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Paul's 2023 Photographic World List (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Paul Chapman
- Start date
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Three days to get my photographic year list number sorted before 2024 starts. Quite a bit of progress over Christmas. I have some confidence in getting at least an approximate number by the year end. I also had a think about my top twenty species of the year whilst preparing my Top Five…. Top 5 of 2023
20 – Inca Terns (11th September) – from my final birding day in Peru. I have a friend who is a tern freak. I had nineteen tern species in the year and Inca came out on top. But it was the experience of the colony and the scrapping between these two birds that drew my attention to the species in particular.
19 – Golden-browed Chlorophonia (18th February) – very few passerine species made it simply on classic looks. Maybe next year my tastes will be different with some different geographic locations planned. However, this really is an absolute extraordinary species that seems to have been illustrated by a child with highlighters. A cracking highland Costa Rican species.
18 – Grey Goshawk (29th November) – my final morning on Bruny Island, Tasmania. I picked it up when driving and it took my breath away. An absolute stunning simplicity. I had gone out by myself as my companions were feeling the pace but we managed to find another later in the day albeit more distantly. 😊
17 – Crested Owl (25th February) – 36 species of Owl for me in the year. A favourite group. Clearly, there are very practical issues in seeing Owls. This was my favourite Owl species this year. It was high up in trees at La Selva in Costa Rica but gave good though obscured views when eventually picked up through the thermal imager.
16 – Paradise Tanager (5th September) – around seventy species of ‘tanager’ in the course of the year between Costa Rica & Peru. Many of them stunning including Yellow-scarfed, Silvery, Swallow, Guira, etc. Paradise Tanager came out on top by a short head. I saw it on four dates and this one was at Manu Birding Lodge. Again, a stunning simplicity to its bold colouration.
15 – Marbled Frogmouth (13th November) – night birds can be hard work & this made the list courtesy of being hard won as well as being a really unique species. A couple of kilometres hard walking or stumbling & clambering at times finally produced views of this species after frustratingly chasing sounds in the dark over two nights. A combined nineteen species of frogmouth, nighthawk, nightjar, potoos, etc were seen in the year.
14 – Swift Parrot (28th November) – a total of 56 species of parrot, parakeet, macaws, etc in the year. Not my favourite group really with flyovers & difficult identifications as a result often the name of the game. Maybe that captivity thing also casts a long shadow. Swift Parrot was run close by the macaws and the likes of Regent, Superb & Turquoise Parrot but with some lovely views in Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, Tasmania on my last morning, it came out on top for me.
13 – Kea (1st December) – I may have just said that Swift Parrot was my favourite of that group but Kea is different. It is an iconic species of nature documentaries. I confess that I felt a touch nervous about dipping it. Arthur’s Pass in South Island New Zealand had many signs saying ‘Do Not Feed the Keas’. I am sure that this is sensible guidance but with such a limited window of opportunity, I was only about an hour away from scattering food everywhere to attract this species before I heard a call and tracked one down. 😊
12 – Ocellated Antbird (28th February) – I have little doubt that my tastes will change in future years but this feels a touch of a token admission to my Top Twenty. I feel as if I ought to do so as otherwise, I will look like I have absolutely no discernment. (That is true really.) Ant somethings are building on me… They do not match my personal tastes of enjoying a bird with both my eyes and my camera! They can be hard work in darkened understoreys and it was maybe my fourth week in Central and South America before I started to learn how best to get views of some really tricky species by understanding the behaviour of the families. I ended the year with a dozen antpittas, four antthrushes, fourteen antshrikes, two antvireos & fourteen antwrens – I think! No planned return to Central & South America next year yet. Ocellated Antbird was from my first experience of really good views of ant somethings in attendance at an ant swarm & in fairness, it was really a highlight of the year if a slow burn.
11 – Prothonotary Warbler (15th May) – fifty two species of New World Warbler in the year. Many stunners. Prothontary Warbler was seen on both wintering grounds in Costa Rica and breeding grounds at Point Pelee, Ontario. Time with the flourescent singing males was a highlight that pipped spring Blackburnian & Chestnut-sided Warblers and the autumn American influx on this side of the pond. Just. I suspect Blackburnian Warbler would have made it if it had been a tick.
10 – Orange-collared Manakin (21st February) – manakins are an iconic group of species. Thirteen species were seen in the year. They were my first but often, I had frustrating views & they avoided my camera. But a displaying Orange-collared Manakin at Carara NP, Costa Rica was the pick of those species and it made my Top Ten. It shone through the gloom.
9 – Noisy Pitta (14th November) – my first Pitta photo. Hopefully that may increase in 2024. An absolutely iconic group of now 46 species. Noisy Pita lived up to its name through the forests at O’Reillys, Queensland but was more challenging to find and photograph. A massive relief finally to photograph it at a distance. It would be good if my next Pitta photo is a bit better.
