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| Wilson's Plover Lifebird #9 this year |
I started my day with 190 species. I knew if I got lucky with a few woods birds in the morning I'd have a shot at two hundred because I was going after shorebirds in the afternoon. I have largely ignored shorebirds so I knew I'd get a few. My morning started off pretty well. I got the Summer Tanager in Watch Hill that was found by Sue Palmer yesterday. While there, I got a bonus bird as Chimney Swifts were flying overhead.
Next I went to Misquamicut hoping to see Lesser Yellowlegs. I thought I saw one but it flew out of sight before I could get a positive ID. Because I spent so much time chasing birds I got to Trustom later than I wanted. It was pretty dead.
While I was at Trustom, there was a report of a Wilson's Plover at Charlestown Breachway. I have never been to the mudflats in the spring before. However, going there was already part of my plan so this was another bonus bird. I put my waders on and went out to the mudflat. Half of Rhode Island's best birders were already there (the other half showed up while I was there). My friend Jan was out on the flat in her waders. She had already seen it but it had moved. She found it in her scope before I did so I looked through hers. Then I found it in mine. This was Lifebird #9 for the year.
After looking at the Wilson's, I started looking for the common shorebirds. I saw Semi-Palmated Plover, Semi-Palmated and Least Sandpipers, Short Billed Dowitcher, and a lot of Willet. Besides the new birds, there were also Piping Plover, Caspain Terns and a bunch of Dunlin. I did miss a few species that I'll get later such as Common Tern, White Rumped Sandpiper, Saltmarsh and Seaside Sparrow.
From the mudflats I went to Succotash Marsh and saw Lesser Yellowlegs that I was sure were Lesser's. There were also Greater Yellowlegs and Green Wnged Teal.
I killed a couple more hours then I went to the Tillinghast property. Also there were JanStJean, Don Heitzmann, and Alex Patterson. All of us were hoping to hear the Chuck-will's-widow. This is a nightjar that only calls at dark. I went a couple days ago, I didn't hear it but I did hear Whip-poor-wills for the first time. I was pretty happy anyway. Tonight we got lucky. It flew in and we saw it. Then it called right away. The whips were also calling a lot. I was actually giddy. I completely forgot all about numbers and just enjoyed the moment. It wasn't until we were leaving that I even remembered that I hit 200.
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| Not a new bird, but fun to see a Great Egret in a tree |
First off, for me calling birding in Rhode Island a"big year" is a little misleading. I love birding so next year I'm still going to bird a lot. I'm still going to chase rare birds. I'm still going to enjoy going to Trustom, Great Swamp, and Miantonomi. However, there are a couple of things that make this year different. The first is mainly birding in Rhode Island. Normally, I'd bird n Rhode Island most of the time anyway, but I'd make multiple trips to Plum Island in May. This year, I may go to Plum at the end of the month once.
Another thing is how much time it takes to really find or chase every bird is incredible. It really has cut into my other hobbies, mainly fishing. Normally, I'm a believer of "do whatever makes me happy". If I feel like trout fishing, I go trout fishing. If I want to striper fish or walk at Trustom I do it. However, when your goal is to see 250 species, then, you go and look for birds. Right now, I am missing one of the best tautog bites I've ever heard of (sorry, I can't tell you where) because I spent all day (into the night) getting those ten birds. I am okay with it because I want to reach my goal. Next year, again, I'll bird a lot, but if I want to spend a day fishing for lake trout and salmon at Wachusett, then that is what I will do.
One difference between this year and next will be the number of miles I'm putting on my car. Next year I'll still chase rarity but I'll be more judicious about it. I probably won't be making after work runs to Narragansett in January when there is only 45 minutes of sunlight to chase birds. I won't drive to Trustom four times in a week to look for white eyed vireos and brown thrashers (saw the vireos, still haven't seen a thrasher). I'll probably go back to birding on my days off and fishing close to home in the evenings. If I don't, I'll be pushing my car to a dealership as a trade while still having a loan payment. I don't mind the driving or even the gas money spent on this journey, but I do worry about the wasted miles on my car, especially after dipping on a bird.
