Zoochat Big Year 2023

[MRJ]

First seen at Pian-Upe Wildlife Reserve

534. Red-pate cisticola Cisiticola ruficeps

 

[ThylacineAlive]

A small blizzard blew through yesterday, which means all bets are off for what may show up! I had heard about a mixed flock of geese in the southwest corner of the State with some white geese mixed in. While there, another birder tipped me off about a rare gull nearby. While there, three other birders had just come from a nearby seawall where a couple other gull species had been seen. It was on my way home, so I stopped by when I was ready. Unfortunately, by that point the Glaucous Gull that had been present had disappeared, however the Iceland Gulls were still around.

129) Ross's Goose Anser rossii
130) Snow Goose Anser caerulescens
131) Gadwall Mareca strepera
132) Common (Kamchatka) Gull Larus canus kamtschatschensis
133) Iceland Gull Larus glaucoides

Following my adventures near the shoreline, I made an impromptu stop at a state park I used to frequent. Managed to pick up a few woodland birds I'd been lacking.

134) Hairy Woodpecker Leuconotopicus villosus
135) Pileated Woodpecker Dryocopus pileatus
136) White-Breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis

~Thylo

One from the drive to work this morning:

137) Common Merganser Mergus merganser

~Thylo

 

[BerdNerd]

2/23/23

3. Eastern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica)

3/2/23


4. Metricus Paper Wasp (Polistes metricus)


Total:

Mammals: 5
Birds: 76
Reptiles: 2
Invertebrates: 4

 

[MRJ]

On route to Kibane Forest

Reptiles

14. Northern stripe-bellied sand snake Psammophis sudanensis (new Family)

 

[Bisonblake]

Birds:
1/30/23
12. White-breasted nuthatch Sitta carolinensis

2/1/23
13. American robin Turdus migratorius

Total Species: 18
Birds: 13
Mammals: 5

Birds:
14. Turkey vulture Cathartes aura
15. Red-winged blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus
16. Sandhill crane Grus canadensis

Total Species: 21
Birds: 16
Mammals: 5

 

[Chlidonias]

Wow, New Caledonia! Tell more, where did you stay, how did you get around, how hard/easy was it?

I was there is 2010 - backpacking, bus and hitching. Most birders would hire a car. You can see most birds at just a few sites. I never got to Ouvea.

Chlidonias versus New Caledonia (2010)

 

[MRJ]

Royal Mile
535. Dusky long-tailed cuckoo Cypsiurus parvis
536, White-chinned prinia Schistolais leucopogon

Murchison Falls NP
537, Grey heron Ardea cinerea

Queen Elizabeth National Park
538. Great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
539, Whiskered tern Chlidonias hybrida
540. Gull-billed tern Gelochelidon nilotica
541. African fish eagle Haliaeetus vocifer

Kidepo Valley NP
542. Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus
543. Buff-bellied warbler Phyllolais pulchella

Mount Moroto
544, Eastern violet-backed sunbird Anthreptes orientalis

Pian-Upe Wildlife Reserve
545 Foxy cisticola Cisticola troglodytes
546. Winchat Saxicola rubetra

The more I dig the more I find. I think there might be two or three more to come. Not surprised to see so many at QENP. To wake up and find your mate effectively paralyzed was confronting.

 

[Hix]

Wow, New Caledonia! Tell more, where did you stay, how did you get around, how hard/easy was it?

It's a very different visit to my normal trips, and I'll be writing it up once I finish writing up my month-long trip around NSW last August (only a few more days to go. But the New Cal one will be easier and shorter.



Hix

 

[Junklekitteb]

Birds
87. Indian Scops Owl Otus bakkamoena
88. Lesser Goldenback Dinopium benghalense

Summer, that is, the dry season has come to South India, and in a month or so the last sandpipers, warblers, wagtails, pittas, ashy drongos, barn swallows, golden orioles and more will be winging their way north. I myself have already ‘migrated’ to Thiruvannamalai in Northern Tamil Nadu for a three-week internship. Most places in the South Indian plains have similar bird lists. As per the books, almost all the species in Bangalore are to be found here, and vice versa. However in practice, there are huge differences when it comes to which birds one actually encounters ‘on the ground’. Back in Bangalore, species like Green Bee-eaters, Red-naped and Black-headed Ibis, Puff-throated Babblers, Spurfowl, Jungle Mynas and Red-whiskered Bulbuls. I haven’t encountered any of these species here so far, and some are entirely absent. On the other hand species which I think of as rarities, like Treepies, Loten’s Sunbirds, Spotted Owlets, Glossy Ibis, Blue-tailed Bee-eaters, and especially Pittas, are relatively common.
Birds
89. Large Grey Babbler Turdoides malcolmi
90. Asian Palm Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis
91. Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus
92. Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis
93. Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis
94. White-tailed Iora Aegithina nigrolutea
95. Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus
96. Bay-backed Shrike Lanius vittatus
97. Booted Warbler Iduna caligata
98. Clamorous Reed Warbler Acrocephalus stentoreus
99. Rosy Starling Pastor roseus
100. Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus
101. Paddyfield Pipit Anthus rufulus
102. Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus
103. Spotted Owlet Athene brama