8 – Swallow-tailed Hummingbird (20th August) – difficult to choose a favourite hummingbird species in the year. Lots of very sparkling species amongst 87 species seen. Swallow-tailed Hummingbird however was a bit different and narrowly pipped Bearded Mountaineer and one of the Coquettes as my favourite. It was from Ipal Ecolodge, Costa Rica.
7 – Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (27th August) – another iconic species. Not uncommon so frustratingly rather ignored until some superb views along the Manu Road. Simply a fantastic species. A real highlight that will always live in the memory. 😊
6 – Resplendent Quetzal (16th February) – again, another iconic species seen for the first time by me in 2023. Very close to making my Top Five species. I am sure that it would have done so if it had been seen later in the year. It was bird of the year until my later trips.
5 – Long-tailed Potoo (1st September) – an adult & a chick hiding in plain sight by impersonating a branch. It was our last day travelling along the Manu & it required travelling by boat the wrong way through biblical conditions for about an hour in what was essentially a twitch. It would have been easy to have decided against that effort. But we pressed on & when we found it, it really was one of those occasions when the distance, the effort & the rain did not matter. A truly remarkable example of nature and evolution & when the chick shuffled out to drink some falling rain drops, it was also ridiculously cute. 😊
4 – King Penguin (10th December) – my first ever penguins in 2023 with ten species in the end. King Penguin is one of the absolutely iconic species. A privilege to visit the awesome spectacle of Macquarie Island, Tasmania, Australia on the Heritage Adventurer in December. 100,000 breeding birds. The sheer drama and noise of the larger Royal Penguin colonies running King Penguin very close for selection but at the end of the day, you just had to pick a classic penguin.
3 – Plains-wanderer (18th November) – again, this is totally iconic. It does not really represent any larger group albeit in its absence, I may have been tempted to include another wader (“Shorebird”). 106 ‘wader’ species seen in 2023. I am getting a total of 245 extant wader species on an IOC basis? Less than 100 of those to see now. My other wader favourites in the year were Black Stilt & Australian Pratincole but definitely some key remaining targets for future years with Ibisbill & Egyptian Plover. Plains-wanderer was of course seen whilst guided by the equally iconic Phil Maher – folks.
2 – Hoatzin (30th August) – I travelled in Peru with an experienced guide & an experienced traveller to the country. Hoatzin is a common enough species within its range so both of them were quite blasé to my first. But to be blunt, that experience reflected part of my distance to the numbers game of world birding. You can get excited about your ant somethings or your bamboo specialists but just look at this f###ing bird. How extraordinary is that !?!?! Looking at the pic, I want to see another one now just to check that they really look like that. 😊 Very close to bird of the year for me irrespective of its status.
1 – Light-mantled Albatross (13th December) – such a majestic species. In the end, I saw over a hundred of these beauties over eight consecutive days. Seabirds like waders (Shorebirds) fire my imagination. I am sure that both of those groups have a lot to do with the first two 1980s Helm guides. I have never felt the same about Wildfowl – the third of those early guides. Too many in captivity & too many escapes I suppose? 😊 Peter Harrison was on the Heritage Adventurer trip & the manner in which he speaks about his love of seabirds should inspire the generations. A link to one talk of his here… A Whole World of Seabirds with Peter Harrison - American Birding Association (aba.org) About 150 of his original rather eclectic 1980s “seabird” selection seen during the year. About 50% of that original book. Light-mantled Albatross was both the most beautiful & graceful. Every single one delivered. Peter Harrison said that he would like to spend the last afternoon of his life with Light-mantled Albatross. Good enough for him. Good enough for me. My bird of the year.
Many species were near misses for the Top Twenty and I cannot really believe that I did not include Evening Grosbeak. Next year hopefully will be just as fun. Despite my best efforts - not one eponym...
All the best
Paul
20 – Inca Terns (11th September) – from my final birding day in Peru. I have a friend who is a tern freak. I had nineteen tern species in the year and Inca came out on top. But it was the experience of the colony and the scrapping between these two birds that drew my attention to the species in particular.
19 – Golden-browed Chlorophonia (18th February) – very few passerine species made it simply on classic looks. Maybe next year my tastes will be different with some different geographic locations planned. However, this really is an absolute extraordinary species that seems to have been illustrated by a child with highlighters. A cracking highland Costa Rican species.
18 – Grey Goshawk (29th November) – my final morning on Bruny Island, Tasmania. I picked it up when driving and it took my breath away. An absolute stunning simplicity. I had gone out by myself as my companions were feeling the pace but we managed to find another later in the day albeit more distantly. 😊
17 – Crested Owl (25th February) – 36 species of Owl for me in the year. A favourite group. Clearly, there are very practical issues in seeing Owls. This was my favourite Owl species this year. It was high up in trees at La Selva in Costa Rica but gave good though obscured views when eventually picked up through the thermal imager.
