ZooChat Big Year 2021

ChunkyMunky pengopus said:
I am quite happy with what has been a very successful day. I spent the morning looking for inverts, and then went to a swine lagoon (Pond of pig poop), where some ducks and sandpipers that I wanted to see were. It was only 5 minutes from my house, and I'm quite happy I saw the species that I wanted. I am growing fonder and fonder of waterfowl, they are nice to find:D I did get stopped by the police (This is America), who was wondering what I was taking pictures of, but he just smiled and drove away when I quickly explained I was birding.

Birds:
37. Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria)
38. Northern Shoveler Duck (Spatula clypeata)
39. American Coot (Fulica americana)
40. Blue-Winged Teal (Anas discors)
41. Wilson’s Snipe (Gallinago delicata)
42. Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)
43. Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)

Insect/Invertebrates:
33. Long-bodied cellar spider/daddy long legs spider (Pholcus phalangioides)
34. Milky slug (Deroceras agreste)
35. Wandering broadhead planarian (Bipalium adventitium)
Click to expand...

I went to a nearby park that normally is very good for birds, but at pretty much the wrong time. I still have some nice new bird and invert additions.

Birds:
44. Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus)
45. Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)
46. Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)
47. White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)
49. Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)

Insect/Invertebrate:
35. House centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata)
36. Yellow sac spider (Cheiracanthium inclusum)
37. Spotted lady beetle (Coleomegilla maculata)
38. Narrow headed marsh fly (Helophilus fasciatus)
39. Six-spotted green tiger beetle (Cicindela sexguttata)
40. Eastern carpenter bee (Xylocopa virginica)

(Note: The invert number is down by one because, as I am somehow neck-and-neck with @Tetzoo Quizzer, 'Common Earthworm' should not count as I didn't have it verified)
 
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Invertebrates:

17. European Paper Wasp (Polistes dominula)

Mammals: 7
Birds: 76
Herptiles: 8
Fish: 4
Invertebrates: 17
 
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Birds:

77. Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)
78. Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)

Invertebrates:

18. Eastern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica)

Mammals: 7
Birds: 78
Herptiles: 8
Fish: 4
Invertebrates: 18
 
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Najade said:
That’s some good BQs.

How/when/where was the Ningbing Falsie? And did you get a picture?
Click to expand...
Yeah stacks of buttonquail around this season - I assume because it's been so wet. Very hard to get views of any but the LBQs. I hear the other two species a fair bit but keep flushing them with unsatisfying views :P Ningbing was at Sir John Gorge, climbing around on the rocks. A couple brief views under the spotlight before it disappeared :) No picture though, unfortunately.

BIRDS
309 - Cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus)
310 - Eastern Osprey (Pandion cristatus)
311 - Varied Lorikeet (Psitteuteles versicolor)
312 - Square-tailed Kite (Lophoictinia isura)

MAMMALS
25 - Yellow-bellied Sheath-tailed Bat (Saccolaimus flaviventris)

REPTILES
25 - Green Tree Snake (Dendrelaphis punctulatus)
26 - Little Spotted Snake (Suta punctata)
27 - Top End Blind Snake (Anilios guentheri)

AMPHIBIANS
17 - Bilingual Frog (Crinia bilingua)

FISH
14 - Spangled Perch (Leiopotherapon unicolor)
 
Just got back from a few days on the island of Texel. Despite unfavourable weather it was a fanatastic trip with many great species seen. The main highlight was a pair of dotterels we say in a field at sunset. With a row of dunes in the distance, the sunset colouring the sky to match the plumage of the dotterels, and the characteristic strong winds of Texel it was an incredible sight. Other highlights were exploring the dunes filled with songbirds, watching colonies of sometimes hundreds of terns, early morning sea-birding and watching displaying eiders. We also saw a few rarities along the way, including a lifer that I wasn't expecting!

The first three of the bird list were seen locally, the rest is from the trip to Texel (though we say Little Gull on Texel too).

Birds
179. Little Gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus
180. Cattle Egret, Bubulcus ibis
181. Eurasian Wryneck, Jynx torquilla
182. Black Guillemot, Cepphus grylle
183. Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus
184. Common Swift, Apus apus
185. Red knot, Calidris canutus
186. Little Tern, Sternula albifrons
187. Arctic Tern, Sterna paradisea
000. Black Brant, Branta bernicla nigricans
188. Common Nightingale, Luscinia megarhynchos
189. Lesser Whitethroat, Curruca curruca
190. Red-rumped Swallow, Cecropis daurica
191. Eurasian Dotterel, Charadrius morinellus
192. Red Crossbill, Loxia curvirostra
193. Grey Plover, Pluvialis squatarola
194. Wood Sandpiper, Tringa glareola
195. Northern Gannet, Morus bassanus

Mammals
11. Harbour Seal, Phoca vitulina
 
Birds
98 Sand Martin Riparia riparia
99 Common Whitethroat Curruca communis
Mammals
6 Stoat Mustela erminea (on the edge of the local RSPB reserve car park)
Invertebrates
41 Speckled Wood
and still working on 2 or 3 solitary bees...
 
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Vision said:
BIRDS:
170) Northern raven, Corvus corax
171) Eurasian bullfinch, Pyrrhula pyrrhula
172) Tree pipit, Anthus trivialis
173) Willow tit, Poecile montanus
174) Black grouse, Lyrurus tetrix
175) Black stork, Ciconia nigra

(+6 heard only)

Heard only:
0) Eurasian treecreeper, Certhia familiaris
0) Blackcap, Sylvia atricapilla

INVERTS:
9) Morning-glory plume moth, Emmelina monodactyla
Click to expand...

April update! Some really good twitches (Franklin's gull, Ross's gull, Iberian chiffchaff, Lammergeier) and a bunch of spring migrants have kept me more than busy the past month.

