Zoochat Big Year 2024

MRJ said:
Choosing when to count feral populations is always problematic.

Just today I got an ebird email alert that listed a single helmeted guineafowl in the Alpine Shire. This sounded dubious on two grounds, firstly the habitat but also because, as flock birds, you would expect to see them in a flock if indeed there was a viable population.

Last year I visited Chillago, a town in outback Queensland which has a large population of blue peafowl and helmeted guineafowl. I did not feel comfortable counting them as there was no way to determine if they were "town birds" surviving on scraps etc. On an early morning bird walk a couple of km outside town we came across a flock of peafowl, obviously waking up for a day's foraging, with some still coming down from their roosts. I was happy to tick them.

Even in their home countries there are feral populations. For instance, all the wild turkeys in south-east Arizona are introduced.

However, I am not going to be too picky about what other people tick, given I have had the good fortune to have seen all three species in their natural habitats.
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Wild Turkeys in southeast Arizona are not introduced. Their white color is not related to domestic ancestry but rather a unique subspecies found only in this area and parts of Mexico.

Wild Turkeys are widely introduced in North America outside of their native range, southeast Arizona is just not an example of that. That being said, none of these population can really be called "feral", as there are no turkey population is North America which have a significant amount of domestic ancestry. They all are truly "wild" Wild Turkeys, genetically speaking.

Once again, people can count whatever they want, so not trying to "correct" you or anything, but how is a "town bird" feeding on scraps any different than a House Sparrow or a Rock Pigeon (or even many native birds that will feed on scraps, not exactly sure what Australian species fill that niche). Or do you not count them either?
 
Mammals
1) Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
2) Red fox (Vulpes vulpes)
3) Brown rat/Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus)
4) Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)
5) Greater white-toothed shrew (Crocidura russula)
6) House mouse (Mus musculus)
7) Common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus)
8) European hare (Lepus europaeus)

Birds
1) Canada goose (Branta canadensis)
2) Carrion crow (Corvus corone)
3) Common buzzard (Buteo buteo)
4) Great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
5) Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
6) Grey heron (Ardea cinerea)
7) House sparrow (Passer domesticus)
8) Common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus)
9) Common moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
10) European robin (Erithacus rubecula)
11) Great tit (Parus major)
12) Black-headed gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
13) European herring gull (Larus argentatus)
14) Eurasian magpie (Pica pica)
15) Great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
16) Western jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
17) Eurasian kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
18) Feral pigeon (Columba livia)
19) Eurasian blackbird (Turdus merula)
20) Eurasian collared dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
21) Rook (Corvus frugilegus)
22) Common starling/European starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
23) European white stork (Ciconia ciconia)
24) Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca)
25) Eurasian coot (Fulica atra)
26) Northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
27) Great egret (Ardea alba)
28) Long-tailed tit (Aegithalos caudatus)
29) Ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
30) Greylag goose (Anser anser)
31) Common shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
32) Grey wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)
33) Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)
34) Eurasian chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
35) Mute swan (Cygnus olor)
36) Barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis)
37) Tufted duck (Aythya fuligula)
38) Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius)
39) Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
40) Dunnock (Prunella modularis)
41) Mandarin duck (Aix galericulata)
42) Eurasian oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)
43) Bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica)
44) Western house martin (Delichon urbicum)
45) Barn swallow (Hirundo rustica)
46) Black kite (Milvus migrans)
47) European greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
48) Black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros)
49) Common swift (Apus apus)
50) Lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus)
51) Eurasian spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
52) Song thrush (Turdus philomelos)
53) Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus)

Amphibians
1) Edible frog (Pelophylax kl. esculentus)