16 – Paradise Tanager (5th September) – around seventy species of ‘tanager’ in the course of the year between Costa Rica & Peru. Many of them stunning including Yellow-scarfed, Silvery, Swallow, Guira, etc. Paradise Tanager came out on top by a short head. I saw it on four dates and this one was at Manu Birding Lodge. Again, a stunning simplicity to its bold colouration.
15 – Marbled Frogmouth (13th November) – night birds can be hard work & this made the list courtesy of being hard won as well as being a really unique species. A couple of kilometres hard walking or stumbling & clambering at times finally produced views of this species after frustratingly chasing sounds in the dark over two nights. A combined nineteen species of frogmouth, nighthawk, nightjar, potoos, etc were seen in the year.
14 – Swift Parrot (28th November) – a total of 56 species of parrot, parakeet, macaws, etc in the year. Not my favourite group really with flyovers & difficult identifications as a result often the name of the game. Maybe that captivity thing also casts a long shadow. Swift Parrot was run close by the macaws and the likes of Regent, Superb & Turquoise Parrot but with some lovely views in Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, Tasmania on my last morning, it came out on top for me.
13 – Kea (1st December) – I may have just said that Swift Parrot was my favourite of that group but Kea is different. It is an iconic species of nature documentaries. I confess that I felt a touch nervous about dipping it. Arthur’s Pass in South Island New Zealand had many signs saying ‘Do Not Feed the Keas’. I am sure that this is sensible guidance but with such a limited window of opportunity, I was only about an hour away from scattering food everywhere to attract this species before I heard a call and tracked one down. 😊
12 – Ocellated Antbird (28th February) – I have little doubt that my tastes will change in future years but this feels a touch of a token admission to my Top Twenty. I feel as if I ought to do so as otherwise, I will look like I have absolutely no discernment. (That is true really.) Ant somethings are building on me… They do not match my personal tastes of enjoying a bird with both my eyes and my camera! They can be hard work in darkened understoreys and it was maybe my fourth week in Central and South America before I started to learn how best to get views of some really tricky species by understanding the behaviour of the families. I ended the year with a dozen antpittas, four antthrushes, fourteen antshrikes, two antvireos & fourteen antwrens – I think! No planned return to Central & South America next year yet. Ocellated Antbird was from my first experience of really good views of ant somethings in attendance at an ant swarm & in fairness, it was really a highlight of the year if a slow burn.
11 – Prothonotary Warbler (15th May) – fifty two species of New World Warbler in the year. Many stunners. Prothontary Warbler was seen on both wintering grounds in Costa Rica and breeding grounds at Point Pelee, Ontario. Time with the flourescent singing males was a highlight that pipped spring Blackburnian & Chestnut-sided Warblers and the autumn American influx on this side of the pond. Just. I suspect Blackburnian Warbler would have made it if it had been a tick.
10 – Orange-collared Manakin (21st February) – manakins are an iconic group of species. Thirteen species were seen in the year. They were my first but often, I had frustrating views & they avoided my camera. But a displaying Orange-collared Manakin at Carara NP, Costa Rica was the pick of those species and it made my Top Ten. It shone through the gloom.
9 – Noisy Pitta (14th November) – my first Pitta photo. Hopefully that may increase in 2024. An absolutely iconic group of now 46 species. Noisy Pita lived up to its name through the forests at O’Reillys, Queensland but was more challenging to find and photograph. A massive relief finally to photograph it at a distance. It would be good if my next Pitta photo is a bit better.
8 – Swallow-tailed Hummingbird (20th August) – difficult to choose a favourite hummingbird species in the year. Lots of very sparkling species amongst 87 species seen. Swallow-tailed Hummingbird however was a bit different and narrowly pipped Bearded Mountaineer and one of the Coquettes as my favourite. It was from Ipal Ecolodge, Costa Rica.
7 – Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (27th August) – another iconic species. Not uncommon so frustratingly rather ignored until some superb views along the Manu Road. Simply a fantastic species. A real highlight that will always live in the memory. 😊
6 – Resplendent Quetzal (16th February) – again, another iconic species seen for the first time by me in 2023. Very close to making my Top Five species. I am sure that it would have done so if it had been seen later in the year. It was bird of the year until my later trips.
5 – Long-tailed Potoo (1st September) – an adult & a chick hiding in plain sight by impersonating a branch. It was our last day travelling along the Manu & it required travelling by boat the wrong way through biblical conditions for about an hour in what was essentially a twitch. It would have been easy to have decided against that effort. But we pressed on & when we found it, it really was one of those occasions when the distance, the effort & the rain did not matter. A truly remarkable example of nature and evolution & when the chick shuffled out to drink some falling rain drops, it was also ridiculously cute. 😊
4 – King Penguin (10th December) – my first ever penguins in 2023 with ten species in the end. King Penguin is one of the absolutely iconic species. A privilege to visit the awesome spectacle of Macquarie Island, Tasmania, Australia on the Heritage Adventurer in December. 100,000 breeding birds. The sheer drama and noise of the larger Royal Penguin colonies running King Penguin very close for selection but at the end of the day, you just had to pick a classic penguin.
