2022 Year Lists!

[IKLland]

I’m at 284 for the year. I’m really hoping, that with my trip to Florida, I’ll be able to get to 300, but the issue is, I’m there from late December to early January, so I’ll have to squeeze in most of the species in a few day window, and then get them again in the first few days of January for my 2023 year list!

[Seanbirds]

23 minutes ago, IKLland said:

I’m at 284 for the year. I’m really hoping, that with my trip to Florida, I’ll be able to get to 300, but the issue is, I’m there from late December to early January, so I’ll have to squeeze in most of the species in a few day window, and then get them again in the first few days of January for my 2023 year list!

And here I am trying to hit 330 on the life list by the end of the year.

 

You're catching up to me WAY too fast bro!! 😂

[chipperatl]

Had a hunch to hit up nearby lake early in the morning before all the geese took off for the farm fields to feed.  Just as I was about to leave heard a high pitched honk, looked up and large white goose with black wing-tips positioned in the back of the Canada Geese "V".  Snow Goose makes #218 for the year, and keeps me from being shut-out of FOY in November.  This was a catch-up bird that I missed earlier in the year.  

[IKLland]

3 hours ago, Seanbirds said:

And here I am trying to hit 330 on the life list by the end of the year.

 

You're catching up to me WAY too fast bro!! 😂

My life list is 324(320 ABA countable)

[Seanbirds]

17 minutes ago, IKLland said:

My life list is 324(320 ABA countable)

WHOA! You only need two more to pass me!! 😲🤯

[Seanbirds]

8 minutes ago, Seanbirds said:

WHOA! You only need two more to pass me!! 😲🤯

What’s the “sad” for?

[Charlie Spencer]

2 hours ago, chipperatl said:

Just as I was about to leave heard a high pitched honk, looked up and large white goose with black wing-tips positioned in the back of the Canada Geese "V".  

I got a Snowy that way a couple of years ago, near the back of a V of 25 or so Honkers flying over a farm field of a few hundred acres.

[IKLland]

1 hour ago, Seanbirds said:

What’s the “sad” for?

I didn’t even mean to click a reaction. Simple mistake.

[Aaron]

I’m at 361 for the year. I sorta dropped the ball and should be much higher, but I haven’t been out birding since September. Lost my birding bug somehow 🤷🏻‍♂️.

It’s probably possible to get to 370 with what’s still around if I went crazy, but I don’t expect to move much if at all before the years up. Especially since the majority of the birds I’m missing (SNOW, SNBU, GYRF, HOLA, STGR, SEOW) require driving aimlessly around back country roads for hours. Which isn’t very fun!

[Zoroark]

57 minutes ago, Aaron said:

Especially since the majority of the birds I’m missing (SNOW, SNBU, GYRF, HOLA, STGR, SEOW) require driving aimlessly around back country roads for hours.

Besides the lark, every one of those would be a lifer for me. 😀

[chipperatl]

1 hour ago, Aaron said:

I’m at 361 for the year. I sorta dropped the ball and should be much higher, but I haven’t been out birding since September. Lost my birding bug somehow 🤷🏻‍♂️.

It’s probably possible to get to 370 with what’s still around if I went crazy, but I don’t expect to move much if at all before the years up. Especially since the majority of the birds I’m missing (SNOW, SNBU, GYRF, HOLA, STGR, SEOW) require driving aimlessly around back country roads for hours. Which isn’t very fun!

I have more fun doing that than walking around on a trail.  Pop on a podcast and go.

[HamRHead]

I'm at 214 for the year. That's a little behind the previous 3 years. And I just hit 331 on my life-list, a Red-throated Loon. The loon, a county first, was found by Sam Murray, who was a member on Whatbird back in the day.

[Birds are cool]

13 hours ago, HamRHead said:

I'm at 214 for the year. That's a little behind the previous 3 years. And I just hit 331 on my life-list, a Red-throated Loon. The loon, a county first, was found by Sam Murray, who was a member on Whatbird back in the day.

The one at the Brickyard Ponds, or the one in Lamar County?

[HamRHead]

1 hour ago, Birds are cool said:

The one at the Brickyard Ponds, or the one in Lamar County?

Oh, that's right, there were two. I saw the one at the Brickyard Ponds in Richmond County.

[Charlie Spencer]

Well, with a bit over a month to go in 2022, I've bested my previous county annual record by 1, state (SC) by 27, and national by 7.  13 lifers, 5 within three miles of the house.  The life list total is the only one I care about much.

I jumped into this thread back in January and have stuck with it because I'm hardheaded.  I don't think I'll monitor the numbers through the year again.  At the end of the year, the numbers will be what they will be.