BIRDS:
176) Blackcap, Sylvia atricapilla
177) Franklin’s gull, Leucophaeus pipixcan
178) Black-tailed godwit, Limosa limosa
179) Little ringed plover, Charadrius dubius
180) Barn swallow, Hirundo rustica
181) Western barn owl, Tyto alba
182) Green sandpiper, Tringa ochropus
183) Eurasian wryneck, Jynx torquilla
184) Sedge warbler, Acrocephalus schoenobaenus
185) Spotted crake, Porzana porzana
186) Western yellow wagtail, Motacilla flava
187) Black-legged kittiwake, Rissa tridactyla
188) Common tern, Sterna hirundo
189) Black tern, Chlidonias niger
190) Little gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus
191) Common eider, Somateria mollissima
192) Ross' gull, Rhodostethia rosea
193) Sand martin, Riparia riparia
194) Common house martin, Delichon urbicum
195) Willow warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus
196) Common cuckoo, Cuculus canorus
197) Common whitethroat, Curruca communis
198) Common redstart, Phoenicurus phoenicurus
199) Common greenshank, Tringa nebularia
200) Garganey, Spatula querquedula
201) Wood sandpiper, Tringa glareola
202) Garden warbler, Sylvia borin
203) Ruddy shelduck, Tadorna ferruginea
204) Bar-headed goose, Anser indicus
205) Eurasian reed warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus
206) Eurasian hobby, Falco subbuteo
207) Cackling goose, Branta hutchinsii
208) Black kite, Milvus migrans
209) Whinchat, Saxicola rubetra
210) European pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca
211) Common swift, Apus apus
212) Eurasian thick-knee, Burhinus oedicnemus
213) Merlin, Falco columbarius
214) Purple heron, Ardea purpurea
215) Ring ouzel, Turdus torquatus
216) Woodlark, Lullula arborea
217) Little tern, Sternula albifrons
218) Lammergeier, Gypaetus barbatus

+8 heard only (226 total)

Heard only:
000) Lesser spotted woodpecker, Dryobates minor
000) Bearded reedling, Panurus biarmicus
000) Eurasian penduline tit, Remiz pendulinus
000) Eurasian treecreeper, Certhia familiaris
000) Iberian chiffchaff, Phylloscopus ibericus
000) Common nightingale, Luscinia megarhynchos
000) Common grasshopper warbler, Locustella naevia
000) Lesser whitethroat, Curruca curruca

MAMMALS:
9) Stoat, Mustela erminea
10) House mouse, Mus musculus
11) Wood mouse, Apodemus sylvaticus

INVERTS:
10) Orange-tip, Anthocharis cardamines
11) Mottled shieldbug, Rhaphigaster nebulosa
12) Dyseriocrania subpurpurella
13) Large red damselfly, Pyrrhosoma nymphula
 
Mehdi said:
Had to wait a few days before posting this one because of invertebrate identification process. A rather dull day at Tamri last Sunday (at least terms of species number) still got me a nice year addition that I was afraid on missing out as well as many inverterbrates of which I got some identified:

18/04/2021 (Estuaire de l'Asif N'Srou, Morocco)
BIRDS:
139 - Red-knobbed coot, Fulica cristata

INVERTS: (not in order)
18 - Bath white, Pontia daplidice
19 - African monarch, Danaus chrysippus
20 - Crimson-speckled flunkey, Utetheisa pulchella
21 - Black admiral, Vanessa atalanta
22 - Loryma egregialis
23 - Amata mogadorensis
24 - Calomera lunulata
25 - Adonis ladybird, Hippodamia variegata
26 - Southern blue, Polyommatus celina
27 - Silver Y, Autographa gamma
28 - Purpled white, Eublemma ostrina
Click to expand...

25/04/2021 (Champs d'Imallalen & Tobouzar, Morocco)
BIRDS:
140 - European goldfinch, Carduelis carduelis
141 - Grey wagtail, Motacilla cinerea

INVERTS:
29 - Black webspinner, Oligotoma nigra
30 - Sahara bluetail, Ischnura saharensis
31 - Violet dropwing, Trithemis annulata
32 - Red-veined dropwing, Trithemis arteriosa
 
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Invertebrates
Thanks to the challenge, two lifer bees (not a group I have ever tried to get to grips with)
42 Marsham’s Nomad Bee (Nomada marshamella), a brood parasite of
43 Chocolate Mining Bee (Andrena scotica)
 
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I'd flirted with the edges of moorland during lockdown but I hadn't really been up into the 'proper' moorland yet this year, so spent this morning in the wide open spaces with the traditionally narrow range of nevertheless rather nice, and reliable, species. The morning was divided between my traditional sites for the hare and the ouzel respectively: Bleaklow for the former and Stanage Edge for the latter (though I usually go for the ouzel on a quiet evening, not a busy bank holiday Saturday lunchtime - correctly, I would say..!). This has the effect of 'completing' my sets of the three UK lagomorphs and the six 'regular' UK thrushes.

Birds:
127. Red Grouse - Lagopus lagopus
128. European Golden Plover - Pluvialis apricaria
129. Ring Ouzel - Turdus torquatus

Mammals:
14. Mountain Hare - Lepus timidus

:)
 
Invertebrates:

20. Marbled Orb Weaver (Araneus marmoreus)
21. Eastern Yellow Jacket (Vespula maculifrons)
22. Leiobunum vittatum

Mammals: 7
Birds: 78
Herptiles: 8
Fish: 4
Invertebrates: 22
Total: 119
 
Birds
100 Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus
101 House Martin Delichon urbicum
102 Whinchat Saxicola rubetra
And a leucistic starling camouflaged in a daisy field!
 
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