Northern Lapwing - 726!

Dec 23 

After a scheduled and then cancelled flight for Steller’s Sea-Eagle, which disappeared at 1 pm the previous day, and a scheduled and then postponed flight to the Northern Lapwing in Maryland (I freaked out over the idea of chasing the bird which had only been present one day, and decided to wait another day to see what happened), I flew to Philadelphia. Debbie picked me up from the airport - an essential part of the planning, as my flight was scheduled to get in at 2:30 pm, the bird was 45 minutes from the airport, and sunset was at 4:40 pm, and renting a car may have been cutting it a bit close to sunset. 

Debbie picked me up and swept me away to New Jersey immediately. She’d sweetly packed me a bagged lunch / dinner, with tasty vegetarian food, plus fancy Lindt chocolates for dessert. It was much appreciated after a day of short connecting flights and avoiding expensive airport food. 

We chatted and caught up on the drive- I’d met Debbie in 2011 at John Heinz refuge in Philly when I saw my lifer Least Bittern. I’d seen her for about 15 minutes, also at Heinz, a week and a half ago while looking for Rusty Blackbird after picking up Barnacle Goose, but there wasn’t much time to catch up. 

We arrived to a few cars and half a dozen people enjoying close views of the Northern Lapwing. The light was perfect! It wasn’t even a state bird for me- I’d seen two in New Jersey in 2013, but these views were so much more incredible than the looks I’d had at those birds, that it pretty much felt like a life bird. Those head plumes! It looks like a bedazzled Killdeer. 

I met several women at the lapwing spot, including Shannon and Kacey - a mother / daughter birding duo from Virginia. 

There were a couple of hilarious moments for me, including a woman whose friend had sent her a picture of me, telling her I was going looking for this bird today, and that if she saw me, she could count ME as a lifer! 

Another truck passed by as we were about to leave, and it was a family of non-birders, who happened to have watched The Big Year (now on Netflix) a few days prior. They happened to be driving this random country road with cars parked, and asked people if they were birdwatching. Debbie and I were already in the car. They had asked the other birders, jokingly, if anyone was doing a Big Year, and the others motioned to us and sent them to drive up to our car. The look on his face was absolutely priceless, and I was thoroughly enjoying how excited a complete non-birder was about the whole thing! I hope this family finds some binoculars and joins the global birding family pronto! 

Afterward, Debbie took me to Sara’s place where I’d spend the night. Sara picked me up a week and a half ago and took me to the Barnacle Goose. She is doing a Pennsylvania Big Year and remains five birds short of the new record. It’s been fun to compare and contrast big year experiences. Sara made an amazing vegan chili for dinner, and we celebrated the added year bird with peanut butter whiskey shots. Sounds awful, tastes amazing. 

BAT FALCON Breaks the Record!

Dec 18 

I arrived straight off the plane around 4:30, and ran all the way from the parking lot to the tower, getting distant looks at the Bat Falcon immediately, and then walking a bit down the tour loop road, where the Bat Falcon was so cooperative  that people were literally just walking away from stupid good looks. 

I lived on-site and worked here as a Visitor Services Specialist in 2012-2013; it is the job that first brought me to South Texas. I joined the Friends of the Wildlife Corridor board, which supports the refuge, in 2017, and very soon after found myself organizing rallies and protests, and lobbying in Washington DC to protect Santa Ana from a border wall. An ABA first, in my home county, in this special place incredibly dear to my heart, was the perfect way to break the Lower 48 Big Year record. #725!

Quick New Birds Update

I’ve been traveling without my computer, and Blogspot formats posts I make from my phone differently, but I know people are anxious and I wanted to give you all a quick update; I’ll flesh out the details more after I’m home. 

First I flew to Philadelphia and picked up Barnacle Goose (720) and Rusty Blackbird (721).

Then I flew to Boston, got on board a fishing boat out of New Hampshire, saw about ten Dovekie (722), and drove back to Massachusetts for Black-headed Gull (723).

I tried and dipped on the Northern Lapwing in Connecticut. 

I’m currently en route to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where Smith’s Longspur should tie me for the #1 spot with 724! 

After that, I have tickets to Chicago for a Gyrfalcon in Indiana, OR Minneapolis for Northern Hawk Owl at Sax-Zim Bog, OR home if neither of those birds are being cooperative. Anyone’s guess is as good as mine when it comes to what bird is going to break the record! It’s CBC season and I’m expecting more rarities to be turned up! 

Thank you so much to everyone who’s contributed in some way, whether it’s been a meal, a ride, a bed to sleep in, or donations to my GoFundMe. So far, thanks to donors and the amazing partnership I have with She’s Birdie, I’ve been able to gift 239 personal safety alarms to women I meet along my travels. My fundraiser is still open and can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/birdie-big-year-elevating-women-birders . 

Dec 18 

I got my Smith’s Longspur to tie the record at 724. Heard first, then seen, I was in the middle of getting documentation when a message came through that the Bat Falcon first found on December 8th was refound! We abandoned the documentation mission, went straight to the airport, and I was on a plane home just before noon. I’ll get to Santa Ana around 4:30 pm with about an hour of daylight remaining. The next bird will break the record! 

Home, and Another Year Bird

Dec 8 

Sometime along my flights home, a message came in from Troy that he'd just had some Mountain Plovers in West Texas. That was the cue I was waiting for- they should be in the RGV too! I got home immediately unpacked, did my laundry, and repacked. This has been my life now - forever on the go, never knowing when I may need to leave by car or plane at a moment's notice! 

Dec 9 

I'd said a few weeks ago that I was done guiding for the year, but scheduling worked out to guide Rebecca from Connecticut for one day. My plan was to go looking for Mountain Plovers north of Harlingen after we parted ways, but local birder Mary Beth found them about 30 minutes northwest of my house, instead. It was getting late in the day, and I'd decided I'd just wait until morning to go looking for them. 

Dec 10 

Up early, yet again, to be out around sunrise. I had drinks and snacks with me, prepared to spend as many hours as it would take to find Mountain Plovers in the vast expanse of bare, freshly plowed fields in McCook, Texas. 

To my great surprise, it took less than 30 minutes for me to pick them out of a distant field with my binoculars; though it took getting a scope on them to confirm the ID 100%. 

I messaged Jessica and Paul, who were just up the road and had started looking from the opposite end. They came to meet me, and we enjoyed the Mountain Plovers for a while, counting at least 21, before they headed off for more birding, and I  headed home. 

