Owen's lifetime of wildlife in a year. (2 Viewers)

[Owene]

Love seeing people doing "beyond birds" year lists, I guess I'm biased because I'm a bit insanely passionate in that department (worse, I've found out to be into plants as of 10 years ago so my walking pace in any reserve is forever capped to a gentle step per hour!).

Thanks. I've always been interested in general nature and always been too influenced by wanting to see new things, I'm terrible for logging films and stuff I read too and always want to see everything by a given director so when I'm out I'll generally try and photograph and ID pretty much everything I see. Keeps returning to the same places interesting in winter months if you're looking at insects and fungi as well. I'm slowly getting into plants too, I find it hard to latch onto all the information in new fields but I am very good at remembering if I've seen something before (I find it hard to reread or rewatch stuff as it's immediately too familiar word for word) so once I have logged something I'm usually pretty good at recalling where I saw it before.

I think given I want to see new stuff that I have to widen beyond birds or I'd just be wanting to twitch all the time, I was out for hours twice this week but mainly looking at fungi and then adder surveying so no new updates

Joining igoterra was another big factor for me as it let's you list everything and keeps numbers ticking along which I have to admit does drive me a little

 

[Tiraya]

For me iNaturalist solved the "list everything" issue, and the community there is helpful when it comes to IDing stuff as well.

My old secret to getting into plants was just taking photos here and there if I happened to walk across an open flower or two...it stuck eventually, and didn't eat into my other time too much in general. But now I'm more hardcore into botany, it is hard to go back! I usually tell people plants are mandatory for "good general lists". I think in general, plants are 3/4 of the species I log in a given day and on a trip to a new region, plants can consist of a couple hundred lifers while birds and insects hobble in the 50s or 60s. I always prefer bird lifers and prioritize them where I can, even still, since that was my entry to the hobby and what drives a lot of my travel.

Currently plants make up approximately 40% of my world list...

 

[Owene]

For me iNaturalist solved the "list everything" issue, and the community there is helpful when it comes to IDing stuff as well.

My old secret to getting into plants was just taking photos here and there if I happened to walk across an open flower or two...it stuck eventually, and didn't eat into my other time too much in general. But now I'm more hardcore into botany, it is hard to go back! I usually tell people plants are mandatory for "good general lists". I think in general, plants are 3/4 of the species I log in a given day and on a trip to a new region, plants can consist of a couple hundred lifers while birds and insects hobble in the 50s or 60s. I always prefer bird lifers and prioritize them where I can, even still, since that was my entry to the hobby and what drives a lot of my travel.

Currently plants make up approximately 40% of my world list...

That sounds very close to my approach, phone photos of any new flowers and after a couple of times they do stick in my head. Wish I’d got more plants while I was in Cyprus but not much was flowering

Birds are still the thing I care about most. Well maybe mammals but they’re even rarer but a walk out today with my wife and daughter brought a new hoverfly and that buzz of ‘that looks new’ and then getting an ID and of knowing that little bit more about the local wildlife is still really genuine.

 

[Owene]

December 3rd

After a few weeks with nothing new to add and a lot of family events one of them finally came up trumps. Driving back towards the m5 last night had a flyby barn owl coming out of the churchyard by gordano services.

Not a bird I see often but i don’t think I’ve ever left it until December before. Just noticed that it was Chris’ most recent bird on his list too.

In london next weekend so Egyptian goose will probably bring the 300 up. Top class bird

299 barn owl

Birds 299 Mammals 33 Herp 27 Butterflies 77 Total 438 Lifers 143

 

[Owene]

December 8th

A rare totally free day with decent weather so set off for a quick shot aT the dusky warbler that had been showing intermittently in Bradford on Avon.

Got there about 11 to news it had been showing. Unlike some twitches when a bird has shown the handful of birders there were still interested in finding the bird and we soon nailed down where it was calling from albeit deep in a bramble patch.

An hour or so later I give in and head off to the toilet. Get back to the inevitable news about how well it had been showing

Thankfully about 40 minutes later, just as I’m gearing up to leave, it starts calling a lot and the four of us left get really good views of it in a bramble hedge. One of those birds where a non birder would probably rightly dismiss as nothing special but when you’re twitching it every glimpse of an identifiable feature feels magic

Very close kingfishers in the sun too. Hopefully I got some nice photos of those even if there was no real hope of the dusky

Very enjoyable mornings twitching. And it stops Egyptian goose being 300 for the year

300 Dusky Warbler

Birds 300 Mammals 33 Herp 27 Butterflies 77 Total 439 Lifers 144

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Congrats on the milestone!