 

[Kakapo]

Today coming back to work a silhouette passed close over me with long tail, very ponted wings and very quick wing beats. First kestrel of the year!

BIRDS:
32. Common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)

Today going to work I saw two red kites over the zone where a flock of cattle egrets usually land and is almost always present. Some egrets flied scared, but I think that the kites were just interested in the same thing that attract the egrets, rather than in kill an egret. As I came out from workplace I decided to spend some minutes investigating why there are usually a flock of cattle egrets landing in the same area of a wasteland. I didn't saw nothing special, just a bare terrain near one of the industries of the zone. I was hoping to see a wetland or a place where meat or fish subproducts are poured. Nothing of this. Tough one of the egrets carried something unidentifiable in the bill, a long and thin red thing with a ball in the tip. If it was the bone of an animal leg, or maybe a rope with a knot, I was unable to tell. Other egrets wanted this thing too, but only moved if the egret carrying it drop it for a moment, otherwise they would respect the "private property". A white stork approached the scene from far, but didn't landed here, maybe because he saw me. Also flocks of spotless starlings were with the egrets. I lifted a stone here and saw an ant nest of harvester ants, new species for the year. Fortunately there was some soldiers, that allowed me identify to species level - workers looks like the same in all species of this genus.

Coming back to home I decided to lose some minutes more and investigate around the river under the bridge that I usually pass over. Maybe because the windy and cold day there was almost no birds here - only one black-headed gull flied over the zone, where other times there are lots of them. No little egrets, and only one cormorant flied quickly following the course of the river. However, I was blessed with a quite numerous flock of tree sparrows. But I lifted barks of some old plane trees planted in the zone and I was rewarded by two species of ladybugs (one of them, the two-spotted ladybug, was not new for the year but the two individuals I saw were red, while the other I seen previously in the year in the very same trees, was black), plane lace bugs, spiders (mostly unidentifiable), two individuals of a shield bug species, and little more. (Also, an unidentifiable weevil and a beetle of unknown family).

BIRDS:
33. Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus)

INVERTEBRATES:
30. Messor barbarus
31. Oenopia conglobata
32. Rhaphigaster nebulosa
33. Horvathiolus syriacus
34. Lathys humilis

 

[Lota lota]

45 Eurasian pymgy owl (Glaucidium passerinum)
The owl has been reported from the same island that my local zoo Skansen is located on : Djurgården.The island is pretty large and is part of a protected area,it consists of old growth deciduous and mixed forest.Pygmy owl aren't extremely rare in Stockholm municipality ,but they are hard to spot and often found in pretty remote places.Djurgården only being 10 minutes by tram from central Stockholm,and the owl being unusually unshy attracted many birders.It was an amazing experience seeing the bird and it was a real nice lifer.
46 Common raven (Corvus corax)
47 Eurasian siskin (Spinus spinus)
48 European greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
49 Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)
50 Marsh tit (Poecile palustris)
51 Bearded reedling (Panurus biarmicus)
52 Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla)

Haven't had any time for birding but I of course have seen some animals.
53 Coal tit (Periparus ater)
54 Little grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
55 European green woodpecker (Picus viridis)
56 White-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla)
57 Northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)
58 Greylag goose (Anser anser)

Saw one walking my dog

4 Western roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

5 Red fox (Vulpes vulpes)

 

[Kakapo]

Today going to work I saw two red kites over the zone where a flock of cattle egrets usually land and is almost always present. Some egrets flied scared, but I think that the kites were just interested in the same thing that attract the egrets, rather than in kill an egret. As I came out from workplace I decided to spend some minutes investigating why there are usually a flock of cattle egrets landing in the same area of a wasteland. I didn't saw nothing special, just a bare terrain near one of the industries of the zone. I was hoping to see a wetland or a place where meat or fish subproducts are poured. Nothing of this. Tough one of the egrets carried something unidentifiable in the bill, a long and thin red thing with a ball in the tip. If it was the bone of an animal leg, or maybe a rope with a knot, I was unable to tell. Other egrets wanted this thing too, but only moved if the egret carrying it drop it for a moment, otherwise they would respect the "private property". A white stork approached the scene from far, but didn't landed here, maybe because he saw me. Also flocks of spotless starlings were with the egrets. I lifted a stone here and saw an ant nest of harvester ants, new species for the year. Fortunately there was some soldiers, that allowed me identify to species level - workers looks like the same in all species of this genus.

