ZooChat Big Year 2021

Birds
146. Brown Thornbill
147. Crimson Rosella
148. Fan-tailed Cuckoo
149. Plum-headed Finch
150. White-browed Babbler
151. Grey-Crowned Babbler
152. Scarlet Honeyeater
153. Rose Robin
154. Rufous Fantail
155. Little Eagle

Mammals
7. Eastern Grey Kangaroo

:p

Hix
Graeme P says hi.
 
Birds:

91. Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)

Invertebrates:

18. Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus)
19. Yellow-faced Bumblebee (Bombus vosnesenskii)

5-91-6-2-0-19

Birds:

92. Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)

Invertebrates:

20. Western Yellowjacket (Vespula pensylanica)

5-92-6-2-0-20
 
Tell Graeme P. I said 'Hi' back.
Are you in Sydney or is he down your way?

:p

Hix?
Graeme lives with us now and is working on our not-for-profit. I only realized there might be a connection when reading your report on your Uganda trip. I showed him a photo of you in the report, and it did take him a minute to recognise you. He said to tell you that you still look just as ugly.
 
Birds

At Moonlit Sanctuary
172. Brush cuckoo Cacomantis variolosus

Missed from North Queensland trip
173. Cattle egret Bubulcus ibis
 
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Graeme lives with us now and is working on our not-for-profit. I only realized there might be a connection when reading your report on your Uganda trip. I showed him a photo of you in the report, and it did take him a minute to recognise you. He said to tell you that you still look just as ugly.

As he's quite a bit older, tell him he's been uglier for longer!

:p

Hix
 
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Ever since my last birding session I've been waiting to have the opportunity to visit one of my local birding spots at a lake, which is especially good for early spring migrants. Today I finally had the chance, and when two stils were seen there I was even more determined!

When I arrived the stilts where still there and showed very well. I shouldn't have been much later though, because a mere ten minutes after I arrived they flew away. With those two gone I went to the other side of the lake which has large reed beds and lots of shrub vegetation, mainly to see bluethroats. With at least four (and possibly five) males seen singing right in the open I was very pleased with the result. Spring has definitely arrived with tons of birdsong everywhere. One of the most exhilarating sightings however was not a songbird but an osprey flying over. All things considered a very productive few hours of birding today!

Birds
153. Black-winged Stilt, Himantopus himantopus
154. Willow Warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus
155. Common Tern, Sterna hirundo
156. Bluethroat, Luscinia svecica
157. (Western) Osprey, Pandion haliaetus

Invertebrates
12. Jumping spider, Marpissa muscosa
13. Zebra Spider, Salticus scenicus
14. European Honey Bee, Apis mellifera
15. Comma, Polygonia c-album
16. Red Admiral, Vanessa atalanta
17. European Peacock, Aglais io
18. Yellow Dung Fly, Scathophaga stercoraria

Would be a lot simpler if we could just count heard-onlies, like most birders do... :p

I'm almost inclined to agree with you after today...

Heard only:
0. Water rail, Rallus aquaticus
0. Savi's Warbler, Locustella luscinoides
0. Spotted Crake, Porzana porzana

... but I'm still not counting them! :p
 
BIRDS:
160) Ring-billed gull, Larus delawarensis

(+9 heard only)

Heard only:
0) Woodlark, Lullula arborea
Got a few more really good birds during the second half of the month!

BIRDS:
161) Marsh tit, Poecile palustris
162) Eurasian pygmy owl, Glaucidium passerinum
163) Red crossbill, Loxia curvirostra
164) Oriental turtle dove, Streptopelia orientalis
165) European stonechat, Saxicola rubicola
166) Little owl, Athene noctua
167) Cetti's warbler, Cettia cetti
168) Bluethroat, Luscinia svecica
169) Northern wheatear, Oenanthe oenanthe

(+6 heard only)

MAMMALS:
8) Wild boar, Sus scrofa

HERPS:

1) Common toad, Bufo bufo

INVERTS:
5) Common brimstone, Gonepteryx rhamni
6) Varied carpet beetle, Anthrenus verbasci
7) Peacock, Aglais io
8) Cabbage white, Pieris rapae
 
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Bislicher Insel

Mammals
3. European Hare (Lepus europaeus)
4. Nutria (Myocastor coypus)

Birds
1. Barnacle Goose (Branta leucopsis)

Getting hard to find new birds in the vicinity. I'm at the point where I'm driving an hour or two just in the hopes of picking up a single species here and there. RB was a cool spot for woodpeckers. At one point I had all three spotteds in front of me at the same time :)
Also have a new bogey bird in White-throated Dipper. That one just doesn't wanna play ball. :(

Rahmer Benden, Abtskücher Teich, St. Hubert: Kendel-Niederung Bruckes

Mammals
5. European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

Birds
2. Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocoptes medius)
3. Western Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)


Reptiles
1. Yellow-bellied Slider (Trachemys scripta scripta)

Amphibians
1. Common Toad (Bufo bufo)
 
The last month has been a bit quieter for birds, but I've still seen some pretty nice species; Tundra Swans and Wood Ducks are always awesome to view. The first Red-Winged Blackbirds of the year should hopefully mean winter is almost over!

Mammals:
8. Eastern Chipmunk, Tamias striatus

Birds:
58. White-Winged Scoter, Melanitta deglandi
59. Green-Winged Teal, Anas crecca
60. Rough-Legged Hawk, Buteo lagopus
61. Tundra Swan, Cygnus columbianus
62. Greater Black-Backed Gull, Larus marinus
63. Wood Duck, Aix sponsa
64. Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
65. Red-Winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus
Small update from the last couple of weeks. Not a whole lot of new birds but definitely some good ones! Brown Creeper is a species I've been trying to find for a while, so it was great to finally see one (definitely smaller than I expected!). Pied-Billed Grebe was an unexpected lifer that I saw today; all grebes are awesome but this species is particularly great.

66. Brown Creeper, Certhia americana
67. Common Grackle, Quiscalus quiscula
68. Double-Crested Cormorant, Phalacrocorax auritus
69. Ruddy Duck, Oxyura jamaicensis
70. Pied-billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps
71. Golden-crowned Kinglet, Regulus satrapa
 
Small update from the last couple of weeks. Not a whole lot of new birds but definitely some good ones! Brown Creeper is a species I've been trying to find for a while, so it was great to finally see one (definitely smaller than I expected!). Pied-Billed Grebe was an unexpected lifer that I saw today; all grebes are awesome but this species is particularly great.

66. Brown Creeper, Certhia americana
67. Common Grackle, Quiscalus quiscula
68. Double-Crested Cormorant, Phalacrocorax auritus
69. Ruddy Duck, Oxyura jamaicensis
70. Pied-billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps
71. Golden-crowned Kinglet, Regulus satrapa
Yeah, brown creepers are surprisingly quite tiny!
 
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