 

[Owene]

Congrats on the milestone!

Thanks. If it was U.K. it would be a milestone. I’m sure there are tropical birders who would consider it an ok trip total

But it’s the most I’ve ever had in a year by a long long way and it’s been fun getting there

 

[Owene]

December 11th

In london for xmas drinks with friends so made my way to a very frosty Hyde park. Absolutely beautiful and quickly found some Egyptian geese.

Took a bit longer but got a parakeet for a U.K. year tick as well.

Wondering now if I can get to 450 species, not sure what is possible in the next few weeks.

301 Egyptian goose



Birds 301 Mammals 33 Herp 27 Butterflies 77 Total 438 Lifers 144

 

[Owene]

December the 17th

Most of the week I'd been planning to head down to Exmouth on my day off to see the Olive-Backed Pipit and return via a black throated diver in Burnham. Then the diver flew off Wednesday and work left me just too worn out to make an early frosty start and I had a rest instead. I'm such a rubbish twitcher.

The photos, especially Paul Chapman's of the Pipit kept me interested though, it seemed like a pretty charismatic pipit giving really good views so the fact that at the weekend I wouldn't have to hit newport and bristol before the rush hour and get back for the school run meant I decided on a second shot at it, luckily it stayed around.

Saw the pipit almost immediately on arrival, it had been flushed once by a dog but seemed totally oblivious to people. Foraging about 10-15 feet in front of us happily. Even then it would sometimes disappear from view under the grass and leaf litter but generally it was an absolute education in how pipits can find food even on frozen ground. Not seen a british pipit get that close to a viewer but it was constantly moving and plucking insects from every direction. Lovely looking bird as well, the black streaking especially

After the pipit I made the trip to Labrador Bay, a lovely site and the usual great views of Cirl Buntings. Dipped a Rosy Starling on the way home but a very enjoyable half days twitching.

302 Olive-Backed Pipit
303 Cirl Bunting






Birds 303 Mammals 33 Herp 27 Butterflies 77 Total 440 Lifers 145

 

[Owene]

December 27th

Spending sone of the holidays at the inlaws on the Warwickshire/Northamptonshire border and managed to get away for a few hours this morning to visit eyebrook reservoir. Lovely site nestled between some very fancy villages

Wintering ducks from pretty much all the inland U.K. species including the very best duck

Other observers had 8 smew. I managed 5 including some gorgeous drakes



304 smew

Birds 304 Mammals 33 Herp 27 Butterflies 77 Total 441 Lifers 145

 

[Owene]

Its got dark on December 31st now so really can't see me adding anything. It's been a very fun and successful year and i did promise my wife at the beginning of it that longish trips would only be for lifers and not just year ticks and that they'd be fitted around parenting. Probably cost me a few birds in the UK (finished with 201 UK) but it makes a few more quite easy species that more desirable for next year having skipped them this year.

Ring Ouzel is probably the one i've most regretted not seeing, they are fairly local to me and its a fun day out in the mountains but just never quite worked out. White admiral was the only british butterfly I feasibly could have got and missed but its really not that easy this far west and everybody was missing them the day I did Fermyn Woods. Can't see me ever reaching 53 UK butterfly species in a year again and its probably the butterfly trips I will most remember.

As I got into the autumn I really got into other insects, hoverflies and beetles especially and I'm looking forward to continuing that come march or april and very tentatively into botany. I think 2023 will be much more of a generalist year for my local wildlife interests.

So happy new year everyone and thanks for reading, its felt like theres a small but enthusiastic crowd in this subforum and i've really enjoyed reading everyone elses lists.


Here's a few photos of species I really enjoyed that I dont think I posted on here at the time. Smooth Snake, Swallowtail, Egyptian Fruit Bat and Schrieber's Fringe Fingered Lizard.

 

[Scridifer]

Thanks for posting it all Owen, it's been a pleasure to read! A Happy New Year and good luck for 2023.

Chris