I napped on and off through most of the rest of the day, enjoying every second of the stillness and peace. 

In the afternoon, a Barnacle Goose was found in Pennsylvania. Flights were crazy expensive for the weekend, but I have a ticket booked for Monday morning, and I'll be trying again for Rusty Blackbird there, too. 

Final stretch - just six species away from breaking the record! 

Year List: 719 

Nemesis Chase!

Dec 6

Dave dropped me off at the Portland airport at 6 am for my flight. I'd get to Newark by 7:30 pm. Yuck! I've been flying with American Airlines, and nearly everything goes through Dallas. A 3 hour 40 minute flight, followed by a 3 hour 27 minute flight. 

I arrived in Newark, picked up my rental car, and went straight to my hotel, too tired to stop anywhere for food. I bought microwave popcorn in the hotel vending machine, and made it in the microwave in my room. There are so many unglamorous aspects to big years that only other big year birders will fully understand. 

Truth be told, I'm really getting ready to be done. I'm tired of traveling, of airports, of the stress of chasing birds, or perhaps more aptly put, the stress of the possibility of missing birds, when so much time effort and financial investment is involved. 

Dec 7

After a full night's sleep, I jumped in the car and started the drive to eastern Pennsylvania in search of Pink-footed Goose. There had been a bird an hour closer, in New Jersey, that I had planned to go look for, but it wasn't seen at all yesterday, so I was erring on the side of the bird that was seen yesterday. Also, the Pennsylvania bird was reliable in the morning, and the New Jersey bird had been most reliable in the afternoon. One of my financial tactics has been to get in and get out of places as fast as I  can, minimizing days of car rentals, hotel rooms, meals eaten on the road. 

I arrived at the reservoir to a couple of birders already scanning, but most without scopes. I surveyed the flock of Canada Geese twice with my scope, and nothing. 

Scores of geese were making their way into the reservoir by the minute, likely having roosted somewhere in the nearby fields for the night. On the third scan - there it was! 

My heart nearly skipped a beat. I'd gone in search of this species so many times during the years I  spent living in Cape May, New Jersey, soon after college - ten years ago! Pink-footed Goose! 

I stuck around another twenty minutes or so, making sure the other birders got on the bird, before heading to Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge to look for Rusty Blackbirds. 

After spending an hour at Great Swamp with no luck, I decided to prioritize the King Eider that has been hanging out on Staten Island, New York. My friend Gabriel already had the bird pinned down. I drove the hour, met him in the parking lot, and we walked out to the sleeping King Eider. 

We waited about 30 minutes, in hopes that it would lift its head or decide to go for a swim, but it was pretty content to just sit with its bill tucked into its back. 

We tried for and dipped on Rusty Blackbird at a spot on Staten Island. Next was trying for Purple Sandpiper, which had been reported along artificially placed rocks whose primary purpose appeared to be to prevent beach erosion. Walking up, one was obvious immediately, and eventually we found almost a dozen of these cute little Purple Sandpipers investigating all the wet rocks for tasty morsels, and not minding if they got half-covered in water from a wave in the process. 

I said goodbye to Gabriel, and made my way to a spot that Rusty Blackbird was reported in New Jersey, dipping again not long before sunset. I made my way back to my hotel, and, once again too tired to drive anywhere, walked to the Radisson next door and had dinner at their restaurant. It was the first real meal I'd eaten since dinner in Oregon! 

I walked back to my hotel, went to drop my luggage in my room before returning my rental car, which I'd return within 24 hours and just take the hotel shuttle in the morning - another strategic money-saving tactic. I couldn't get into my room! My key card wasn't accepted, or rejected. No lights came on. It turns out, their maintenance worker had to manually take apart the entire lock in order to get into my room, found that the batteries in the mechanism were dead, and told me they'd have to get me a new room, which wound up taking another fifteen minutes. I still had to return the dang rental car, but I was so exhausted. I got my new room, dropped the car, took the air train to the very other side where the hotel shuttles were, and took the Radisson shuttle since it was the first shuttle I saw, then walked back to my hotel. I packed all my luggage to be ready to fly home in the morning. 

Oh, how I was so ready to be home, to sleep in my own bed, to see my dog, to simply rest. 

Year List: 718 

Washington & Oregon!

Dec 3 

In the backseat of the car, with Dave driving and Shawneen as co-pilot, I half-slept on the way to eastern Washington, and the almost four hour drive went quickly. We arrived at the small marina that the Slaty-backed Gull had most often been seen at, around 8:30 am. The bird has wintered here for a few years now and had been present in the area for almost two months. We scanned. Waited around a bit. Scanned. Nothing. We drove a few miles either direction, along the river, scanning, waiting. Nothing. We came across a small urban duck pond of sorts, with lots of non-native geese, a few snow geese, some Mallards, and a lot of gulls. One of the gulls was an Iceland (Thayer's) Gull. I did a bit of digiscoping to document it, and we continued on to resume our look for the Slaty-backed. We made our way back to the marina that we had begun at, and there it was on the small metal roof, just as it was depicted in many of the photos I'd seen on eBird. Slaty-backed Gull! In all, it'd taken about three hours for us to find it, and even though we knew it had to be around somewhere, I was relieved. 

We next drove to a giant cow farm where we looked for quite some time for a Rusty Blackbird, but came up empty handed. We stopped for dinner at a pub on the way home. As soon as we got back to Portland, I went straight to bed. I felt jet lagged and exhausted. 

Year List: 711

Dec 4

Up early again, this time to head to the coast to look for Ancient Murrelet. It was possible we would see them on the pelagic trip out of Newport, which had been rescheduled from today to tomorrow, but I didn't want to risk missing it on the boat and having to invest extra days after the fact if we didn't. On the way to seawatch at Boiler Bay, we swung through the Williamette Valley, a known Gyrfalcon location, but no luck. Then, on to seawatching. We didn't spend too much time at Boiler Bay before Dave picked out two pretty quickly. I was able to pan with my binoculars and get on the Ancient Murrelets pretty quickly, then got them in my scope for about five seconds, at which point they landed on the ocean and appeared to have dove immediately. We were unable to refind them, but I was happy with the brief, yet identifiable views. 

We tried a second time for Gyrfalcon on the return trip, but came up empty again. Two squabbling Peregrines were the best we could do. 