Invertebrates
1) Seven-spot ladybug (Coccinella septempunctata)
2) Common brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni)
3) Firebug (Pyrrhocoris apterus)
4) Common earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris)
5) Small cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae)
6) Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum)
7) Common house mosquito (Culex pipiens)
8) Housefly (Musca domestica)
9) Great grey slug/Leopard slug (Limax maximus)
10) Red slug (Arion rufus)
11) Common garden snail (Cornu aspersum)
12) Black garden ant (Lasius niger)
13) Honey bee (Apis mellifera)
14) Lemon snail (Cepaea nemoralis)
15) Black field slug (Arion hortensis)
16) Box tree moth (Cydalima perspectalis)
17) Large white butterfly (Pieris brassicae)
18) Black-headed cardinal beetle (Pyrochroa coccinea)
19) Northern damselfly or Spearhead blue (Coenagrion hastulatum)
20) Black-tailed skimmer (Orthetrum cancellatum)
21) Hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum)
22) Common rough woodlouse (Porcellio scaber)
23) Common wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
24) Yellow meadow ant (Lasius flavus)
25) Common gooseberry sawfly (Nematus ribesii)
26) Common red soldier beetle (Rhagonycha fulva)
27) House centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata)
28) Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
29) European peacock (Aglais io)
30) Common darter (Sympetrum striolatum)
31) Speckled wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria)
 
KiwiBirb said:
I just got back from Ireland a week ago and man, was it the trip of a lifetime. I first arrived in Dublin where I was immediately greeted by Common Swift and Irish Hare on the Airfield. While I spent the first day there exploring the city, visiting the Guinness Storehouse and Temple Bar area, I was able to spot more common city birds, mostly gulls and corvids, along with an occasional songbird, most notably a pair of Gray Wagtails who seemed to find a home across the street from my hotel. The second day I woke up early to take a day trip up to Northern Ireland. The first stop was the Giant’s Causeway where I was able to get the first taste of the oceanic birds of Ireland, being able to see Gannets, Terns, and a Surprise Egret; however it paled in comparison to Carrick-a-rede where there were hundreds of nesting Murre, Razorbill, and Kittiwakes. The birds slowed once I got to Belfast where I did the zoo and a Black Taxi tour, only adding the fairly common European Robin along with some surprise Graylag Geese. After doing the Jameson factory tour back in Dublin, I took a walk to Phoenix Park and the Dublin Zoo. While I unfortunately missed out on the Fallow Deer iconic to the park, I did get quite a few new bird species, mostly in the zoo including flocks of half a dozen Long-Tailed Tit, Goldcrest and a trio of Common Pochards, rare to the area. I then took a trip to a castle in County Kildare for 2 nights, where the gardens were havens for songbirds. 2 of the more notable birds I picked up where I heard the calls of a Great Spotted Woodpecker and saw an elusive White-Throated Dipper was actually while I was golfing on the castles golf course. After the castle I took the final leg of my trip to Galway. While in Galway I took a ferry to the Cliffs of Mohr. While on that ferry I was able to see more oceanic birds in the European Storm-Petrel and Manx Shearwater. Even though when I eventually got to the cliffs it was unfortunately very foggy with only small parts of the cliffs visible, although I was not disappointed as that didn’t stop the Atlantic Puffins from flying around. Diving into the water. My final day in Galway and thus Ireland was a bit more relaxing, not doing much birdwatching, only seeing a continuing Red-Crested Pochard and Mediterranean Gull in the city center to cap off my trip.

Mammals
22) Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus)
23) Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra)

Birds
178) Common Swift (Apus apus)
179) Common Gull (Larus canus)
180) Rook (Corvus frugilegus)
181) Black-Headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
182) Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
183) European Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)
184) Common Wood-Pigeon (Columba palumbus)
185) Lesser Black-Backed Gull (Larus fuscus)
186) Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
187) Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica)
188) Eurasian Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
189) Eurasian Linnet (Linaria cannabina)
190) Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix)
191) Gray Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)
192) Western House-Martin (Delichon urbicum)
193) Gray Heron (Ardea cinerea)
194) Northern Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis)
195) Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
196) Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)
197) Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus)
198) Sandwich Tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis)
199) European Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus)
200) White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
201) European Shag (Gulosus aristotelis)
202) Common Murre (Uria aalge)
203) Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)
204) Black Guillemot (Cepphus grylle)
205) Black-Legged Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla)
206) Razorbill (Alca torda)
207) Graylag Goose (Anser anser)
208) European Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
209) Coal Tit (Periparus ater)
210) Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)
211) Eurasian Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
212) Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra)
213) Common Pochard (Aythya ferina)
214) Long-Tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus)
215) Eurasian Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris)
216) Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
217) Eurasian Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
218) European Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
219) Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula)
220) Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
221) Great Tit (Parus major)
222) Dunnock (Prunella modularis)
223) White-Throated Dipper (Cinclus cinclus)
224) Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
225) Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus)
226) Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
227) Eurasian Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)
228) Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
229) Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
230) Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata)
231) Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus)
232) European Storm-Petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus)
233) Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica)
234) Red-Billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax)
235) Red-Crested Pochard (Netta rufina)
236) Mediterranean Gull (Ichthyaetus melanocephalus)

