ZooChat Big Year 2021

20/03/21 (IJmuiden, Utrecht, Geldermalsen)
Today I went to the coast and on my way back I twitched some rare birds.
BIRDS:
135) Bewick's Swan, Cygnus columbianus
136) Common Scoter, Melanitta nigra
137) Purple Sandpiper, Calidris maritima
138) Red-throated Loon, Gavia stellata
139) European Shag, Phalacrocorax aristotelis (rare)
140) Hume's Leaf Warbler, Phylloscopus humei (really rare)
141) Black-throated Thrush, Turdus atrogularis (really rare)
142) European Rock Pipit, Anthus petrosus
 
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CheeseChameleon2007 said:
I was actually saying "I think" because I wasn't sure if I was on number 7 for mammals.
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I see now. You appear to be on 6 rather than 7, the last mammal I can find you counting is White-tailed Deer at 5.

I (and most others I know) keep their list on a Microsoft Office or Google Office file (Word, Excel, Sheets, etc) and just copy their updates here; that way you always have an organized full list to reference instead of relying on your posts in this thread.

Going back and quoting your last post in the update (in this case, quoting the deer post) can also keep you on track. You can find all of your replies in the thread by going to the forum page, clicking the number next to "Replies" for the thread, and then clicking the number next to your name.
 
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Thank you. I'm not necessarily trying to make a formal list of any kind, when I see an animal I just update it here, thats all there was to it. But sure I guess I could keep track somewhere else.
 
CheeseChameleon2007 said:
New Thank you. I'm not necessarily trying to make a formal list of any kind, when I see an animal I just update it here, thats all there was to it. But sure I guess I could keep track somewhere else
Click to expand...

It helps to keep track elsewhere, keeps it more straightforward and then you're not wondering what you've counted and what number you're on. Up to you obviously.
 
Another walk up to the edge of the moors and back today, mainly to look (successfully!) for curlew, but keeping an eye on the spot I picked up dipper last year also paid off. Noticeably more invertebrates about now, to the point of picking up a lifer ladybird and three new bee species for the year on one bush at one point. Both the birds are new families for the year list - including the curlew, my first scolopacid and only second wader this year, which is ridiculous, but 2021 gonna 2021.

Birds:
79. White-breasted Dipper - Cinclus cinclus
80. Eurasian Curlew - Numenius arquata

Invertebrates:
3. White-lipped Banded Snail - Cepaea hortensis
4. Tree Bumblebee - Bombus hypnorum
5. Common Rough Woodlouse - Porcellio scaber
6. Common Shiny Woodlouse - Oniscus asellus
7. Pine Ladybird - Exochomus quadripustulatus
8. Red-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus lapidarius
9. White-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus lucorum
10. European Honey Bee - Apis mellifera
11. Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris

:)
 
birdsandbats said:
More signs of spring:

Birds
85. Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias

Mammals
9. Eastern Chipmunk Tamias striatus
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Birds
86. Blue-winged Teal Spatula discors
87. Brown-headed Cowbird Molothrus ater
88. Rusty Blackbird Euphagus carolinus
89. Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons
90. Snow Goose Anser caerulescens
91. Eastern Meadowlark Sturnella magna
92. Green-winged Teal Anas carolinensis
 
Some new invert IDs:

Insect/Invertebrate:
8. Brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys)
9. Silvanid flat bark beetle (telephanus velox)
 
EternalPigeon said:
I saw this bird flying around on a rainy day while on a drive to Kansas City.

Birds:

19. Great Blue Heron
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I saw all these animals at and on my way to the Kansas City Zoo.

Mammals:

5. Groundhog

Birds:

20. Cedar Waxwing
21. Mallard
22. Killdeer
23. Common Grackle

Reptiles:

1. Five-Lined Skink
2. Red-Eared Slider
 
Mehdi said:
A really nice day out around Massa with the sole goal being looking for crakes yielded none of those but still nonetheless three really nice species!

07/03/2021 (Champs d'Imallalen, Morocco)
BIRDS:
116 - Sedge warbler, Acrocephalus schoenobaenus
117 - Savi's warbler, Locustella luscinioides
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(Estuaire de l'Oued Massa, Morocco)
118 - European bee-eater, Merops apiaster

Three birds that announce spring has arrived (at least birding wise) including a very nice unexpected lifer that marks my 195th bird for Morocco (5 left before #200!).
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First of all, an invert identified from that day retroactively:

07/03/2021 (Champs d'Imallalen, Morocco)
INVERTS:
5 - Lamenting grasshopper, Eyprepocnemis plorans

A few days after, I went to the Tamri estuary for no particular goal except to find some spring migrants and although the place was booming more than the last few times I visited, it was still pretty lifeless compared to what I'm used to (still no ducks nor coots even if I'm used to hundreds there). A really nice lifer made up for it all though!

13/03/2021 (Estuaire de l'Asif N'Srou, Morocco)
BIRDS:
119 - Common grasshopper warbler, Locustella naevia

HERPS:
1 - Bibron's agama, Agama impalearis

INVERTS:
6 - Light pygmy skipper, Gegenes nostrodamus

My second Locustellidae in less than a week even if I had never seen any prior that! A very welcome lifer that for me completes the very short (2 species) Moroccan Locustellidae basket but that also marks my 196th bird in Morocco.

The next segment is about a visit to the Aoulouz area, a mountainous area near a water body that I've always wanted to visit because it seems very scenic and also great for birding. My main reason to get there however was mostly to have one last real try at crakes this year (crakes are nearly only seen during spring migration here and I don't think I'll have time to look for them in April).

Other goals would be to try and get mountain species that are often reported there like Blue rock thrush or finally get my most shameful missing species to this day: Long-legged buzzard, which is probably one of the most common raptors in Morocco but which is also one I was missing before the trip:

20/03/2021 (Aoulouz [Pont sur l'Asif Tifnout], Morocco)
BIRDS:
120 - Booted eagle, Hieraaetus pennatus
121 - Common snipe, Gallinago gallinago
122 - Long-legged buzzard, Buteo rufinus
123 - Blue rock thrush, Monticola solitarius
124 - Western Bonelli's warbler, Phylloscopus bonelli

HERPS:
2 - Mediterranean tree frog, Hyla meridionalis
3 - Spanish pond turtle, Mauremys leprosa

INVERTS:
7 - Copper demoiselle, Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis

Alas no crakes to be seen but I did, finally, end up getting Long-legged buzzard (Moroccan bird #197!). The other additions were all pretty much expected but still very nice, especially in my region: I've never seen snipe in my region before and Bonelli's warbler and Blue rock thrush are species I've only seen once before. Booted eagle is also a species I don't see very often so it was nice to tick that this early in the year.

Apart from birds, other types of animals also made up for a great trip as the river banks were filled with Mediterranean tree frog calls (though I've only seen one of them): a lifer and one of the herps I've always wanted to see in Morocco. Spanish pond turtle, although a species I get every year, is always nice to see of course, especially when there are this many (easily 30+ there). The banks were also filled with Odonates include big numbers of Copper demoiselle, a particularly stark looking damselfly.
 
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