Year List: 712 

Dec 5

Up superrrr early and out the door by 4:45, for the 2.5 hour drive to Newport for the pelagic trip through Oregon Pelagic Tours. My target was Laysan Albatross. Anything else would be a bonus! 

We arrived around 7:15, waited for others to show, and listened in to the the standard orientation, already feeling cold at about 43 degrees. Dave & Shawneen were two of the leaders, along with Bill and Dave. 

As we were finishing the boat part of the orientation, Shawneen caught my attention and was whispering something to me from across the boat. I quietly made my way over to her side as the captain was talking. Glaucous Gull in the harbor! A good start to the day. 

Lots of Common Murres, a good number of Ancient Murrelets, a Cassin's Auklet or two, and eventually we were at our first chum spot. The captain stopped the boat, and fish oil and popcorn was dispersed behind the boat, creating a visible oil slick. In almost no time, lots of gulls found it, then a few Black-footed Albatross, then a Laysan Albatross came in to investigate the boat, giving great views! 

Soon after, I was starting to get pretty tired from the seasick meds, and I was very cold, and was not having a ton of fun. But, that changed pretty quickly with our second chum stop! Again, after not much time at all, a young Short-tailed Albatross, dark and giant with its bubble gum colored bill was heading toward the boat. Only one problem - I was on the wrong side of the boat and couldn't see it! I got to the other side of the boat as quickly as I could without knocking anyone else over as we were rocking in the swells. It had crossed the bow again, and was on the other side! I ping-ponged myself across the boat again, and finally saw the bird. Yesssss! Short-tailed Albatross!!!! 

This is a globally endangered bird, and is very rare anywhere, but Oregon Pelagic Tours has had them regularly on their December trips for several years now. This particular boat, in this particular month, seems to be the best chance to find them along the entire west coast, and today proved that! 

Dave being Dave, had taken a candid shot of my disenjoyment while I was cold and tired, which contrasted well later on with a candid he took later of my excitement over the Short-tailed Albatross! 

We headed back to Portland, Dave having driven us 1,019 miles in the last few days. I'd fly out tomorrow morning to Newark, New Jersey, in hopes of my nemesis bird, Pink-footed Goose. I'm ten birds away from the record, which continues to look increasingly feasible. 

Year List: 715

Small-billed Elaenia

Whew! 

Apologies for the delayed posting - it's been quite the week! Eight days in eight states, including three full travel days (two planes each) and the remaining five days included over 1600 miles by car. Texas to Wisconsin to Illinois, back to Wisconsin, to Oregon, to Washington, back to Oregon, to New Jersey, to Pennsylvania, to New York, back to New Jersey, and home to Texas. 

Dec 1

I took an evening flight to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in order to try for the Small-billed Elaenia which was being seen at Waukegon Beach Park, right on Lake Michigan, between Milwaukee and Chicago. I'd posted on my Facebook, asking if I knew anyone in the Milwaukee area who might be able to put me up for a night. My friend Glenna had a friend with space, but it ended up being a bit too far out of the way for it to work well logistically. 

I reached my layover in Dallas, and upon landing, received a text message from some really fun clients I'd had in the Rio Grande Valley last March. Colette and Kris were reaching out to let me know they'd just heard about the Elaenia, which had been there about four days now, and they wanted to make sure I knew about it. Yes! Yes, I know about it- and I just landed in Dallas en route to Milwaukee! Well, it just so happened that they live in Milwaukee, and they offered to pick me up from the airport, drive me to their house for the night, and go with me to see the bird tomorrow morning. Perfect! Except - there was one concern about the arrangement. They'd need to leave to head back to Milwaukee no later than 10:30 am for a commitment they had. I thought it over a bit, and decided it was worth the risk. Most days, the bird was being seen by 8:30 am. Worst case scenario, they'd take me back to the airport before noon, I'd rent a car, and turn around and head down to try for the bird again. 

Dec 2

I'd gotten in late, slept soundly, and we were on the road early the next morning, to get there by 8 am. Arriving shortly before, the bird had not been seen yet, which was to be expected, based on the behavior from the prior days. 

We waited, and the crowd grew, from six to twelve to probably around twenty birders. 8:30, no bird. 9:00, no bird. 9:15, no bird. I started to worry. The reports from the last few days said that birders walked right up to the chain link fence and peered in, and that was the only way to see the bird, who didn't seem to mind the presence of birders despite being just ten feet from the bird. After some discussion with the other birders, Rob and I walked up to the fence and peered in. 

Sure enough, there it was! Small-billed Elaenia! 

We motioned for the other birders to join, and everyone got close, though somewhat obscured looks, through the handful of yew bushes that apparently comprised this bird's full habitat. Once everyone had looks, I gifted personal safety alarms to all the women birders present. 

Afterwards, we drove to a spot two miles away, which has European Goldfinches. They are not countable currently, but may be some day. I'm totally not into introduced species - I've added so many lifer parrot species to my list this year, out of necessity. If you've been reading my blog, you'll know that I "missed" Common Myna on my January trip to Florida (before I knew I was doing a big year), because I failed to look up from my phone, at the intersection where my travel companion had gotten his lifer. As for the goldfinches, however, I figured I may as well see them since they were so close. 

We headed north a bit to look for Glaucous Gull, and dipped. They returned me to the airport, and I took an afternoon flight to Portland, Oregon! I'd be staying with my friends Dave & Shawneen, and Dave picked me up from the airport around 9 pm Pacific time. I was exhausted already. A 5:00 am alarm was set to head up for Slaty-backed Gull in Washington. 

Year List: 709

Rough December 2021 Plans

I've been getting lots of questions from everyone about my remaining needs, and upon what level acquiring the record is attainable! Here is the list of the regularly occurring Lower 48 birds that I'm needing - winter birds that I missed in January & February because I didn't decide to do a big year until February 10th, while I was driving west to Arizona and California! 

Dec 3 I'll be flying to Portland, Oregon, for an Oregon Pelagic on December 4th! Here I'm hoping for Ancient Murrelet, Laysan Albatross, a shot at Short-tailed Albatross, a distant possibility of Mottled Petrel and Parakeet Auklet. Just picking up the first two would be great - anything else on that list would be a bonus! 