Heard Only
14) Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
15) Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)

Progress:
Mammals- 23
Birds- 236
Herptiles- 15
Total- 274
Heard-only Species- 15
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I’ve been doing a lot of birdwatching in the past month, and have gotten several new species. Most of them were on one-off occasions, with the exception of a trip to Lake Henry in the Ramapo Valley where I saw 3 new species. I also should add to avoid confusion that the Black-Backed Woodpecker was seen during a 2 day trip to New Hampshire.

Birds
237) Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)
238) Black-Backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus)
239) Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis)
240) Worm-Eating Warbler (Helmitheros vermivorum)
241) Yellow-Billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus)
242) Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii)
243) American Kestrel (Falco sparverius)
244) Olive-Sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi)
245) Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor)

Progress:
Mammals- 23
Birds- 245
Herptiles- 15
Total- 283
Heard-only Species- 13
 
birdsandbats said:
Once again, people can count whatever they want, so not trying to "correct" you or anything, but how is a "town bird" feeding on scraps any different than a House Sparrow or a Rock Pigeon (or even many native birds that will feed on scraps, not exactly sure what Australian species fill that niche). Or do you not count them either?
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Because there is a difference between an individual bird and a population of birds. I'm surprised you would even ask this question.
 
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birdsandbats said:
Wild Turkeys in southeast Arizona are not introduced. Their white color is not related to domestic ancestry but rather a unique subspecies found only in this area and parts of Mexico.

Wild Turkeys are widely introduced in North America outside of their native range, southeast Arizona is just not an example of that.
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Turkeys were largely extirpated from the southwest USA by the 1920s. They were reintroduced to southeast Arizona from Mexico beginning in the 1980s. Arizona birds were later used for releases in New Mexico to bolster the remaining populations there.
 
Chlidonias said:
Because there is a difference between an individual bird and a population of birds. I'm surprised you would even ask this question.
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Oh just an individual bird? That makes sense then.
Chlidonias said:
Turkeys were largely extirpated from the southwest USA by the 1920s. They were reintroduced to southeast Arizona from Mexico beginning in the 1980s. Arizona birds were later used for releases in New Mexico to bolster the remaining populations there.
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Yes, I am aware of this, but the species is native to the area and the birds have little, if any domestic ancestry. So calling them "feral" seems like a bit of a stretch.
 
birdsandbats said:
Yes, I am aware of this, but the species is native to the area and the birds have little, if any domestic ancestry. So calling them "feral" seems like a bit of a stretch.
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Indeed they aren't feral domestic stock - but I suspect @MRJ knows this (his post could be read either way I suppose).

However your reply to him said "Wild Turkeys in southeast Arizona are not introduced", followed by "Wild Turkeys are widely introduced in North America outside of their native range, southeast Arizona is just not an example of that", so your post did seem pretty unambiguously about actual Wild Turkeys not feral domestic stock.
 
birdsandbats said:
Wild Turkeys in southeast Arizona are not introduced. Their white color is not related to domestic ancestry but rather a unique subspecies found only in this area and parts of Mexico.

Wild Turkeys are widely introduced in North America outside of their native range, southeast Arizona is just not an example of that. That being said, none of these population can really be called "feral", as there are no turkey population is North America which have a significant amount of domestic ancestry. They all are truly "wild" Wild Turkeys, genetically speaking.
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When I was in south-east Arazona reference was made to the "introduced" turkeys, and not being an expert on turkeys, I took their word for it. You seem to be saying they are reintroduced, but there are other populations that are introduced, so my point would apply to them.

Yes, "feral" was not the correct word in this context, it is used rather loosely in Australia, so our bad.

birdsandbats said:
Once again, people can count whatever they want, so not trying to "correct" you or anything, but how is a "town bird" feeding on scraps any different than a House Sparrow or a Rock Pigeon (or even many native birds that will feed on scraps, not exactly sure what Australian species fill that niche). Or do you not count them either?
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Yes, people can count whatever they wish.