3 – Plains-wanderer (18th November) – again, this is totally iconic. It does not really represent any larger group albeit in its absence, I may have been tempted to include another wader (“Shorebird”). 106 ‘wader’ species seen in 2023. I am getting a total of 245 extant wader species on an IOC basis? Less than 100 of those to see now. My other wader favourites in the year were Black Stilt & Australian Pratincole but definitely some key remaining targets for future years with Ibisbill & Egyptian Plover. Plains-wanderer was of course seen whilst guided by the equally iconic Phil Maher – folks.
2 – Hoatzin (30th August) – I travelled in Peru with an experienced guide & an experienced traveller to the country. Hoatzin is a common enough species within its range so both of them were quite blasé to my first. But to be blunt, that experience reflected part of my distance to the numbers game of world birding. You can get excited about your ant somethings or your bamboo specialists but just look at this f###ing bird. How extraordinary is that !?!?! Looking at the pic, I want to see another one now just to check that they really look like that. 😊 Very close to bird of the year for me irrespective of its status.
1 – Light-mantled Albatross (13th December) – such a majestic species. In the end, I saw over a hundred of these beauties over eight consecutive days. Seabirds like waders (Shorebirds) fire my imagination. I am sure that both of those groups have a lot to do with the first two 1980s Helm guides. I have never felt the same about Wildfowl – the third of those early guides. Too many in captivity & too many escapes I suppose? 😊 Peter Harrison was on the Heritage Adventurer trip & the manner in which he speaks about his love of seabirds should inspire the generations. A link to one talk of his here… A Whole World of Seabirds with Peter Harrison - American Birding Association (aba.org) About 150 of his original rather eclectic 1980s “seabird” selection seen during the year. About 50% of that original book. Light-mantled Albatross was both the most beautiful & graceful. Every single one delivered. Peter Harrison said that he would like to spend the last afternoon of his life with Light-mantled Albatross. Good enough for him. Good enough for me. My bird of the year.
Many species were near misses for the Top Twenty and I cannot really believe that I did not include Evening Grosbeak. Next year hopefully will be just as fun. Despite my best efforts - not one eponym...
All the best
Paul
Attachments
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A09 Noisy Pitta.jpg -
A08 Swallow-tailed Hummingbird.jpg -
A07 Andean Cock of the Rock.jpg -
A06 Resplendent Quetzal.jpg -
A05 Long-tailed Potoo.jpg -
A04 King Penguin.jpg -
A03 Plains-wanderer.jpg -
A02 Hoatzin.jpg -
A01 Light-mantled Albatross.jpg -
A10 Orange-collared Manakin.jpg -
A11 Prothonotary Warbler.jpg -
A20 Inca Terns.jpg -
A19 Golden-browed Chlorophonia.jpg -
A18 Grey Goshawk.jpg -
A17 Crested Owl.jpg -
A16 Paradise Tanager.JPG -
A15 Marbled Frogmouth.jpg -
A14 Swift Parrot.jpg -
A13 Kea.JPG -
A12 Ocellated Antbird.jpg
Last edited:
Frank van Drogen
Not so important
I guess one of those burdens that comes with a birding year like you had.... Picking the most inspiring ones 
Thanks for sharing this list, and your experiences during 2023!!
Thanks for sharing this list, and your experiences during 2023!!
Amen to that! Can't wait to see what's in store for 2024! 😆I guess one of those burdens that comes with a birding year like you had.... Picking the most inspiring ones
Thanks for sharing this list, and your experiences during 2023!!
Chris
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Just finished reconciling the list to the start of the Peru trip. I found a couple of duplicates.
As at the start of the Canada trip, I was at 748 with Garden Warbler at Ham Wall RSPB Reserve (4th May). 119 photo additions were added on my Ontario & Michigan trip:-
It was then off to Morocco:-
Important to note here that the current thinking is that these are not Long-legged Buzzard but a Common Buzzard form. However, I am following eBird so no American Herring Gull, Hudsonian Whimbrel, etc & in return, these are Long-legged Buzzard...
It was then off to Majorca as I needed Balearic Warbler:-
On my return, a few twitches together with a trip to the Scillies took me up to 918 photographed species for the year before my Peru trip:-
During the period between my return from Majorca (15th June) and my departure to Peru (16th August), my father's health deteriorated significantly, he was diagnosed with a brain tumour and he passed away on 7th August. Thankfully, I got the opportunity to spend some time caring for him and we said goodbye to each other on our own terms. It would feel wrong not to record that element in this timeline. I attach one of my favourite pics of him from a childhood holiday. It was one of many pics that we used at the funeral after I returned from Peru. Juggling those funeral arrangements against a rather busy autumn was another story.
I will include getting the 2023 photo year list finished & at least one photo of each species uploaded to eBird as one of my 2024 targets... Working on the other targets. But I am still trying to get to a provisional number for the 2023 photo yearlist by the end of tomorrow.