From there, I'll be heading to check out a Gyrfalcon location in Oregon, if the bird is still being seen, and then up to Eastern Washington for the wintering Slaty-backed Gull on the Columbia River. There should be Iceland Gulls in the vicinity as well, and nearby there have been sightings of Rusty Blackbirds, so I  might be able to check that one off too. 

From there, I'm not quite sure what I'll do yet. If there's a rarity to be chased, I'll be doing that, and if not, I     may spend a week at home and give a bit more time for the winter New England birds to settle in, as well as for Northern Hawk Owls to establish their winter territories. I need to drive around and find or chase a Mountain Plover somewhere. Eventually, I'll need to do a New England / Minnesota / Oklahoma circuit, and it looks like I'll be finishing my year in Hatteras, North Carolina, on a pelagic trip, hoping for Great Skua, on December 29th or 30th. 

I'm at 708. Twelve of these thirteen species, plus five rarities would cinch the record! 

Regularly Occurring:

Ancient Murrelet 

Gyrfalcon

Iceland Gull 

Rusty Blackbird 

Glaucous Gull 

Black-headed Gull 

Thick-billed Murre 

Dovekie 

King Eider

Purple Sandpiper 

Mountain Plover 

Smith's Longspur 

Northern Hawk Owl 

Rarity Hopes: 

Laysan Albatross 

Short-tailed Albatross 

Slaty-backed Gull 

Barnacle Goose

Pink-footed Goose 

Great Skua 

??? 

Social Flycatcher Refound!

November 19th 

I got up at 3 am, in order to get to the El Paso airport by 3:30 for my 5 am flight. I  flew El Paso to Dallas, Dallas to McAllen. Since I'd left McAllen on Wednesday night, I'd eaten lunch on Thursday and dinner on Thursday. I'd skipped breakfast, and I'd be skipping lunch in order to prioritize time getting to the Social Flycatcher. 

By the time I got to Dallas, there had been positive reports of the Social Flycatcher being seen again today. Whew! My friends Dave and Shawneen were in town, and they were headed to see the bird as well. They saw it just as I was landing in McAllen, and offered to stay with the bird until I arrived. I had a one hour drive. 

I arrived, parked, and extracted my three tripod pieces and scope from my carry-on luggage. No time to assemble, I'd just carry them across the campus like that and assemble it when I got to the bird. One of my biggest chase fears is hearing "it was here five minutes ago"...

I met up with Dave and Shawneen. "It was here ten minutes ago..." 

Gah. I'm so tired. Starving. I just want my bed and my dog and to eat three square meals and to get back to my gym routine. I was definitely feeling the effects of my 3 am alarm. We waited. Listened. Walked around the small wetland. Waited some more. Finally, after half an hour, I heard it, distinctively, like a squeaky toy, calling from the other side of the wetland. Whew. Dave heard it too, and Raul. Check. I was relieved to not have missed it, and to be able to count it. Now to wait around to get a visual. Ten minutes felt like an hour, and after more than an actual hour, it was back at its original perch, feeding on Chinese tallow berries. In that time, I'd wanted to leave, thought maybe I'd come back tomorrow instead to get a look. The fatigue of this year has really been setting in, and removing some of the joy of birding, or, perhaps more accurately, of chasing, for me. Ever since I've realized the all-time Lower 48 record is within my reach, what would usually be the excitement of a successful chase has turned into simply relief when the target bird has been seen or heard. 

I watched with a group of a dozen or so birders as the bird showed well, continued to feed, and called several times at close range. 

After about fifteen minutes, I made the drive home, simultaneously exhausted and incredibly grateful to have the opportunity to spend this year traveling, birding, and healing my trauma. More on that in a future blog post soon. 

Year List: 708

Blue Mockingbird!

November 14 

It was the last day of the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, and we were packing up the Swarovski booth. My friend Raymond, one of the guides in town for the festival, called me. I ignored it the first time, planning to call him back as soon as we finished packing up. He called again immediately. I figured I'd better answer. I did, and he informed me that there was a Blue Mockingbird seen in New Mexico! 

I have a group of clients from Michigan for the next three days. I'd fly Wednesday night, if the bird was still being seen, and chase the bird on Thursday. 

November 15 

Blue Mockingbird still being seen! Calling and most reliable at sunrise. 

November 16th 

Blue Mockingbird still being seen! Calling and most reliable at sunrise. 

November 17th 

Final day of guiding - Blue Mockingbird still being seen - calling and most reliable at sunrise. I'd fly out tonight at 7:45 pm, rent a car, drive to the spot, sleep a few hours and try for the bird at sunrise tomorrow! I parted ways with my clients around 3:30, and headed home to shower and finish packing. I flew from McAllen to Dallas, and from Dallas to El Paso booking my car rental during my short layover. 

I studied the car rental hours in El Paso, finding very conflicting information online. I called Budget half a dozen times, trying to get through but with no success. Well, the possibility existed that I'd get stuck in El Paso without a car until morning. Turns out that's what happened in the end, as all the rental companies except Enterprise were closed, and Enterprise was out of cars. Actually, pretty much everyone was out of cars, and it was a bit shocking to see the parking garage so empty. I cancelled my rental, and booked one with Alamo for 6:00 am. I  spent about 15 minutes contemplating sleeping in the airport, but I'm a super light sleeper and would have been absolutely wrecked the next day. I'd just finished guiding five days for the Rio Grande Valley Bird Festival, followed by three days with my private group of clients, and was exhausted as it was. There were hotels within walking distance, so I walked over and found one, arriving around midnight. I'd need to get up at 5:30 am to get my rental car at 6, and arrive to the Blue Mockingbird spot as soon as possible. 

I didn't sleep well, anxious about getting the bird the next day. I'd considered driving from McAllen, eleven hours each way, which would have been cheaper, but would have gotten me to the bird in the afternoon instead of in the morning. Now, I'd taken two flights, had to spend the money on a hotel, and needed to rent a car. It was about three times as expensive as driving to the bird and camping would have been, but time is of the essence, and with the all-time Lower 48 record within reach, I need to be minimizing my chances at missing birds. 

I got my rental car and started the two and a quarter hours to Rattlesnake Springs at Carlsbad Caverns National Park, and when halfway there, received a report that the Social Flycatcher was refound in Brownsville, Texas, yesterday - just being reported today. Ugh!!! I might have just been better off staying home! 

I arrived to Rattlesnake Springs around 8:45 am. There had been no sightings of the bird, despite over a dozen people looking since sunrise. Not good. 

