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2017 Western Palearctic Big Year (3 Viewers)

A few thoughts:

100% photographed should be easily achievable

Why no Scottish Crossbill? :)

I would future proof on taxonomy

Agree that should future proof geographically, so including Arabia, Iran etc

Cheers, Alan
 
Wow, this will be super exciting to follow. What a fantastic few years of Big Years it has been! What is a reasonably realistic target number of species for them? 750? From what I can remember, the current record is around 700?
 
Why no Scottish Crossbill? :)

I would future proof on taxonomy

Because future proofing on taxonomy will accept that it doesn't exist 8-P

Though it's on the current Netfugl list . . . so they could try for it . . but would it waste too much time trying to find something that isn't there?
 
I'll be super excited to follow their blog and how they will be doing. However I've got certain remarks to their blog so far, as I'm quite disappointed with it so far.
1) The information given is very rudimental. They don't tell us anything about themselves and their background. What taxonomy does netfugl use? (Could look it up, but they might aswell just give us half a sentence more) How will they approach vagrants? Will they use local guides? etc...

2) Their spelling should really be double checked. I notice, they aren't native speakers, but come on... "Mars" "Catagory C" "Suthern Europé" "Kazakstan"

3) Will they even blog about the Big Year or will the netfugl list be everything we get? What other social media will they use?

4) As far as I know at least L.G. Evans has already done a WP Big Year with 704 species seen.
"To our knowledge, no one has ever attempted a full Big Year in the WP region – that is what we’ll be doing in 2017."

Maffong
 
Because future proofing on taxonomy will accept that it doesn't exist 8-P

Though it's on the current Netfugl list . . . so they could try for it . . but would it waste too much time trying to find something that isn't there?

I assume they'll go twitching a few times, maybe that's when they'll try for local species, such as Scottish Crossbill. Would make things cheaper

Maffong
 
1) The information given is very rudimental. They don't tell us anything about themselves and their background.

Give them a chance, the page has only just started! :t:

What taxonomy does netfugl use? (Could look it up, but they might aswell just give us half a sentence more)

A mix of BOURC, plus AERC for taxa not covered by BOURC (stated on Netfugl's taxonomy page). So includes one or two taxa that other lists like IOC don't accept (e.g. Lesser Redpoll), but also omits others (e.g. Iberian Green Woodpecker, now accepted by IOC).

2) Their spelling should really be double checked. I notice, they aren't native speakers, but come on... "Mars" "Catagory C" "Suthern Europé" "Kazakstan"

As above! They do welcome comments, so send them some ;)

4) As far as I know at least L.G. Evans has already done a WP Big Year with 704 species seen.
"To our knowledge, no one has ever attempted a full Big Year in the WP region – that is what we’ll be doing in 2017."

Did LGRE explicitly call it a WP Big Year? Also could be contentious, there's some people at least who consider his personal bird lists a bit iffy . . .
 
A very interesting prospect. It'll be interesting to see what sort of total they achieve, I look forward to seeing their itinerary. Best of luck to them.
 
Yes, very interesting indeed.

Will all 3 end up competing with each other as time goes by (ie will they have their own local agenda between trips as intimated in the blog page) could it all get quite messy? ;)

For those dissing Britain, they seem to be forgetting that as an island (group) it is extremely well placed to receive extra-limital vagrants which will be hard to pick up elsewhere - Sibes to a degree, but also the Yanks. The Azores will of course be good, but in a good year the UK can get 12+ Nearctic shorebird species alone. A potentially greater variety and much easier to twitch. Depends where the birds turn up in the particular year.

Budget will be interesting.


Re future proofing - Just how many subspecies will they be targeting along the way? They could go for the full 2000+ if they were really keen just to make sure ...
Presume they'll have gen for specialities like Andalusian Hemipode (Small Buttonquail), but there are others eg Cape Verde Buzzard? Bourne's Heron which they will just catch? Too late for some species ...

