June Challenge starts Wednesday (1 Viewer)

csanchez7 · Jun 1, 2011

For all those interested:

Gentlemen, start your engines.

In 2004 Becky Enneis proposed a contest to me and Bob Carroll. She was
scandalized that most birders spent the summer indoors, and she thought
that competition might motivate some of them to get out in the field
during the warm months. And so The June Challenge was born. We had only
a handful of participants that first year, but last year there were 48
entries from 14 counties (including one from Norfolk, England).

We discovered something interesting in the first few years of the
Challenge: June is a pretty good month for rarities. We found a Snail
Kite and a Reddish Egret, as well as strays from the coast like Gray
Kingbird, Sandwich Tern, and Willet. Late spring migrants were recorded
almost every year. But all that just comes down to the first rule of
birding: if you want to see birds, get out there and look for them. Even
in June.

There are some rules for this competition:

1. Birds must be seen. No heard-only birds.
2. All lists must be compiled within the borders of a single county. You
can do The June Challenge in a second county if you like, but keep a
second list for that county.
3. You can count anything, but keep track of how many ABA-countable and
non-countable species are on your list. Report them in this format:
Total (ABA countable / non-countable), e.g., 115 (112 / 3).
4. Send me your totals on July 1st ([email protected]).

Good luck to all. And have fun!

Rex Rowan
[email protected]
Gainesville

Miami-Dade county in Florida was the winner last year!

Carlos

Mysticete · Jun 1, 2011

Interesting...In San Diego it was July-early august that was the slow season for birding (hot temps, cessation of breeding, lull mostly between migration periods. If anything I would say June in Wyoming is still pretty heavily birded, given that we have to endure a long slow boring winter a good chunk of the year

Larry Lade · Jun 1, 2011

Perhaps I will do one for Buchanan County here in Missouri. It is generally pretty slow birding here in northwest Missouri though, so I think that my total would be pretty meager!

csanchez7 · Jun 1, 2011

If it helps, construct teams in your local counties (or equivalent if you are outside of the USA or UK). We have a team doing Miami-Dade this year, and I believe several other locations do, too. Some counties only have individual players.

Carlos

ovenbird43 · Jun 2, 2011

Sounds fun... I might give that a try, although of course Washington Co. in Arkansas won't come anywhere near Miami-Dade's total. I'll be traveling to Colorado later in the month, that might be a fun place to do a second one.

Larry Lade · Jun 2, 2011

I have not been out in Buchanan county yet, but I have observed these birds in our yard (we live in Buchanan County).
* I will be doing this by myself.

American Robin
Black-capped Chickadee
Chimney Swift
Common Grackle
House Finch
House Sparrow
House Wren
Mourning Dove
Northern Cardinal
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch

Total 11 (11/0)

Larry Lade · Jun 2, 2011

How many species did Dade County count last June?

csanchez7 · Jun 2, 2011

Miami-Dade had 134 species for the county last June -- that was the magic number for first place last year.

Currently, as a county team, we have 72 species. On my personal June list, I only have 48 so far.

Carlos

Larry Lade · Jun 2, 2011

Carlos, were there some rather low counts for some of the counties which participated in previous years' June Counts?

* I will have to do a little checking in my records and see what I can expect to see in Buchanan County in the month of June!

Birdingcraft · Jun 3, 2011

Thats a cool idea. I might do a count of the equivalent of a county in Costa Rica.

csanchez7 · Jun 3, 2011

It would be great to see some people from the neotropics to participate!

I am not sure what the low counts were. I am guessing somewhere between 60-70 species.

Carlos

Larry Lade · Jun 4, 2011

I will have to put my Buchanan County June Count "on hold" for a few days, as my wife and I are currently out of the state visiting relatives.

ovenbird43 · Jun 5, 2011

So far 17 species, I haven't really been out birding the past few days, just a few things seen around town and during my run around the lake yesterday:

Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Cooper's Hawk
Rock Pigeon
Chimney Swift
Common Nighthawk
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
American Crow
European Starling
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
Gray Catbird
American Robin
Northern Cardinal
Common Grackle
House Sparrow

Looking at the county lines, all the best National Forest areas are mostly in adjacent counties :-/ but maybe I can still get some good breeding warblers.

Larry Lade · Jun 10, 2011

I added 40 species today (June 10th) for my Buchanan County (Missouri) June 2011 List.
Total 51 (51/0)

American Coot
American White Pelican
Baltimore Oriole
Barn Swallow
Blue-winged Teal
Brown Thrasher
Brown-headed Cowbird
Canada Goose
Cedar Waxwing
Chipping Sparrow
Cliff Swallow
Common Merganser
Dickcissel
Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Kingbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Eastern Phoebe
Eurasian Collared-Dove
European Starling
Grasshopper Sparrow
Gray Catbird
Great Blue Heron
Great-tailed Grackle
Horned Lark
Indigo Bunting
Killdeer
Lark Sparrow
Least Bittern
Mallard
Northern Mockingbird
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Orchard Oriole
Pied-billed Grebe
Purple Martin
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Red-winged Blackbird
Tree Swallow
Turkey Vulture
Western Kingbird
Wood Duck

csanchez7 · Jun 10, 2011

Miami-Dade is currently at 119 species, but lagging behind a couple of other counties in central Florida. However, we are still picking up birds while the other teams seem to have exhausted their lists. If there is a tie, we will use uncountable exotics to break the tie. You do not want to decide a tie over exotics with Miami-Dade.

Today, I added Shiny Cowbird to the cumulative effort -- not an easy one any time of year!

Carlos

ovenbird43 · Jun 14, 2011

Finally been out birding a few times, up to 63 species now. Highlights were Wood Thrush and Ovenbird this morning.

Brown-headed Cowbird
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Black-and-white Warbler
Carolina Chickadee
Pine Warbler
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
Indigo Bunting
Dickcissel
American Redstart
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Tufted Titmouse
Red-shoulered Hawk
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Yellow-breasted Chat
Northern Parula
Prothonotary Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Acadian Flycatcher
Eastern Towhee
Blue Jay
Carolina Wren
American Goldfinch
House Finch
Fish Crow
Yellow-throated Warbler
Canada Goose
Painted Bunting
Eastern Phoebe
House Wren
Mourning Dove
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Eastern Bluebird
Summer Tanager
Wood Thrush
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Ovenbird
White-breasted Nuthatch
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Chipping Sparrow

Larry Lade · Jun 17, 2011

Yesterday evening I added:

52. Whip-poor-will

csanchez7 · Jun 17, 2011

On my personal list, I added Blue-gray Gnatcatcher to my June Challenge list -- they breed in only a small northwestern section of Miami-Dade near the border with Collier county (Big Cypress). I was also looking for Tufted Titmouse, but I struck out.

Carlos

ovenbird43 · Jun 17, 2011

Added a few more this morning during a trip to the fields and scrub next to the golfcourse:

65. Barn Swallow
66. Field Sparrow
67. Orchard Oriole
68. Eastern Kingbird
69. Common Yellowthroat
70. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
71. Northern Bobwhite
72. Bell's Vireo
73. American Kestrel

ovenbird43 · Jun 17, 2011

oops, forgot one:

74: Northern Flicker

June Challenge starts Wednesday (1 Viewer)

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