We spent about an hour looking, most people stationed right at the spot where the bird had been most regularly seen, while a few of us wandered around searching other areas along the small stream. I'd started back toward the main location, when I saw someone running the other direction, farther down the trail. He was running away from me, and I was ready to enter a full sprint. He stopped me, and pointed the other way. The Blue Mockingbird had been seen in the original location - which I was right beside - and he was running to the others down the stream to tell them about the sighting. I got eyes on it for a handful of seconds, and an awful digibinned video with my iPhone through my Swarovski binoculars, and then it vanished.

It was seen briefly and heard calling a few times every 45 minutes or so, and then it would completely disappear.

After about an hour, I weighed my pros and cons of going to Maine for Barnacle Goose next, which was my original plan, versus flying straight home for the Social Flycatcher. After learning that flights to Boston and Portland were a mess, I focused on how soon I could get back to the RGV. There was a United flight that could get me to Harlingen at 11:30 am tomorrow. Unfortunately nothing through American, which I usually fly, and nothing into McAllen with any airline. I booked it. 

Then, I remembered my 86,000 airline points, which I'd never used before. I decided to try booking award travel, to see if it gave additional options. It did! I booked a 5 am flight to McAllen the following morning, first class. It was 19,000 miles, which seems "expensive", I think, but for me, it was free, and the only option to get me to McAllen at a reasonable time to get the Social Flycatcher before sunset the next day. I  booked it, and cancelled my United flight. 

I chatted with some of the birder women at the Blue Mockingbird spot, gifting five alarms during my time there. I hung around until 11:30 or so, then made my way up to Carlsbad for lunch at Guadalupe Mountains Brewing Company. I celebrated with a caprese sandwich and a black cherry hard cider, my first real meal since lunch the previous day. Then I headed back to El Paso to meet my friend Brenda for dinner. She works nights, and she offered me her bed for the night while I was at work. We had about an hour to catch up on life's adventures from the last two years, before she needed to leave for work. I'd been considering sleeping in my rental car, and was thankful for the bed, especially when it was 44 degrees when I woke up at 3 am to leave for the airport! 

Year List: 707 

Dollar Bird - 706!

November 14th

The last day of the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival was wrapping up, and I was feeling fairly relieved to have my final day be guiding three beginning birders at South Padre Island with my friend Michael. 

We had a great morning, spending four hours at South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center, with all three of our participants full of really great questions about birds, birding, eBird, and various other things. A highlight was watching two Least Bitterns feeding at close range for over 20 minutes. On our way back, our participants were sleeping or near sleeping, so Michael and I chatted about my remaining needs for my Big Year, and I commented about the common birds I still need - seven of which are winter birds in New England - and that Barnacle Goose, Pink-footed Goose, and Slaty-backed Gull are all likely, and that a Fork-tailed Flycatcher sure would be nice. 

We got back to the Harlingen Convention Center and said farewell to our participants. Michael returned the van, and I went to the guide room to eat lunch. I finished my lunch, chatted with some fellow guides for a few minutes, and my friend Jim made a passing statement about being tired and that he was probably not going to chase any rare birds that have been around (Golden-crowned Warbler, Crimson-collared Grosbeak, to name a few - which I'd seen in January). 

I left the room and dropped my gear off at my car, heading to the Swarovski trailer and talking with Sharon. After about five minutes, my phone dinged - it was a notification that a Fork-tailed Flycatcher had been seen about an hour ago at San Benito Wetlands, about fifteen minutes away. I looked at Sharon in mild panic, reading the text. She said, "You need to go!" I replied with confirmation of her statement, and ran to my car, racing to the bird. I got stuck behind a man going 30 in a 40 mph zone, very clearly texting or surfing the web on his cell phone while he drove. 

I finally made it the 15 minutes / 9.9 miles to the site. As I was pulling up, there was a small white building to the right side of the road. I'd driven about 20 feet past it and parked...and as I was parking, a very obvious flycatcher with a black cap was spooked up off of the adjacent fence line about thirty meters away. Naked eye - that was it. I'd not even gotten bins on it! 

I was literally physically shaking from adrenaline when I got out of the car. The very first thing I did was to text that the bird was still present...but I spent the next five minutes or so unable to relocate it. I was terrified I might be the only one to resight it, and feared being called a stringer. Alas, the worry soon disappeared when it alighted back on the same fenceline. 

Others started to trickle in, and it was fun to help others get on the bird as it flew from fenceline, to treetop, to power line. More people came and went, and a new group came, and a van driving from the opposite side of the road flushed it as it came through. 

The bird disappeared and there were about fifteen people there who hadn't seen the bird when I left the site to go back to the Swarovski booth to help tear down and pack up. 

I'd driven 20.8 miles round trip to see this bird - taking about half a tank of gas. A $1.50 bird sure felt amazing after spending about $600 per bird on each of my two recent plane chase trips! 

I'm guiding a private group here in the Rio Grande Valley for the next three days. I have a plane ticket to Boston for Barnacle Goose for Thursday - but a Blue Mockingbird just showed up in New Mexico, so I may end up flying or driving there first if it sticks around until Wednesday! 

Year List: 706

Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl

November 12th 

I've been guiding daily since November 10th for the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. Just before noon on the 10th, a Social Flycatcher was found at UT-Rio Grande Valley in Brownsville. My trip returned to the Harlingen Convention Center around 12:30, I grabbed a quick lunch, and then headed down with another field trip leader, Willie. We arrived just after 1 pm, and the bird had not been seen since the initial report at 11:30. We scanned the area around the resacas - the Spanish term for an oxbow lake - and the surrounding neighborhood. More and more guides showed up after they'd dropped off their trip participants. Despite several dozen people scanning the areas, the bird did not turn up again, as we stayed until sundown. 

Today I guided at King Ranch, probably the most reliable place in the country to get Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl. After not many attempts at calling one in, one flitted through the thicker brush a few times. This particular owl turned out to be rather uncooperative, and we ended up leaving it alone before too many people got looks. We loaded the bus and drove another few miles down the road, where we stopped and tried for a different owl that Tom had scouted last week. This one appeared after several minutes, and ended up perching up high in a tree for a good amount of time, while we trained scopes on it and all the participants got great looks. 

