Target bird species for 2014 (1 Viewer)

[timsg80]

With 2014 less than two weeks away, I was wondering which bird species people hope to see next year. For me, I am hoping to find a Bald Ibis in Morocco in January. Back at home in England, I would love to see a Long-eared Owl. What would everyone else like to see in 2014?

 

[Bananafishbones]

Philippine Eagle in March

 

[Andy Hurley]

I'm headed to Iceland in June, so I have a few missing from my lifelist;
Dovekie, Glaucous Gull, Gyr Falcon, Pink Footed Goose, Merlin & Redwing (if I don't get them winter in Germany) Red Necked Phalarope, and Rock Ptarmigan. Any accidentals will be a bonus. In Germany I hope to get Stock Dove, Hobby, Honey Buzzard amongst others.

 

[chris butterworth]

Got to be Elegant Trogon, Red-faced Warbler, Painted Whitestart, Olive Warbler and Five-striped Sparrow in Arizona in May.

Chris

 

[West End Birder]

At the risk of broken record comments:

Lady Amherst's Pheasant
Barred Warbler
Quail
Snow Goose

 

[Farnboro John]

I have yet to take satisfactory photos in the British Isles of:

Cory's Shearwater
Storm Petrel
Leach's Petrel
Snow Goose
Smew
Dotterel
Kentish Plover
Temminck's Stint
Caspian Gull
Bee-eater
Tawny Pipit
Lesser Redpoll
Scottish Crossbill
Serin
Ortolan Bunting

Abroad, we resume the great wolf hunt (in Wyoming, this time) in August. I am also hoping for Prairie Falcon, American Avocet and plenty of other bits and bobs on that trip, including Bison, Pronghorn and Mountain Goat.

I have two British terrestrial mammals still to photograph (at all!) and they are, inevitably, difficult ones - Wildcat and Common Vole.

Plenty to keep me occupied.

John

 

[James Lowther]

I'm headed to Iceland in June, so I have a few missing from my lifelist;
Dovekie, Glaucous Gull, Gyr Falcon, Pink Footed Goose, Merlin & Redwing (if I don't get them winter in Germany) Red Necked Phalarope, and Rock Ptarmigan. Any accidentals will be a bonus. In Germany I hope to get Stock Dove, Hobby, Honey Buzzard amongst others.

Hi Andy,
you've basically no chance of little auk/dovekie in iceland, but i saw all the others in your list there last june. some easier than others!

as for me there's a load of big gaps on my lifelist that i've a chance for in the next couple of weeks and early 2014 in britain, shorelark, twite, two-barred, scottish & parrot xbills, rose-coloured starling, capercaillie, black grouse.... also hope i get leach's petrel next autumn which given where i live is probably the most egregious gap on my list overall.

am on about 1900 for my life list so would be nice to get to 2000, but we've not figured out any overseas destinations yet so it'll be a mystery selection which gets me there.

cheers,
james

 

[Jon Turner]

Well there's lots of reasons to make 2014 a special year: I'll start a separate thread with details later, but I'm aiming for a thousand species next year, so plenty of time birding - travels will take me to some great new places and some I've been to lots of times before. So bird of the year could be an Albatross or a Penguin, or a Fairywren or even a Parrot Crossbill. I'll keep a list up to date on here somewhere, and as I travel I'll be looking for any help to see as much as possible. Be interesting to see how it goes. Anyway for now Merry Christmas to you all!
Slight case of beer goggles here in windy Devon.

 

[Zheljko]

What would everyone else like to see in 2014?

- birds that are expected in our local area but I haven't seen them this year (including some seen and photographed by more than one of my friends). For example, I checked every goldcrest in my four local patches and none was a firecrest.
-our local organization plans day field trips to IBA areas for 2014. Last year we went to one (and it boosted my year list) and another was cancelled due to small number of interested birders from our city. If I go to several of these trips I will certainly add a dozen waders and get all the wetland passerines in one go instead of waiting for them to wander randomly to my area. Stilt and avocet are on top of my list. I also seem to have a rather low score for open grassland ecosystem.
-I would like to have certain checks for as many species as possible the first time around, instead of wondering if this red-backed shrike counts because I am not really satisfied with quality of observation, and then have the certain check (and a photo) two months later.

