Birding year in review

A poem. 

Another year has come and gone,
So here we are again.
Looking back at all we saw
In the year two-thousand-ten [2010!].

It started with the locals:
Palm warblers and Sandhill Cranes
Halfway around the world in back,
The year ended with just the same.

49 lifers from 4 different countries
Left much to be desired,
But between rooks and redshanks, ravens and wrens,
The journey was awe-inspired!

From guillemots to grey wagtails,
Europe showed me some new birds.
Red-crested pochards and chaffinches
Left me at a loss for words!

With 27 species total,
From England, Ireland and Wales,
After four months abroad,
I returned to the US trails.

In the Golden State for a month,
I learned my Western species,
From bushtits to Brandt's cormorants,
To California towhees!

31 was my California total,
With 17 life birds in all,
My favorite was the pigeon guillemot,
And the Heerman's gull.

Finally back in the Sunshine State
For school to start again,
It was back to the usual species,
Like the Carolina Wren.

But on breaks I saw some year birds,
Like harriers and wood-pewees,
And then I got a whole bunch more
On the local CBCs.

An old barred owl was my last bird
For the year 2010,
With 164 birds in all,
The year finally came to an end.

But I beat my goal of 150,
So I'm happy as you can see!
Good wishes for birding in 2011,
Hope it's as great is it can be!


Happy new year to all!

A Look Back on 2009

Before I started this post, I took a look back at all my posts from the year 2009. It wasn't the best year I've ever had, but I was actually quite surprised to see how much I really did in the last 365 days.

By the end of January last year, I had already added close to 70 birds to my year list, thanks to a CBC and some incredible birding luck that month. In February, I participated in the Great Backyard Bird Count and March marked a month of some fun local explorations.

May was pretty exciting too. In somewhat of a spur-of-the-moment decision, I took off across the state to go chase mega-rarity Greater Sand Plover that had showed up in Jacksonville. Turned out to be great fun and I added a few lifers and year bird to my list.

In July and August, my family and I flew out to the Great Plains for a few weeks, where I came back with nearly 30 lifers and some once-in-a-lifetime experiences. I saw more wildlife in CO and SD than I think I have ever seen on any other vacation.

For the rest of the year, school took up most of my time. It was a tough semester, with a more than full courseload of 5 classes. Thankfully though, I finished them all with high grades, much to my own surprise.

In December, my life list reached 202 species, with the last one being a Winter Wren seen on the local CBC last weekend.

2009 was a good year, but I'm not too sad to leave it behind. I have a feeling that 2010 is going to be better. After a month of Field Ornithology (starting this Tuesday!) I'm shipping off across the pond to England for 4 months.

So here's to hoping that 2010 will be a good year for all of us. May your birding be successful, your days be happy, and your life be all you've ever imagined this year!

Happy New Year, and happy birding!