We had 43 participants on this trip, and five guides. I didn't expect to be able to get a photo or video of this bird, as priority when guiding is to get participants on the birds, but this bird sat long enough that everyone had satisfying scope views and then I was able to take a quick twelve second video through my scope. 

Twenty birds remaining to secure the all time Lower 48 big year record!

Year List: 705

Plus Two: Coast to Coast in 44 Hours!

October 31

I'd booked an expensive ticket to San Francisco, California for November 2nd to meet my friend Dorian to run up to Arcata (five hours) for Tundra Bean-Goose. 

November 1 

I cancelled the ticket today when it wasn't found again. I wouldn't be flying tomorrow morning. Or, not to San Francisco, at least. I bought a ticket instead, to Miami, to try for Gray-tailed Tattler tomorrow. 

November 2 

I woke up at 3:30 am, was on the road by 4:00 and drove my tired butt to Harlingen. Tickets out of McAllen had gone up $200 extra dollars from when I'd looked at them yesterday, so I'd make the extra hour drive. I got to the airport at 5:00 for my 6:00 flight. Being a small airport, it was the only gate waiting to leave. Around 5:30, the flight was delayed an hour. They said the crew had not yet arrived. Around 6:30, it was delayed another hour. The gate agent, as though reading off a script, said that his screen showed that the flight was delayed due to maintenance. He repeated the same thing about a half hour later. I looked at available connecting flights online, and one by one they disappeared. I spoke with the agent. The remaining connecting flights that would get me to the keys before sunset were filled. I  wanted to know whether the tattler had been seen today, before getting on a flight that would get me there after dark, so I waited around a while longer. Still no reports. I got my flight changed to the following morning, out of McAllen, and drove home to try again the next day. 

Later in the morning, a report of the tattler came through. That confirmed I'd fly tomorrow. 

November 3

A 4:30 alarm got me out the door and to the McAllen airport by 5:00, for my 6:00 flight. Here's hoping second time's a charm! My flight was slightly delayed, went off with no issues, and I made my would-be tight connection in Dallas - landing in Miami around 2 pm. On the flight I'd befriended a woman named Jen sitting next to me - who recently moved to Dallas, and was traveling with her young daughter. I  gifted her one of the alarms. 

I'd reserved a one day rental car through Priceline with Sixt, and upon arrival, there were no compact cars nor small SUVs available - they were all being cleaned. I waited impatiently. The attendant was asking me a zillion questions about my Big Year after I mentioned I was traveling to chase a bird, and that timing was of the essence. A small SUV became available first, so he upgraded me to that (I'd not realized he'd charged me for the upgrade, and I'm going to dispute that $15, because every dollar matters in this budget Big Year), and I took off for the 90 minute drive to Tavenier Key, just a bit south of Key Largo. 

As I was driving, the first reports for the day came through. The bird was still there! Yessss! However, I  knew it was often seen only intermittently as it wandered the coastline, so I maintained a healthy level of caution with my anticipation of seeing the bird. Yesterday, it sporadically showed up at 4 pm, "out of nowhere". 

I got there and met a Florida birder named Rich, who informed me he'd been there for about an hour and hadn't seen the bird. It was raining, and he was driving around checking. I  got out of my car and braved the rain, very thankful I'd had the foresight to include my rain jacket in the very light packing I'd done, which included a second set of clothes in addition to what I was wearing, two pairs of underwear, and minimal toiletries. While I'm an American Airlines credit card holder, and get a free checked bag, extremely key to chasing rarities is traveling without the need to wait for luggage to arrive at the baggage claim. Though, this also meant I wouldn't be saving money by camping. 

After looking for about 45 minutes, the Gray-tailed Tattler showed up, hanging with a similar but much smaller Spotted Sandpiper, near a grounded sailboat not far from the boat launch. BINGO! It was still pouring rain. Digiscoping can be tough in normal conditions, and trying to keep rain off my scope eyepiece long enough to get my phone up for a video was a challenge, but after three or four attempts I  got some decent footage! 

I ran over to find Rich, who drove over, but by the time he got there, the bird had disappeared. I  spent another 20 minutes or so helping him look, but then decided I needed to head towards the airport and formulate my next plan. It was 4:45...I could potentially make it back up and take a 7:30 flight to San Diego to situate myself for Red-throated Pipit first thing the following morning. My ticket was for the following morning, but if I could eliminate the hotel in Miami, that would save me on finances. Very key to my budget big year is moving as fast as possible. 

I  tried to book the flight on my phone, but for some reason, it was giving me an error message and not allowing me to pay. It stated that the seats were being held for me. I dropped off the rental car, and headed to American Airlines customer assistance. The woman at the desk seemed new, and spent 30 minutes trying to figure out how to fix it. In the end, she was unable to, and it was now 7:05 pm and I certainly wouldn't make it through security in time for a 7:30 flight. I'd gotten there on time - and I felt angry and defeated, despite having had success with the tattler today. I walked out to the area where the the hotel shuttles were, and found a room. 

Upon arrival, I'd noticed that there were no restaurants within walking distance. I was exhausted. Okay. I  would do it. I  would order food delivery for literally the first time in my life. I know. No, I'm not joking. I'd held out long enough that at age 35, I almost wore it like a badge of honor of sorts. After 45 minutes, my 10 inch veggie pizza and key lime pie (my Gray-tailed Tattler celebration), showed up, along with a $25 price tag, and I quickly remembered why I'd avoided delivery all my life. 

I made it about 2/3 of the way through the pizza, and scarfed down the less-than-desirable key lime pie. What was I thinking ordering key lime pie from an Italian restaurant? 

I went to bed early and slept for nearly 8 hours. 

November 4

Another 5:30 alarm got me to the lobby just before 6:00 to wait for the first shuttle to the airport. 6:00 came, then 6:10, and the desk staff notified me that the driver was 30 minutes late. 6:30 came, then 6:35, and still no driver. The staff member told me he still hadn't heard from him. I  booked an Uber, which was 3 minutes away, and was gone in a flash. My flight was at 7:40 and the Miami airport is a mess to try to get through, with tons of walking involved in getting to the gates. 

I arrived at my gate as it was already boarding group 4. Not how tight I usually like to make it! Miami to Phoenix was a five hour flight, and a three hour time change. My connection was only 30 minutes, but we'd arrived a bit in advance and I able to make it to my connecting flight - literally the next gate over - also as it was boarding. Stressful, but at least I was maximizing efficiency, I suppose! I landed in San Diego at 12:30. The Red-throated Pipit was only three miles from the airport. This would be the first bird I'd Uber to! 