[Aaron]

On 11/26/2022 at 1:38 PM, Zoroark said:

Besides the lark, every one of those would be a lifer for me. 😀

The gyrfalcon, short-eared owl and the grouse would all be lifers for me too, but they’re the birds where you could drive around 100 times and never see—maybe excluding the grouse. The others are much more expected, snowy owls are practically guaranteed. Sometimes people on a good day can see them in the double digits. 

On 11/26/2022 at 2:37 PM, chipperatl said:

I have more fun doing that than walking around on a trail.  Pop on a podcast and go.

I much prefer walking around outside as if you get skunked at least you got some steps in and probably came across some bird that you could observe/take photos of. Getting skunked in a car means you wasted a bunch of gas and drove around all day for nothing . Though some species it’s definitely the only way to have a chance at seeing them! Definitely a better way to bird I guess in the winter. 

Edited November 28, 2022 by Aaron

[chipperatl]

On 11/27/2022 at 10:05 PM, Aaron said:

The gyrfalcon, short-eared owl and the grouse would all be lifers for me too, but they’re the birds where you could drive around 100 times and never see—maybe excluding the grouse. The others are much more expected, snowy owls are practically guaranteed. Sometimes people on a good day can see them in the double digits. 

I much prefer walking around outside as if you get skunked at least you got some steps in and probably came across some bird that you could observe/take photos of. Getting skunked in a car means you wasted a bunch of gas and drove around all day for nothing . Though some species it’s definitely the only way to have a chance at seeing them! Definitely a better way to bird I guess in the winter. 

Yeah, I was speaking specifically of winter birding...in that mode now.  

 

November was the first month this year I got skunked from adding a new Month bird.  

[Charlie Spencer]

On 11/25/2022 at 8:56 AM, Birds are cool said:

Me and my father are going to Phinizy and Brickyard Ponds. (Ducks) It would be an easy 8 new year species. Possible lifer. @Charlie Spencer, I believe you have gone to both hotspots.

So, how'd it go?  

[Birds are cool]

11 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said:

So, how'd it go?  

Amazing. The leader helped out a ton. I probably would have missed Canvasback, Redhead, Brown Pelican, American Wigeon, and countless others. I ended up with 50 species and 5 year birds! The Canvasback was a lifer!

https://ebird.org/checklist/S123396600

Afterwards, me and my father had a few hours left, so we ran 4 miles through Phinizy, scoped out any species that we wanted to look at, and then after the run grabbed our birding things and went. I got some great photos of Lesser Scaup, Black Bellied Whistling Ducks, and Ring-necked Ducks. No year birds, but three photo lifers.

https://ebird.org/checklist/S123396634

Thanks again @Charlie Spencer!

 

[Birds are cool]

Up to 245 for the year!

[Charlie Spencer]

I'm glad you were successful.  Lois is the real deal.  I'm a bit surprised there were only four of you.  I wanted to make that trip myself, but I was already scheduled to be over that way next week.  I have a coworker in town from Hawaii and we're headed to Phinizy.  He's more of a photographer than birder, so I want to put him closer to the waterfowl.

 

[Birds are cool]

19 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said:

I'm glad you were successful.  Lois is the real deal.  I'm a bit surprised there were only four of you.  I wanted to make that trip myself, but I was already scheduled to be over that way next week.  I have a coworker in town from Hawaii and we're headed to Phinizy.  He's more of a photographer than birder, so I want to put him closer to the waterfowl.

 

The equalization pond provided some great shots. Their were White Ibises fairly close, and the three Species of ducks were very close. We did not see much else.

[Avery]

These past two weeks have been great for birds for me. No lifers, but great birds! Red-breasted Merganser and Pacific Loon were state birds for me, then yesterday I went to try for an Eared Grebe (already have it in the state) and got my state birds Red-throated Loon, Black Scoter, and a flyover Lapland Longspur (few county records) which was my state bird 250!

[Peromyscus]

This afternoon my wife and I went to look for a reported Western Tanager in the District of Columbia. There are no accepted records of this species in DC, and I haven't seen this species in at least 7.5 years. Unfortunately, we didn't see it. Maybe next weekend/next non-rainy non-appointment day?

[Peromyscus]

The same place that had the Western Tanager (National Arboretum) had been hosting a late adult male Wilson's Warbler, and an Orange-crowned Warbler. I went back by myself this afternoon because the Wilson's had been reported this morning and just after noon. In keeping with yesterday, I didn't see that bird either, though I did meet a couple of local birders I didn't/didn't really know. The WIWA would be a year bird. Oh well, maybe the next non-rainy non-appointment day?

I did spot an adult male Northern Harrier, which is another bird I hadn't seen this year. I don't think I've seen the species at all during the past six years; it's not very common in the immediate DC area.