All the best
Paul
As at the start of the Canada trip, I was at 748 with Garden Warbler at Ham Wall RSPB Reserve (4th May). 119 photo additions were added on my Ontario & Michigan trip:-
749 | Mourning Dove | 13-May-23 |
750 | American Robin | 13-May-23 |
751 | Chipping Sparrow | 13-May-23 |
752 | Song Sparrow | 13-May-23 |
753 | Swamp Sparrow | 13-May-23 |
754 | Wild Turkey | 14-May-23 |
755 | Chimney Swift | 14-May-23 |
756 | Killdeer | 14-May-23 |
757 | Bonaparte's Gull | 14-May-23 |
758 | Ring-billed Gull | 14-May-23 |
759 | Double-crested Cormorant | 14-May-23 |
760 | Sharp-shinned Hawk | 14-May-23 |
761 | Bald Eagle | 14-May-23 |
762 | Red-bellied Woodpecker | 14-May-23 |
763 | Downy Woodpecker | 14-May-23 |
764 | Eastern Wood-Pewee | 14-May-23 |
765 | Least Flycatcher | 14-May-23 |
766 | Eastern Kingbird | 14-May-23 |
767 | Warbling Vireo | 14-May-23 |
768 | Blue Jay | 14-May-23 |
769 | Purple Martin | 14-May-23 |
770 | Tree Swallow | 14-May-23 |
771 | Cliff Swallow | 14-May-23 |
772 | Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 14-May-23 |
773 | Red-breasted Nuthatch | 14-May-23 |
774 | Blue-grey Gnatcatcher | 14-May-23 |
775 | Grey Catbird | 14-May-23 |
776 | Clay-coloured Sparrow | 14-May-23 |
777 | White-crowned Sparrow | 14-May-23 |
778 | White-throated Sparrow | 14-May-23 |
779 | Brown-headed Cowbird | 14-May-23 |
780 | Rusty Blackbird | 14-May-23 |
781 | Common Grackle | 14-May-23 |
782 | Nashville Warbler | 14-May-23 |
783 | Common Yellowthroat | 14-May-23 |
784 | Cape May Warbler | 14-May-23 |
785 | Northern Parula | 14-May-23 |
786 | Magnolia Warbler | 14-May-23 |
787 | Blackpoll Warbler | 14-May-23 |
788 | Black-throated Blue Warbler | 14-May-23 |
789 | Palm Warbler | 14-May-23 |
790 | Yellow-rumped Warbler | 14-May-23 |
791 | Scarlet Tanager | 14-May-23 |
792 | Northern Cardinal | 14-May-23 |
793 | Wood Duck | 15-May-23 |
794 | Common Nighthawk | 15-May-23 |
795 | American Woodcock | 15-May-23 |
796 | Cooper's Hawk | 15-May-23 |
797 | Eastern Screech-Owl | 15-May-23 |
798 | Blue-headed Vireo | 15-May-23 |
799 | White-breasted Nuthatch | 15-May-23 |
800 | Winter Wren | 15-May-23 |
801 | Carolina Wren | 15-May-23 |
802 | Eastern Bluebird | 15-May-23 |
803 | Veery | 15-May-23 |
804 | Lincoln's Sparrow | 15-May-23 |
805 | Blue-winged Warbler | 15-May-23 |
806 | Orange-crowned Warbler | 15-May-23 |
807 | Trumpeter Swan | 16-May-23 |
808 | Black-billed Cuckoo | 16-May-23 |
809 | Virginia Rail | 16-May-23 |
810 | Sandhill Crane | 16-May-23 |
811 | Caspian Tern | 16-May-23 |
812 | Red-eyed Vireo | 16-May-23 |
813 | American Coot | 17-May-23 |
814 | Marsh Wren | 17-May-23 |
815 | Hermit Thrush | 17-May-23 |
816 | House Finch | 17-May-23 |
817 | American Goldfinch | 17-May-23 |
818 | Yellow-headed Blackbird | 17-May-23 |
819 | Ovenbird | 17-May-23 |
820 | White-eyed Vireo | 18-May-23 |
821 | American Crow | 18-May-23 |
822 | Black-capped Chickadee | 18-May-23 |
823 | Grey-cheeked Thrush | 18-May-23 |
824 | Indigo Bunting | 18-May-23 |
825 | Red-headed Woodpecker | 19-May-23 |
826 | Brown Creeper | 19-May-23 |
827 | Cedar Waxwing | 19-May-23 |
828 | Bobolink | 19-May-23 |
829 | Cerulean Warbler | 19-May-23 |
830 | Canada Warbler | 19-May-23 |
831 | Northern Flicker | 20-May-23 |
832 | American Kestrel | 20-May-23 |
833 | Eastern Phoebe | 20-May-23 |
834 | Sedge Wren | 20-May-23 |
835 | Brown Thrasher | 20-May-23 |
836 | Field Sparrow | 20-May-23 |
837 | Savannah Sparrow | 20-May-23 |
838 | Henslow's Sparrow | 20-May-23 |
839 | Eastern Towhee | 20-May-23 |
840 | Eastern Meadowlark | 20-May-23 |
841 | Kirtland's Warbler | 20-May-23 |
842 | Barred Owl | 21-May-23 |
843 | Yellow-bellied Sapsucker | 21-May-23 |
844 | Tufted Titmouse | 21-May-23 |
845 | Evening Grosbeak | 21-May-23 |
846 | Pine Siskin | 21-May-23 |
847 | Vesper Sparrow | 21-May-23 |