My Uber driver, Edgardo, picked me up in less than five minutes and took me to the park. He was also full of questions when I told him what I was up to. 

The pipit had been seen at the park next door around 11:30, but had flown and disappeared at the end of the observation, so I decided to start in the adjacent park that it was sometimes seen in, Dusty Rhodes Park. After less than 20 minutes of walking the field, scanning the few dozen American Pipits, I found it! 

I'd been previously a bit concerned about my ability to ID, but once I saw it, it was incredibly obvious. Much darker, cleaner streaking on the breast, white braces along the back, slightly smaller than the American Pipits, and consistently bobbing its tail, unlike the Americans. I watched it a bit longer with local birder, Steve, and then plotted my next move. I  had a ticket back to McAllen for tomorrow morning. Did I  have time to fly up to Portland for the Brambling that was being seen three hours south at a feeder? I  have a client I'm bird guiding Saturday in the Rio Grande Valley, so I'd have to get home on Friday. I  could get to Portland by 8:30 pm, drive to the bird by sunrise at 8 am, have two hours to feeder watch, and then need to drive back to the airport to make the final flight back to McAllen that evening. I decided that was too tight of a window to look, and passed. I found a flight home to McAllen for this evening that was the same price as my original flight for the following morning. In case you've not been aware - all the major airlines are no longer charging change fees and are letting people cancel their flights at any time in exchange for travel credit. This has been infinitely helpful in planning, as I'll often book tickets a few days in advance, and cancel if the birds stop showing. 

My friend Mandy picked me up from the park and took me back to the airport, saving me the somewhat steep $20 Uber fee for the 3 mile drive. I'd tried for Little Stint with her in February (unsuccessfully) and again in September (successfully!) but had completely forgotten to gift her an alarm then, so I was finally able to give her one. 

My 4:45 flight from San Diego to Dallas, Dallas to McAllen would get me to McAllen just before midnight. Except, the Dallas to McAllen flight was delayed an hour. Takeoff time came and went, and we all sat there with no explanation, because there was not even an agent at the gate. American Airlines has been a giant mess all week. I got home to around 1:30 am and immediately passed out. 

I'd woken up in Florida, day tripped to California, and fell asleep in my own bed in Texas. My whole trip was 44 hours. I spent 16 hours in Florida, 3 hours in California, and 25 hours in airports and on airplanes. Actual birding time was less than three hours. To anyone contemplating a Big Year - consider this! It's certainly not always fun and games. 

Year List: 704 

Cape May, Fishing, and Four False Alarms

I prepared to travel to Cape May, New Jersey, for the first time in three years. I spent a long weekend working for Swarovski Optik at the Cape May Fall Festival. I  spent a few years living in Cape May before moving to Texas, so it was really great to see old friends who live there, as well as many friends, old and new, who traveled there for the festival. 

I’m used to being the only woman field tech with any of the optics companies, so it was awesome to see four of us this year, representing Swarovski, Leica, and Zeiss! 

While I was finishing up in Cape May, a Brambling showed up at a a feeder in Montana. Keeping an eye on the reports, I looked into flying to Montana instead of returning home to Texas. I studied flight options, and since I was flying through work with Swarovski, the travel agency was able to hold a seat on a plane to Missoula for me, while still keeping my original flight home. The next day, I made my way to the airport in the late morning, still unsure of where I was going. Checking in with the homeowner, the bird hadn't been seen by noon. Then hadn't been seen by 2 pm. Finally, I checked in one more time, while at the airport, before checking in online for my flight home. Bummer. I flew home. 

After flying home, I looked into tickets to Sacramento to go for the Tundra Bean-Goose and considered booking a ticket for the following day, hesitated at the price tag, and it wasn't seen the next day, so that ended up being a good decision. 

Next was a Red-throated Pipit north of Los Angeles - I bought a ticket for a day and a half in the future...and this was yet another bird that was not seen the next day. I cancelled my flights, and went saltwater fishing instead. I caught my first redfish, my first time ever casting into salt, which I'm told is a bit of a feat! I grew up freshwater fishing, and it was a blast to be on the water again, reeling in fish after a ten year absence of fishing in my life. 

A few days ago, a Yellow Grosbeak was seen north of Phoenix, Arizona. I was awaiting another report in order to book a ticket, but it was never seen after the original 8 am sighting. 

For the last three days, there's been a Gray-tailed Tattler in the Florida Keys. It was originally reported as a Wandering Tattler, and wasn't correctly identified until day 2. A cold front was coming in the night after day two, so I waited, anticipating flying this evening if it was seen again today. It was seen, but by the time it was reported, there were no flights that would get me there before sunset today, and tonight's forecast is rain and strong winds are in the forecast for tomorrow. 

I have a client I'm bird guiding Saturday and Sunday, so I'm stuck here until Sunday evening. I bought a ticket to the Tundra Bean-Goose in Northern California for Monday - it was refound after disappearing for about a week and a half, so as long as it is seen through the weekend, that's my Monday plan! In the event that the Gray-tailed Tattler sticks around through the weekend, I'll go for the tattler first, and then fly to California. I've also been considering swinging up to Seattle for Ancient Murrelet and Slaty-backed Gull while I'm up there. 

Year List: Still 702

Cali Calls Me Back

October 4th 

Well, I was about ten minutes from home, after driving back from California, my friend Dorian alerted me to a Dusky Warbler that had just showed up about an hour north of San Francisco, in Marin County. I'd left a few days too soon! 

I picked up my dog from boarding and arrived home. 

My home air conditioning was out. It was 92 degrees in my house. My car AC had not been working since I left California, and it had been a hot couple of days. It would be yet another hot night. 

Twenty minutes after that, John, based in Sacramento, messaged me that he was twenty minutes away from an Emperor Goose. 

Um, what? 

I had so much to do as a single homeowner after being gone three weeks. My yard was a mess. My dog had missed me. I had three weeks of laundry to do before I could even think of going anywhere. I looked at plane tickets anyway. $750 round trip. Well, $375 each way...I'd learned this summer not to ever book round trip tickets. If you book one way and cancel, it can be refunded for credit. If you book round trip, and cancel half...well...I now have a standing one-way ticket from Seattle to somewhere I'll need to use at some point. If you cancel half of a round trip ticket, little had I known, you have to fly from that same airport. 