And yes Iran and area would potentially be a good idea but don't they have to be careful about having Israel stamps in the same passport?
 
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Yes, very interesting indeed.

For those dissing Britain, they seem to be forgetting that as an island (group) it is extremely well placed to receive extra-limital vagrants which will be hard to pick up elsewhere - Sibes to a degree, but also the Yanks. The Azores will of course be good, but in a good year the UK can get 12+ Nearctic shorebird species alone. A potentially greater variety and much easier to twitch. Depends where the birds turn up in the particular year.

I really don't think you can plan a big year and realistically legislate for a significant number of vagrants.

Though it's not like a World list, they will presumably be back and forth a lot so could easily spend a week on the Scillies, a week in the Hebs and a week on the Azores?

I suspect though that any vagrants may be mopped up if the chance presents and that solid coverage of each important destination will be of more benefit?


A
 
... don't they have to be careful about having Israel stamps in the same passport?

So long as flying in and out, Israel will put the stamps on a slip of paper which can be thrown away afterwards (they will do the same if travelling overland, but you have exit stamps from Egypt or Jordan and these countries won't put on a slip of paper).

Alternatively, for British passport holders at least, you can travel on two passports.
 
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Not sure ending the year in Iceland is so good an idea though, very limited daylight, for very little potential return

Not ending, just sometime in the second winter period. Presumably they'll only be needing the two main ducks (Barrow's Goldeneye, Harlequin Duck) Possibly Brunnich's, Gyr and Snowy Owl, but they'd hope to get those in Scandinavia already? And a White-winged Scoter type thing if still there. Presume they'd hope to tie in with an autumn twitch for some mega yank or another ...

??
 
I really don't think you can plan a big year and realistically legislate for a significant number of vagrants.

Though it's not like a World list, they will presumably be back and forth a lot so could easily spend a week on the Scillies, a week in the Hebs and a week on the Azores?

I suspect though that any vagrants may be mopped up if the chance presents and that solid coverage of each important destination will be of more benefit?

Looking at vagrancy patterns and weather and such, it would be a very good idea to plan for the unplanned, as it were. By keeping the time free, or effectively trial booking the event so they can be as efficient as possible if they have to go. But they could get lucky or unlucky wherever they go.

Residents/regulars can get mopped up just by good planning mostly. And take much less than half the given year.

It'll be balancing the givens with twitching the chance birds - either being in roughly the right place already or luck of the draw.

Anyway ... I'm sure they'll be looking into it. We'll see how it pans out.
 
I think budget is key here - have they planned for an all out push (ie twitching "all" available vagrants) or is this just a mop up of the residents plus a few stays in vagrant hot spots. If the latter, there is no doubt a big money effort should smash it - one for Paul on his retirement perhaps?

cheers, alan
 
Dan, you may not want to blow your own trumpet as it were (at least I can't see any reference to it), but you did a big WP year of sorts and I'll bet you spent less than they'll spend in a month!
 
That's interesting, didn't know that?

A

A friend of mine holds three passports. Irish, British and US. He usually uses his American passport in Israel and his British passport in other countries in the Middle East. He also requests that the Israeli border police stamp a piece of paper and he's only been refused on one of about five trips to Israel IIRC.

As far as I know though it's obligatory in some countries to use the same passport for both entry and exit on any one trip. This is the case in Switzerland at least.
 
A friend of mine holds three passports. Irish, British and US. He usually uses his American passport in Israel and his British passport in other countries in the Middle East. He also requests that the Israeli border police stamp a piece of paper and he's only been refused on one of about five trips to Israel IIRC.

As far as I know though it's obligatory in some countries to use the same passport for both entry and exit on any one trip. This is the case in Switzerland at least.

Jos is speaking of actually having two British passports, not dual nationality. I just Googled it and it seems that with permission it's possible. Some businessmen need the facility for when one passport is away awaiting a visa so they can still travel on the other.

Andy
 

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