848 | Brewer's Blackbird | 21-May-23 |
849 | Pine Warbler | 21-May-23 |
850 | Bufflehead | 22-May-23 |
851 | Sharp-tailed Grouse | 22-May-23 |
852 | Greater Yellowlegs | 22-May-23 |
853 | Buff-bellied Pipit | 22-May-23 |
854 | Redhead | 23-May-23 |
855 | Ruffed Grouse | 23-May-23 |
856 | Belted Kingfisher | 23-May-23 |
857 | Black-backed Woodpecker | 24-May-23 |
858 | Olive-sided Flycatcher | 24-May-23 |
859 | Canada Jay | 24-May-23 |
860 | Golden-crowned Kinglet | 24-May-23 |
861 | Dark-eyed Junco | 24-May-23 |
862 | American Black Duck | 25-May-23 |
863 | Spruce Grouse | 25-May-23 |
864 | Upland Sandpiper | 27-May-23 |
865 | Wilson's Snipe | 27-May-23 |
866 | Purple Finch | 27-May-23 |
867 | Grasshopper Sparrow | 27-May-23 |
It was then off to Morocco:-
868 | Marsh Owl | 05-Jun-23 |
869 | African Chaffinch | 05-Jun-23 |
870 | Ferruginous Duck | 05-Jun-23 |
871 | African Blue Tit | 05-Jun-23 |
872 | Maghreb Owl | 05-Jun-23 |
873 | European Turtle Dove | 06-Jun-23 |
874 | Western Black-eared Wheatear | 06-Jun-23 |
875 | European Roller | 06-Jun-23 |
876 | Atlas Wheatear | 06-Jun-23 |
877 | Spectacled Warbler | 06-Jun-23 |
878 | Moussier's Redstart | 06-Jun-23 |
879 | Atlas Flycatcher | 06-Jun-23 |
880 | Spotted Flycatcher | 06-Jun-23 |
881 | Levaillant's Woodpecker | 06-Jun-23 |
882 | Common Bulbul | 06-Jun-23 |
883 | Melodious Warbler | 06-Jun-23 |
884 | Eleonora's Falcon | 06-Jun-23 |
885 | Long-legged Buzzard | 07-Jun-23 |
886 | Black Wheatear | 07-Jun-23 |
887 | Desert Wheatear | 07-Jun-23 |
888 | Desert Lark | 07-Jun-23 |
889 | Lanner Falcon | 07-Jun-23 |
890 | White-crowned Wheatear | 07-Jun-23 |
891 | House Bunting | 07-Jun-23 |
892 | Western Olivaceous Warbler | 07-Jun-23 |
893 | Trumpeter Finch | 07-Jun-23 |
894 | Pharaoh Eagle Owl | 07-Jun-23 |
895 | Mourning Wheatear | 07-Jun-23 |
896 | Laughing Dove | 08-Jun-23 |
897 | Western Subalpine Warbler | 08-Jun-23 |
898 | Red-rumped Wheatear | 08-Jun-23 |
899 | Temminck's Lark | 08-Jun-23 |
900 | Thick-billed Lark | 08-Jun-23 |
901 | Blue-cheeked Bee-eater | 08-Jun-23 |
902 | Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin | 08-Jun-23 |
903 | Maghreb Magpie | 08-Jun-23 |
Important to note here that the current thinking is that these are not Long-legged Buzzard but a Common Buzzard form. However, I am following eBird so no American Herring Gull, Hudsonian Whimbrel, etc & in return, these are Long-legged Buzzard...
It was then off to Majorca as I needed Balearic Warbler:-
904 | Common Crossbill | 13-Jun-23 |
905 | Balearic Warbler | 13-Jun-23 |
906 | Moltoni's Warbler | 15-Jun-23 |
On my return, a few twitches together with a trip to the Scillies took me up to 918 photographed species for the year before my Peru trip:-
907 | Marsh Warbler | 15-Jun-23 |
908 | Eurasian Nightjar | 23-Jun-23 |
909 | Black-winged Kite | 05-Jun-23 |
910 | Manx Shearwater | 03-Aug-23 |
911 | Arctic Skua | 03-Aug-23 |
912 | Cory's Shearwater | 14-Jun-23 |
913 | Great Shearwater | 03-Aug-23 |
914 | Sooty Shearwater | 03-Aug-23 |
915 | Great Skua | 03-Aug-23 |
916 | Wilson's Storm-Petrel | 03-Aug-23 |
917 | European Storm-Petrel | 03-Aug-23 |
918 | Grey Phalarope | 03-Aug-23 |
During the period between my return from Majorca (15th June) and my departure to Peru (16th August), my father's health deteriorated significantly, he was diagnosed with a brain tumour and he passed away on 7th August. Thankfully, I got the opportunity to spend some time caring for him and we said goodbye to each other on our own terms. It would feel wrong not to record that element in this timeline. I attach one of my favourite pics of him from a childhood holiday. It was one of many pics that we used at the funeral after I returned from Peru. Juggling those funeral arrangements against a rather busy autumn was another story.