I decided to wait and see if the birds would stick another day. 

October 5th 

Both birds reported. I got my home AC fixed...one thing out of the way. Now to address the slow leak in my tire that started on my way back from California, so I wouldn't end up with a flat tire at the McAllen Airport if I end up flying to California. Discount Tire found a nail in my tire and fixed it for free. I was very thankful that I'd only had to put air in once from California to home, and that the trip home went smoothly! I looked into tickets, cringed at the price, and decided not to purchase. 

October 6th

Both birds reported again, before noon central. At 700 birds, I really need to be deciding now whether to make a run for the record. If I'd decided at a later date that I wanted to take a shot at the record, I'd regret chasing these birds. 

I bought the ticket, flying out this evening. It's the first same-day ticket I've ever purchased, and it felt a little sudden and shocking. I packed a day pack, and was ready. I flew McAllen to Dallas, Dallas to Sacramento. John picked me up at the airport just after midnight. 

October 7th 

Day four for the birds hopefully staying put! We left before sunrise to head the two hours to the goose. When we arrived to the water treatment plant they'd been at, upon initial scan there were no birds in sight. Then, we noticed it feeding on the grass along with four Greater White-fronted Geese. Emperor Goose chase successful!

 

Yay! We watched the bird for about fifteen minutes, and then it was time to press on to try for the Dusky Warbler. Big Years sure don't leave much room for birding the way you'd prefer - which for me, would have been to spend a good amount of time studying this life bird. 

It was just under three hours to the Dusky Warbler location, which flew by quickly. John and I had been Facebook friends for a while, but never met in person. We talked birds, and guiding, and vegetarianism, and shared stores from our years of birding. 

Parked at the Dusky Warbler location, we walked out, expecting to find the birders whose cars were clearly parked by ours. So many Subarus! We found nobody. I called up fellow big year birder Jason, who had texted me twenty minutes previously that the bird was "stupid cooperative". Fifteen minutes later, another text followed "it's moving like crazy!" Yikes! When we arrived, the bird had just flown out of view, over a fence. We found the birders. Nobody had seen the bird. Anxiety ensued. I worried about this being the bird that I missed by four minutes...that kind of thing happens on occasion when you're consistently chasing birds. 

After about an hour of mulling around the area with about half a dozen other birders, and a few jumps of energy at chipping Lincoln's Sparrows - it sounds almost exactly like a Lincoln's - a young birder refound the Dusky Warbler in an alleyway of sorts. 

Yes! We enjoyed good looks at the bird for about twenty minutes, then headed on to look for a first county record of Magnolia Warbler for John. While he was there looking, I managed to squeeze in a Zoom presentation on my big year to Mecklenberg Audubon Society in North Carolina. It was well attended, with forty people watching! Unfortunately, the Magnolia Warbler hadn't been seen in several hours, and was never seen again. We headed to a delicious Mexican restaurant and celebrated the mostly successful day with margaritas. Salmon on a bed of greens tasted amazing after all the non-perishable food I'd been eating for the last several weeks! 

Year List: 702 

700 Celebration

I had packed up from my second night of camping outside of Ventura, and made my way to the harbor. It was reassuring to know exactly where to go, as it was the same place as the morning before. I had all kinds of fears of missing the boat OUT this time! The boat was set to leave at 7, and I arrived at 6. The waters were peaceful. 

Not long into the trip, a few distant murrelets flushed, but nobody got a good enough look or photos to secure an ID. I remained hopeful. Not much later, we came upon pairs and pairs of Craveri's Murrelets - not great looks and none sat on the water long, but enough to identify. Later, on the return trip in, we would finally find a few pairs that stuck around. In the end, we had about 30 of them total. 

I was talking with one of the female staff from the boat, who mentioned she'd heard what happened to me the previous day. She started asking me for the details, and I recounted to her basically what I had written in my last blog post. She interrupted me -- "hold on, let me check. I don't think there WAS a 5 pm boat to Prisoner's Harbor on the schedule yesterday." She checked, and she was right. There was no boat set to go to Prisoner's - only Scorpion. If I had gone with the info they'd provided, I really would have been stuck overnight, on an island with no amenities except for two pit toilets! It gets even BETTER....whoever had answered the phone at the office that day, didn't even relay the message to the boat crew that they'd left someone behind. They all went to sleep that night having no idea what had happened. What if I'd broken an ankle on the trails, or had a heart attack or some weird incident? I'd have been left to die, and nobody would have noticed I was missing. The boat left 15 minutes early, they didn't check people off the roster as they were supposed to, they didn't provide correct boat schedule times, and they didn't communicate that there was any issue. YIKES as a whole, to this company! What a scary set of mistakes for a business to make. Troy, and the Youth With a Mission group - I'm forever thankful for the ride you gave me, even when we all thought I didn't really need it! 

We were headed to Sutil, a rock cliff adjacent to Santa Barbara Island, the only place in the United States where Brown Booby, as well as often a few Blue-footed Boobies, nest. 

A few people had gone out a few weeks prior, and had three of them. I was hopeful for 700! As we approached Sutil, one of the spotters pointed it out! Blue-footed Booby! 

I'm officially the youngest woman to ever see 700 species in the Lower 48. 

The boat captain did a great job of constant work maneuvering the boat in order to hold it essentially in place, in weird swells which were being made by a combination of Sutil, and the main Santa Barbara Island. The boat was situated between. After a bit of watching and enjoying the birds for a bit, including watching one of them do the stereotypical Blue-footed Booby foot dance, I turned around to a small, opened bottle of champagne being handed to me. Aww! Dave was one of the organizers, and this gesture was the icing on the top of the cake, for an incredible way to get to 700 - surrounded by other bird lovers, celebrating with Dave and Todd with champagne, and also with the rest of the boat. 

After we got off the boat, Corey and I celebrated the Blue-footed Booby, a lifer for both of us, with blue shots! 

From there, I  drove a few hours east, getting a hotel in Riverside as my own little celebration - the sixth hotel room I've paid for this year (I've traveled with Swarovski and guiding clients as well). I  took a shower, went to bed and was on the road early again the next day. I spent the next two days driving home, stopping between Las Cruces, NM and El Paso, TX to camp for a night at a winery that is a HipCamp site. 

My pup sure was happy to see me after I was gone for almost three weeks! 

Year List: 700