Rhode Island is small. I can reach every town except Westerly and Little Compton in an hour and I don't even live in Rhode Island! I found out that our bird club has about 130 members. However, no matter where a real rare bird shows up the same fifteen people (some not bird club members)show up. I can even recognize their cars when I pull up. These are the real diehards. These are amazing birders who not only see the most birds but also have a ton of knowledge. What I have come to learn is they are not only great birders, but also awesome people. I think because these same people show up at all the birds and are out every chance they can, there is more than mutual respect. It is a bond. When people will also go look for an American Bittern a half dozen times until they find it just like you, there is a common brotherhood/sisterhood. For me its the same as with fishermen. I'd much rather hang out with the guy that will slug it out a couple hours for two or three fish than be with someone that wants to leave because they didn't get a hit in twenty minutes. I really enjoy hanging out with this group of dedicated birders for the same sort of reason.
I've started my paragraphs in many blogposts with "there was a report". That means some unselfish birder found a good bird and shared it with the birding community. I really can't overstate how lucky I am to go birding in a state that has birders so willing to share information, I can't stress enough how lucky I am that Jan befriended me, she has been unbelievable. There are a multitude of others that have been really helpful and I've been lucky enough to get to know (Dick and Marge, Matt, Sue, Carlos, Alex, John, Don, Jess, Ed, Wayne, Wendy, Linda, Richard, and a host of people I have never met that share info)
Lastly, in my plans for my Big year quest I did not expect such a range of emotions. When I'm at work and there is a report of a rare bird, I get anxiety. No joke, my heart starts racing, my pulse quickens, and I get actually nervous that I might miss the bird. If I know I can go chase the bird after work the anticipation is a little overwhelming (I get the same feeling in September when I know I'm going albie fishing after work). The only real word I can use to describe this anxiety is stress. I have totally stressed and been nervous sometimes for hours until I can finally go birding. What is ironic about that is as soon as I go birding, I am totally relaxed. I'm at ease, my anxiety calms down. This is even true if I don't get the bird. Despite spending the last few hours at work stressed out about whether I see the rare bird or not, once I'm there it doesn't really matter. I guess the chase means as much to me as the find.
Last week there was a White Faced Ibis in Middletown. I went straight from work. It was in some muddy fields on a farm. I along with Jan spent over 2.5 hours peeking through holes in the brush along a loud, busy, street looking for this bird. We would walk along the street and back to the open field over and over. You would think one would get bored or give up because we didn't see it. To the contrary, we both had to leave at 6 pm. The closer it got to 6 pm, the faster time sped up. As long as I was there, I/we had a chance to see this bird. We didn't see it that night, but we both got to see it the next day about 90 minutes apart.
You could make an argument that if birding is stressing me out and making me anxious than it is unhealthy and I should tone it down. I wouldn't have an rebuttal. But, I think that if birding is the cure, then I should keep doing it. If all I'm thinking about is finding birds, or planning my next trip it shows how much I care and how much it means to me. I can only imagine the anxiety level Neil Hayward and Greg Miller had while doing their Continental Big Years. They invested thousands of dollars, spent countless hours at airports, and drove across huge parts of the country, sometimes to see one bird. Fortunately, I will never know the stress these guys were under because a Continental Big Year is not in my budget.
On the flip side, sometimes getting a good bird or a good photo is intoxicating. I got two lifebirds today, which is a lot at this point in my birding career (local birding). The Wilson's Plover was the much harder bird to get. They don't nest north of the Carolinas. The Chuck-Will's-Widow has been found at the same spot four years in a row, although I'd never heard or seen it. Yet, when we were listening the the Whips and the Chuck and saw them flyover, I got giddy. The emotion was pure joy. No different from catching a twenty pound striper, any size albie, or standing on a mountain top. It was euphoric.
I just wish there was time to squeeze a little more fishing in!
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