I will include getting the 2023 photo year list finished & at least one photo of each species uploaded to eBird as one of my 2024 targets... Working on the other targets. But I am still trying to get to a provisional number for the 2023 photo yearlist by the end of tomorrow.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
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Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Thank you. You didn't miss it. I didn't expressly mention it before but I did feel it appropriate to mention it more explicitly as I typed out yesterday's timeline. 👍
All the best
Pauk
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Jon.Bryant
Well-known member
Thanks very much. Great memories.
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
So catch up started on bringing 2023 up to date:-
Any way - a long way to go but kicking off now with operation catch up... My eBird says that I have 1,540 species photographed of 3,112 species recorded.
13th May completed - https://ebird.org/checklist/S137542480 - now for 14th May.
Ho hum.
Paul
Any way - a long way to go but kicking off now with operation catch up... My eBird says that I have 1,540 species photographed of 3,112 species recorded.
13th May completed - https://ebird.org/checklist/S137542480 - now for 14th May.
Ho hum.
Paul
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 14th May completed - 283 pics uploaded to eBird covering 71 species of which 39 were year ticks.... Quite a checklist:-
Plugging on tomorrow. But at least it is a start.
All the best
Paul
Plugging on tomorrow. But at least it is a start.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 15th May completed:-
https://ebird.org/checklist/S137943786
After two days at Pelee, I had recorded 106 species. Second checklist has 87 species of which I had photographed 44 species. Point Pelee really is exceptional birding in spring.
All the best
Paul
https://ebird.org/checklist/S137943786
After two days at Pelee, I had recorded 106 species. Second checklist has 87 species of which I had photographed 44 species. Point Pelee really is exceptional birding in spring.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
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Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 16th May completed:-
I had reached 114 species for Pelee by half way through day three & we headed off to nearby Hillman Marsh.
All the best
Paul
I had reached 114 species for Pelee by half way through day three & we headed off to nearby Hillman Marsh.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
Frank van Drogen
Not so important
There's some high quality photos there Paul!
edenwatcher
Well-known member
Stunning shots Paul - several steps up on the BOC ones!
Rob
Rob
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Thanks both.
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 17th May completed
My Pelee list increased to 116 species & we then headed off the point for a bit of additional birding.
All the best
Paul
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My Pelee list increased to 116 species & we then headed off the point for a bit of additional birding.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 18th May completed:-
At the end of 18th May, I had recorded 125 species at Point Pelee in 5 days. Still the analysis at post 365 is remaining accurate! I had a final day at Pelee before we were heading into Michigan.
All the best
Paul
At the end of 18th May, I had recorded 125 species at Point Pelee in 5 days. Still the analysis at post 365 is remaining accurate! I had a final day at Pelee before we were heading into Michigan.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
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Chestnut-sided Warbler 004.jpg -
Bay-breasted Warbler 03.jpg -
Eastern Wood Pewee 004.jpg -
Prothonatory Warbler 01.jpg -
Northern Oriole 001.jpg -
Northern Parula 08.jpg -
Red-breasted Nuthatch 007.jpg -
Yellow Warbler 008.jpg -
Common Nighthawk 009.jpg -
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 001.jpg -
Orchard Oriole 02.jpg -
Eastern Screech Owl 01.jpg
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 19th May updated:-
All day was spent at Point Pelee. Part of that was spent at the tip watching reverse migration of some pretty high flying birds with consequent challenging pics but a few decent ones later as well. I left Pelee with 142 species from seven days birding which in 'poor migration conditions' was a pleasing return.
I would love to return some day.
I parted company with three of my friends early the next morning and headed with two others to Michigan for a couple of days.
All the best
Paul
All day was spent at Point Pelee. Part of that was spent at the tip watching reverse migration of some pretty high flying birds with consequent challenging pics but a few decent ones later as well. I left Pelee with 142 species from seven days birding which in 'poor migration conditions' was a pleasing return.
I would love to return some day.
I parted company with three of my friends early the next morning and headed with two others to Michigan for a couple of days.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 20th May updated:-
We were up very early and in the dark made some very poor decisions. We had been advised by a Canadian birder at Pelee to use one of the smaller border crossings if we could as the border guards at the Ambassador Bridge crossing could be a touch unfriendly. However, we had bumped into Dick Filby at Pelee and he had given us some very good gen for Henslow's Sparrow at Indian Springs that meant that we needed to get there early and therefore go via the Ambassador Bridge. We had completed all the paperwork so surely things should go smoothly...