Coming back to home I decided to lose some minutes more and investigate around the river under the bridge that I usually pass over. Maybe because the windy and cold day there was almost no birds here - only one black-headed gull flied over the zone, where other times there are lots of them. No little egrets, and only one cormorant flied quickly following the course of the river. However, I was blessed with a quite numerous flock of tree sparrows. But I lifted barks of some old plane trees planted in the zone and I was rewarded by two species of ladybugs (one of them, the two-spotted ladybug, was not new for the year but the two individuals I saw were red, while the other I seen previously in the year in the very same trees, was black), plane lace bugs, spiders (mostly unidentifiable), two individuals of a shield bug species, and little more. (Also, an unidentifiable weevil and a beetle of unknown family).

BIRDS:
33. Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus)

INVERTEBRATES:
30. Messor barbarus
31. Oenopia conglobata
32. Rhaphigaster nebulosa
33. Horvathiolus syriacus
34. Lathys humilis

Please, some admin/mod can edit my post (I can't edit it now) and add for Birds: 34. Common moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)? I just forgot I saw one.

 

[Tetzoo Quizzer]

Not much time for birding in February, but did fill in one or two gaps casually
Birds
78 Stock Dove Columba oenas
79 Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus
Then two targeted trips, one to Leasowe (North Wirral) for a helpful flock of 11 geese
80 Brent Goose, Branta bernicla
Then a North Wales trip, starting with filling an embarrassing gap at this stage
81 Rook Corvus frugilegus
And then the key target, followed by bonuses
82 Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata
83 Velvet Scoter Melanitta fusca
84 Common Scoter Melanitta nigra
85 Red-breasted Merganser Mergus serrator
86 Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis
87 Great Black Backed Gull Larus marinus
88 Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis
89 Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus
Mammals
5 Grey Seal Halichoerus grypus

 

[BerdNerd]

2/23/23

76. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)

3/4/23


77. Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)
78. Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
79. Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus)
80. White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)
81. Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)
82. Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus)
83. Domestic Muscovy Duck (Cairina moschata domestica)

2/23/23

2. Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)

3/4/23


3. Red-Eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)
4. River Cooter (Pseudemys concinna)
5. Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta)

3/2/23

4. Metricus Paper Wasp (Polistes metricus)

3/4/23


5. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)


Total:

Mammals: 5
Birds: 83
Reptiles: 5
Invertebrates: 5

 

[MRJ]

Uganda mammals

I doubled up on number 57 in mammals, so I should be at 81 mammals.

Olive baboons were with us almost constantly from Pian-Upe. But somehow I missed listing them here:

82. Olive baboon Papio anubis

Now to find three missing birds.

 

[birdsandbats]

Birds
86. Cackling Goose Branta hutchinsii
87. Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris

Birds
88. Sandhill Crane Antigone canadensis
89. Common Grackle Quiscalus quiscula

 

[birdsandbats]

Mammals
9. Northern Raccoon Procyon lotor

Mammals
10. Woodchuck Marmota monax

 

[Chlidonias]

Now to find three missing birds.

While updating the totals lists I found three mis-numbered / out-of-place birds.

In post #295 you added numbers "442 and 443" but you were on 447 prior to that post and after the post started at 448.

447. Equatorial akalat Sheppardia aequatorialis

Missed from earlier in the trip:
Entebbe
442.Common swift Apus apus
Moroto
443. African stonechat Saxicola torquatus

Birds
448. Elliot's woodpecker Dendropicos elliotii

Then in post #303 and #314 you ended and started on the same number (497).

497. White-starred robin Pogonocichla stellata

497. White-backed duck Thalassornis leuconotus

So I think that makes 549 birds total rather than the 546 of your latest post.

