw one in our area was October 2020. She was still down there after work.
Unfinished pics my brother took today.
Now that I’ve rejoined the Refuge (wasn’t a Nest member back in ‘20 when the board went paywall), I’ll definitely be posting the birds we get at our local Audubon Park.
Seems to be a little too warm for some of water fowl in our area so far. Have yet to see much of anything outside the usual suspects (pied bill grebe, hooded mergansers, ring necked ducks).
But we got species number 160 today. American Tree Sparrow. Was super excited. My camera wouldn’t focus for the longest time, it kept picking up a limb in front of it, and I was afraid it was going to fly. Finally it came out.
2022 is in the books, and we finished December with some very solid species.
Excited to see what we can get in 2023.
Top 5 birds of 2022:
1.) Black Throated Blue Warbler
2.) White Winged Scoter
3.) Sandhill Cranes
4.) Orange crowned warbler
5.) Black billed cuckoo
Do you reset this annually and start counting over again?
This is from the eBird app. It has a “Life List” that keeps a running tally forever. Then it also keeps track of the years separately.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen one Waxwing alone. Usually if you see one there is at least another nearby, if not a lot more. They love to flock up.
Our first waxwing was a solo in a bush. We’ve seen 2-3 more together in a different location, but that flock was completely incredible and right in our front yard!
February list, in the books. We are up to 66 species for the calendar year. The highlight of February was 3 new life list species: redhead, northern pintail, and black vulture. The ducks are finally popping up more. Still need a canvasback and a common goldeneye.
March goal: red headed woodpecker. We have a spot, about 45 minutes away, that is still within our county that we are going to this weekend.
No real good pics from February, but here are the redheads through binoculars. There were 24, total, on 2/27/23.
Not only is it Masters week, but the warblers are back!
Had a couple yellow throated warblers today. Also spotted a Louisiana waterthrush yesterday evening.
Up to 88 species for 2023, and 9 new life listers. Green winged teal and pectoral sandpiper are the best of the 9 new lifers.
I just found this thread! At our Ornithological Chapter meeting last night they had a section for new sightings. Warblers are making their way into TN as well. (Prothonotary/Black & White). Red-necked and Horned Grebes. Hummingbirds are back and slowly being spotted. A Franklin Gull and argument over a type of Loon haha.
I am at 66 on the list for this year. I just started keeping one last year and it’s been a blast.
Along with adding to the life list, I have also had a lot of fun drawing bird stuff as well. lol I guess I went full hook line and sinker into birds.
Nothing too rare, but a new lifer for me today: Northern Parula. I’m so thankful for Merlin. I had no idea it was near and the app picked it up out of a group of 10-15 other species. Luckily, I was able to see when the Northern Parula lit up on screen and memorized the sound. Then I listened and moved closer and thankfully spotted it with the binoculars.