We stopped as directed and the border guard asked us whether we had anything to declare. An imposing tattooed and inevitably armed figure who seemed puzzled by our accents. We stated that we hadn't. Our other friends were flying home. They had suggested that we take the remaining beers and bananas left over from our week at our self-catering accommodation at Pelee. The border guard asked to look in the boot. Those items were sitting on top! Agricultural produce and alcohol - undeclared.... They were noticed consecutively and each prompted an explanation of the size of the fine that could be imposed due to our failure to make the proper declarations.
We were directed to park up and head into the adjacent building. Half an hour later following individual interrogation, we were on our way without any fines or personal searches but having been given a slightly challenging time! Ho hum.
Back on track and heading for Henslow's Sparrow. My phone went. "Have you picked up my black rucksack?"
We had loaded the car in the dark and in a hurry in some heavy rain. Cut a long story short, one of my companions had picked up one of the bags belonging to the remainder of the party heading home. A quick stop and a short conversation later revealed that we had it but thankfully there was nothing which he needed. We could take it on a roadtrip and bring it back to him in a week's time. The type of mistake that you only make once. Or you would think so... But that's another story for later in the year....
We had two main targets for the day. We got both Henslow's Sparrow and Kirtland's Warbler and recorded slightly under 70 species. However, it had been memorable and we enjoyed that beer when we got to our accommodation. I resisted threatening to do the obvious with the banana to the person who had wrongly picked up the bag.
All the best
Paul
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We were up very early and in the dark made some very poor decisions. We had been advised by a Canadian birder at Pelee to use one of the smaller border crossings if we could as the border guards at the Ambassador Bridge crossing could be a touch unfriendly. However, we had bumped into Dick Filby at Pelee and he had given us some very good gen for Henslow's Sparrow at Indian Springs that meant that we needed to get there early and therefore go via the Ambassador Bridge. We had completed all the paperwork so surely things should go smoothly...
We stopped as directed and the border guard asked us whether we had anything to declare. An imposing tattooed and inevitably armed figure who seemed puzzled by our accents. We stated that we hadn't. Our other friends were flying home. They had suggested that we take the remaining beers and bananas left over from our week at our self-catering accommodation at Pelee. The border guard asked to look in the boot. Those items were sitting on top! Agricultural produce and alcohol - undeclared.... They were noticed consecutively and each prompted an explanation of the size of the fine that could be imposed due to our failure to make the proper declarations.
We were directed to park up and head into the adjacent building. Half an hour later following individual interrogation, we were on our way without any fines or personal searches but having been given a slightly challenging time! Ho hum.
Back on track and heading for Henslow's Sparrow. My phone went. "Have you picked up my black rucksack?"
We had loaded the car in the dark and in a hurry in some heavy rain. Cut a long story short, one of my companions had picked up one of the bags belonging to the remainder of the party heading home. A quick stop and a short conversation later revealed that we had it but thankfully there was nothing which he needed. We could take it on a roadtrip and bring it back to him in a week's time. The type of mistake that you only make once. Or you would think so... But that's another story for later in the year....
We had two main targets for the day. We got both Henslow's Sparrow and Kirtland's Warbler and recorded slightly under 70 species. However, it had been memorable and we enjoyed that beer when we got to our accommodation. I resisted threatening to do the obvious with the banana to the person who had wrongly picked up the bag.
All the best
Paul
Attachments
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Paul Chapman
Well-known member
Now 21st May completed:-
Our main target had been Kirtland's Warbler so the pressure was off for today. My main priority had become Evening Grosbeak as a result and we also hoped for Barred Owl. After a morning around our accommodation, we headed to Hartwick Pines and bought a permit for two days to cover an evening attempt at Barred Owl. But in just under three hours, we had picked up both Evening Grosbeak and Barred Owl by day. We covered off a few other sites, bumped into some fellow European birders at our motel and gave them our permit for the next day. We could head on early in the morning to try for Sharp-tailed Grouse before heading back into Canada via the Sault Ste Marie border crossing.
My photo yearlist had increased to 849 species as set out at post 865.
All the best
Paul
Our main target had been Kirtland's Warbler so the pressure was off for today. My main priority had become Evening Grosbeak as a result and we also hoped for Barred Owl. After a morning around our accommodation, we headed to Hartwick Pines and bought a permit for two days to cover an evening attempt at Barred Owl. But in just under three hours, we had picked up both Evening Grosbeak and Barred Owl by day. We covered off a few other sites, bumped into some fellow European birders at our motel and gave them our permit for the next day. We could head on early in the morning to try for Sharp-tailed Grouse before heading back into Canada via the Sault Ste Marie border crossing.
My photo yearlist had increased to 849 species as set out at post 865.
All the best
Paul