546. Winchat Saxicola rubetra

 

[Chlidonias]

Mammals
Friday, February 3rd
Lounging around at Moss Landing, Monterey Co.
6. Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) (Lifer)One hopped away in the scrub at Moss Landing
7. Brush Rabbit (Sylvilagus bachmani) (Lifer)
I saw some from the road at Moss Landing, but there were better views of a large group of them in the kelp from the Monterey Bay Aquarium
8. Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris) (Lifer)
Saturday, February 4th
Besides the road at Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline in Oakland, Alameda co.
8. California Ground Squirrel (Otospermophilus beecheyi) (Lifer)
A group on the side of the road in Marin county, a little while past the Golden Gate Bridge
9. Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) (Lifer)
At Muir Woods national monument. I was hesitant to visit Muir Woods initially, as I didn't expect the wildlife viewing to be very good, but the east bay where I planned to visit the Oakland redwoods originally had lots of rain in the forecast and I decided to visit the more renowned (and scenic) redwood forest instead. While scouring the undergrowth for ensatinas and other salamanders, I was happily surprised by an endemic chipmunk that briefly poped-out from behind some ferns beside a small stream
10. Sonoma Chipmunk (Neotamias sonomae) (Lifer)
After missing sea lions in Monterey (Where I thought they should be abundant in the harbor and along the coast this time of year), I decided to spend too much money at the fisherman's wharf, enjoying some chowder and watching, but mostly listening (It was dark by then) to the boisterous and famous sea lions of Pier 39. It was a good way to end the trip, I thought to myself, on the flight back.
11. California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus) (Lifer)

You have number 8 twice, so I've put you down for 12 mammals instead of 11.

 

[Chlidonias]

It's a few days into March already, but I thought I'd give a round-up of totals for the first two-ish months of 2023.



BIRDS:

MRJ – 549?
Mehdi – 364
boof – 160
Mr. Zootycoon – 154
Hix – 143
ThylacineAlive – 137
Coelacanth18 – 134
ChunkyMunky pengopus – 128
Maguari – 128
Junklekitteb – 103
WhistlingKite24 – 96
oflory – 92
Tetzoo Quizzer – 89
birdsandbats – 89
BerdNerd – 83
Great Argus – 72
Ituri – 70
WalkingAgnatha – 70
Chlidonias – 68
OskarGC – 65
Lota lota – 58
DesertRhino150 – 46
ifesbob – 43
red river hog – 39
amur leopard – 35
Kakapo – 34
Platypusboy – 21
Bisonblake – 16
CleZooMan – 9
Ursus – 1


MAMMALS:

MRJ – 82
Mehdi – 23
Mr. Zootycoon – 13
Coelacanth18 – 12
ChunkyMunky pengopus – 12
Maguari – 12
ifesbob – 11
birdsandbats – 10
ThylacineAlive – 8
OskarGC – 7
Junklekitteb – 6
BerdNerd – 5
Bisonblake – 5
oflory – 5
Ituri – 5
Great Argus – 5
WhistlingKite24 – 5
Lota lota – 5
Tetzoo Quizzer – 5
red river hog – 4
DesertRhino150 – 4
Platypusboy – 3
Hix – 3
Chlidonias – 3
Giant Eland – 3
WalkingAgnatha – 2
Kakapo – 2
CleZooMan – 1


HERPTILES:

Mr. Zootycoon – 22 Herptiles total (11 Reptiles, 11 Amphibians)
WhistlingKite24 – 14 Herptiles total (13 Reptiles, 1 Amphibian)
MRJ – 14 Herptiles total (14 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
ifesbob – 9 Herptiles total (3 Reptiles, 6 Amphibians)
OskarGC – 8 Herptiles total (6 Reptiles, 2 Amphibians)
red river hog – 5 Herptiles total (5 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
BerdNerd – 5 Herptiles total (5 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
ThylacineAlive – 4 Herptiles total (4 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
Junklekitteb – 3 Herptiles total (3 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
Hix – 3 Herptiles total (3 Reptiles, 0 Amphibians)
Great Argus – 2 Herptiles total (1 Reptile, 1 Amphibian)
WalkingAgnatha – 1 Herptile total (1 Reptile, 0 Amphibians)
Coelacanth18 – 1 Herptile total (1 Reptile, 0 Amphibians)


FISH:

red river hog – 9
WhistlingKite24 – 5
Mr. Zootycoon – 2
birdsandbats – 1
MRJ – 1
ChunkyMunky pengopus – 1


INVERTEBRATES:

WhistlingKite24 – 134
Kakapo – 34
ChunkyMunky pengopus – 26
WalkingAgnatha – 26 total (including 20 insects; 2 arachnids; 1 annelid; 3 molluscs)
red river hog – 10
Junklekitteb – 7
Great Argus – 6
Mr. Zootycoon – 6 total (including 6 butterflies)
BerdNerd – 5
MRJ – 2
DesertRhino150 – 1
ifesbob – 1