2014 - Can I see 1000 species? (1 Viewer)

[Jon Turner]

Spent today (15 hours) in a polling station dealing with democracy! Saw a family of Great Tits outside....

Will be chasing local migrants around for a while now. A few days in Cornwall in June, then off to Scilly and Cornwall in July. Pity Kent isn't a bit closer, still need Baillon's Crake.

 

[Jon Turner]

Visited one of the boxes I monitor as part of my Schedule one ringing licence and so finally caught up with:

593) Barn Owl

Sadly not breeding this year.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Will be chasing local migrants around for a while now. A few days in Cornwall in June, then off to Scilly and Cornwall in July.

Andre is now on 789 so I assume you have somewhere more exotic planned.

 

[Jon Turner]

Andre is now on 789 so I assume you have somewhere more exotic planned.

André is obviously far better organised than me. However he has included at least one guided tour (Ghana). I'm so far on nearly 600 without that sort of help and I did say I'd try to avoid guided tours, but the next major plan I had looks like it has fallen through unless I can bend some arms.

So I may yet be looking through the tour company's brochures for a suitable replacement. Still a lot of local stuff I need - Green Woodpecker for example is not uncommon around here, but this year of course is proving the opposite. Everything also seems to have stopped singing, which hasn't helped on the Warbler front.

Still 7 months to go!

Also I was trolling through the Australia part of the trip and I think I may be able to add one or two more from there.

 

[njlarsen]

Jon,
even without using a guided tour, 3 weeks in Costa Rica for example should bring you close to your goal.

Niels

 

[Jon Turner]

Jon,
even without using a guided tour, 3 weeks in Costa Rica for example should bring you close to your goal.

Niels

Thanks again Niels, Costa Rica would indeed get there, but I've been there done lots of the birds in a 12 day thrash a few years back. I'd love to go somewhere with a big range of NEW species. We'll see.....

 

[wintibird]

André is obviously far better organised than me. However he has included at least one guided tour (Ghana). I'm so far on nearly 600 without that sort of help and I did say I'd try to avoid guided tours, but the next major plan I had looks like it has fallen through unless I can bend some arms.

So I may yet be looking through the tour company's brochures for a suitable replacement. Still a lot of local stuff I need - Green Woodpecker for example is not uncommon around here, but this year of course is proving the opposite. Everything also seems to have stopped singing, which hasn't helped on the Warbler front.

Still 7 months to go!

Also I was trolling through the Australia part of the trip and I think I may be able to add one or two more from there.

It's not a competition, isn't it. Surely without a guide I would have seen far less in Ghana and some places would have been very difficult to get there.
Have you been to India, Jon? Lots of easy places to do without guide and some cracking birds there.

André

 

[Jos Stratford]

Still 7 months to go!

An amble round this way, pointed not guided , would still notch you up a few ...er not enough though

Moderately cheap, easy to do independently, stacks of species, go to India in early December ...

 

[Jos Stratford]

It's not a competition, isn't it.

Of course it is

By autumn, we'll be waving the Union Jacks for every addition 'our local lad' gets 3

 

[Jon Turner]

I must be mad. Found myself on Dartmoor eating breakfast at 7 this morning, and proceeded to wander about, mostly counting Cuckoos, but did see lots of others as well. Wheatear - 4, Whinchat - 5, Meadow Pipit - dozens, Cuckoo - 6 (all males), Willow Warbler - 20+ mostly in song, Blackcap - several, Whitethroat - 2, and some additions too:
594) Tree Pipit - 6/8
595) Green Woodpecker - at last!
596) Garden Warbler - a few singing
And at Challacombe Farm a smart male
597) Redstart - feeding young in a box
So down to Yarner Wood where I finally caught up with a
598) Wood Warbler - with 2 red rings on!
Next stop Exminster where an obliging
599) Lesser Whitethroat - was still singing.
Finally tootled off to Exmouth hoping for one of the Roseate Terns seen this morning, but only lots of the Sandwich variety on show. So back to Bowling Green Marsh, where not one, but both
600) Little Gulls were in to the roost.

So another milestone reached, it will only get harder from here.

 

[Andy Hurley]

Well done John

 

[Allen S. Moore]

Of course it is

By autumn, we'll be waving the Union Jacks for every addition 'our local lad' gets 3

How many species this year yourself, Jos? (Without me checking, you'll tell me that you have a year list thread, but I've just been following your excellent Iran thread!)

 

[angusmcoatup]

Of course it is

By autumn, we'll be waving the Union Jacks for every addition 'our local lad' gets 3

Hopefully it doesn't go to penalties.

 

[Jos Stratford]

How many species this year yourself, Jos? (Without me checking, you'll tell me that you have a year list thread, but I've just been following your excellent Iran thread!)

Last time I tallied a year list was 1987

At a guess however, I'm probably on about 450-500 for this year ...only foreign trips so far this year have been Iran and the tail end of a Florida trip (i.e. half a day). Still, at least three overseas trips to follow, should notch it up a bit

 

[Frogfish]

This thread has inspired me to try and beat last year's total (592) with a very outside chance of 4 figures (amended !) if I can get over to Europe and, closer to home, Philippines and Thailand plus more 'local' trips within China. Daunting.

Currently around 400 (haven't tallied this month yet) after Shanghai (isles of Chongming, Hengsha, Yangshan and the Nanhui reed beds), Yancheng, Yunnan (Tengchong & Gaoligongshan) and Taman Nagara/Fraser Hill so far this year.

Thanks for the incentive though Jon and Andre !

 

[Jon Turner]

This thread has inspired me to try and beat last year's total (592) with a very outside chance of 5 figures !

Daunting indeed!:eek!::eek!::eek!:

 

[Frogfish]

Daunting indeed!:eek!::eek!::eek!:

Ha ha - go away for a cup to tea and had a nagging feeling I had made an error somewhere. Return to check and you have already picked me up on it. You are you just too damn quick - those birds have no chance.

 

[wintibird]

Of course it is

By autumn, we'll be waving the Union Jacks for every addition 'our local lad' gets 3

You mean when I'm roaming around in Indonesia?

 

[Allen S. Moore]

Last time I tallied a year list was 1987

At a guess however, I'm probably on about 450-500 for this year ...only foreign trips so far this year have been Iran and the tail end of a Florida trip (i.e. half a day). Still, at least three overseas trips to follow, should notch it up a bit

Jos,

That was brave of you, flying home on New Year's Day, if that was the tail end of the Florida trip. There again, it is several years since I've touched any alcohol on New Year's Eve. I'm not teetotal (that's my Dad), I'm just not into the hype. I also like to do a bit of birdwatching at first light on January 1st when there's hardly anyone about, although I was thwarted by heavy rain this New Year's morning.

Aye, I hope that you didn't think that I was prying. I did a "Big Year" (well, a "Big Year" for me) last year, totalling 563 bird species in the IOM, UK, 7 other European countries, Canada, Australia and Hong Kong. As you see from the total, I was laid back about the whole "Big Year" idea, even more so than Jon and André! I didn't get around to doing a thread, deciding on the idea in the spring, at which point my computer crashed.

Enjoy your other overseas trips. Mine don't start until later in the summer.

Allen

 

[njlarsen]

Jos,

That was brave of you, flying home on New Year's Day,

Do you remember the big 2k scare? Well, we were on board the first plane flying out of Denmark on January 1, 2000. Obviously, nothing happened, it was just hype. That was first leg of a wonderful two weeks driving around in Mexico.

Niels