 

[Mysticete]

I will be happy if I can get any new birds this year

I guess If I have targets, I might try add some Boreal birds I am missing in Northern Michigan (Connecticut Warbler, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, etc), and may try to nab some of my missing warblers and sparrows on my (eventual?) drive back east (Henslow's Sparrow, Worm-eating, Kentucky, Prairie Warbler, Lousiana Waterthrush)

 

[Tiraya]

I'd like to get Tree Sparrow, Honey Buzzard, Spotshank, Yellow wagtail, Blackstart in the UK next year but I'm not counting on it.

Here in the US it would be nice to get Lawrence's Goldfinch, Wood DuckBlack-vented Shearwater and Cinnamon Teal, all common birds here but I can never find them.

 

[northernloon]

This year has provided few birding opportunities but has included two fantastic birds. Bridled Tern on Inner Farne and Ivory Gull in Yorkshire.

I'm hoping to get out more next year but I'm setting the bar low with Great White Egret. Less likely is Hoopoe (but one day...)

 

[Little SuperBirder]

@ Silverwolf: Have you ever been on a pelagic? Black-vented Shearwaters are everywhere once you get out there. During the summer I saw tons of Lawrence's Goldfinches on Palomar Mountain as well as Cuyumaca.

The biggest target bird for me would be Worm-eating Warbler. I heard many on my trip to Missouri this summer, but never saw them. I'm going to Colorado in the summer... target birds for there - Brown-capped Rosy-Finch, McCown's Longspur, White-winged Ptarmigan, and Mountain Plover.

 

[Mysticete]

Silver Wolf: have you tried ebird for your county? That's usually a great reference to let you know where and when people are seeing the commoner birds that don't make it to RBAs.

 

[dandsblair]

Targets for 2014

Hopefully in January / February in Phillipines - we will see Palawan Peacock Pheasant, Steere's Pita, Visayan Broadbill, Silvery Kingfisher and among other endemics if really lucky a Cebu Flowerpecker.
In Aug / Sept West Coast US - Surfbird, California Condor, Clarke's Nutcracker and Great Grey owl.

 

[Gill Osborne]

I'm planning on a more 'general' natural history year....working on a list of 50 things I want to do/see :king: Catching up with various birds, flowers and insects I want to see....nature reserves I want to visit....books to read....focus on sketching more etc etc.

It's a work in progress which I'm adding to as and when I think of something so watch this space.... It's gonna be a good year!

 

[Jeff Hopkins]

My 2014 wish list includes least and crested auklets and bristle-thighed curlew, along with siberian vagrants in the spring. I'm heading to Gambel and Nome.

Current plans have me going to Colombia in November. Too many species there to list!

 

[Nightjar61]

Right now I don't have any major trips planned, so my targets are two life birds that are within a day's drive. They are Bicknell's Thrush in the Catskill Mountains of New York (about an eight-hour drive, requiring an overnight stay, especially as I'll need to hike to the top of a mountain before dawn) and Saltmarsh Sparrow on the Delaware coast (about a six-hour drive, possibly doable in one long day).

Also, I'd like to get up to at least 225 on my West Virginia list (I'm now at 216). There are many possibilities, but my main target is Swainson's Warbler, which is fairly common in the southern part of the state.

Dave

 

[ta brandreth]

I'd like to see Hen Harrier on a keepered Grouse Moor...

 

[chris butterworth]

I have yet to take satisfactory photos in the British Isles of:

Cory's Shearwater
Storm Petrel
Leach's Petrel
Snow Goose
Smew
Dotterel
Kentish Plover
Temminck's Stint
Caspian Gull
Bee-eater
Tawny Pipit
Lesser Redpoll
Scottish Crossbill
Serin
Ortolan Bunting

Abroad, we resume the great wolf hunt (in Wyoming, this time) in August. I am also hoping for Prairie Falcon, American Avocet and plenty of other bits and bobs on that trip, including Bison, Pronghorn and Mountain Goat.

I have two British terrestrial mammals still to photograph (at all!) and they are, inevitably, difficult ones - Wildcat and Common Vole.

Plenty to keep me occupied.

John

For Dotterel, try Pendle Hill, Lancs, around May 5th.

Chris