Not many Australian towns have numerous peafowl roaming their streets and backyards. For this to happen it requires a deliberate decision to support and tolerate the population. Without this the birds would not be there. They are in effect the town's "pets".

This is different from house sparrows, which while they do inhabit an urban habitat are not dependent on human acquaintance or support.
 
Last night I tried mothing again, but come the morning there was 1 (!) moth in the trap. It was as common a species as one can get in the UK, the Light brown apple moth. Fortunately there was an insect in the trap that was a very overdue lifer:

306) European hornet Vespa crabro


Today I went to Hickling Broad, a nature reserve made primarily up of reed bed but also open scrapes which proved popular with waders and waterfowl alike. Initially it was a slow day to begin species wise but picked up as the afternoon progressed. Lots of lovely birds (pied avocet, egrets, hobby etc) as well as lots of odonata. Unfortunately, I missed out on two lifers, a little stint & a pectoral sandpiper which were likely out of view on the main scrape area but this didn't put a dampener on the day.

Here are the year ticks and lifers:

135) Water rail Rallus aquaticus
136) Eurasian spoonbill Platalea leucorodia
137) Common crane Grus grus
138) Green sandpiper Tringa ochropus

307) Orange-spined drone fly Eristalis nemorum
308) Brown hawker Aeshna grandis
309) Roesel's bush cricket Roeseliana roeselii
 
Chlidonias said:
You've got 137 twice, so you should be on 139.
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I've decided not to count my original #137 (American Black Duck), since in hindsight I'm not 100% confident in my field ID given that I didn't have my phone on hand at the time of the sighting.
CarnotaurusSastrei said:
Not 100% certain, but there was one duck that definitely at least looked darker than some mallards that were nearby. Unfortunately, I didn't have my phone on hand at the time to try and confirm ID/photograph it, so I might just end up removing it from my totals.
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65) Cirl Bunting Emberiza cirlus


Cirl Buntings are one of the rarest introduced birds in New Zealand, being found only in small numbers in certain parts of the country. I used to see them quite often when I lived in Christchurch, either around the estuary there or whenever I went up to Kaikoura, but since moving I haven't seen one in years. They are found in a few places near to Wellington, but none of them are convenient.

However a pair had been seen locally to me three weeks ago. I went to look for them that weekend without any luck, and the following weekend I was in Napier. This morning I had another go and found them quickly.
 
Osedax said:
Had a great visit to Centennial Park today, with plenty of great views of species already on my yearlist (as well as Greylag Geese but I'm guessing I can't count those). However I did get a yeartick - Hardhead, which I have only seen wild three times previously. Two of those times I only saw a single bird, and the third time was a pair, so it was a very pleasant experience spotting eight today (among the many many Pacific Black Ducks and Eurasian Coots, Australian White Ibises, Black Swans and Australian Pelicans - someone was feeding them all)

Birds
190. Hardhead (Aythya australis)
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I have done some research into Greylag Geese in Centennial Park and found that they have been well established for several decades.
Therefore, I feel confident to tentatively put them on my list. If this was the wrong decision, please feel free to correct me.

Birds
191. Greylag Goose (Anser anser)
 
At long last, I made my first visit to RSPB Frampton Marsh. After a flurry of interesting waders as of late in the area I thought I'd have a look to see if I could find some. Unfortunately, I missed out on another little stint, this time by 10 minutes but I did manage myself a lifer (seeing 3 individuals of the species all feeding together) and a year tick so a great day and definitely somewhere to go back to once autumn migration is in full swing!

139) Ruff Calidris pugnax
140) Curlew sandpiper Calidris ferruginea

Also, two invert lifers from yesterday at Hickling that I had forgotten about, although the larvae of the latter species is one that is a notorious pest for someone who grows lots of trees from seed!

310) Red malachite beetle Anthocomus rufus
311) Acorn weevil Curculio glandium
 
It has been about a month since my last update. There has not been much wildlife-ing to write about to be honest. A combination of illness and work overload has made it almost impossible - both in terms of time and of energy - to go out, and I decided to dedicate my first actual real free day to a zoo visit.

Nonetheless there are a few additions to list. Most of the inverts were seen opportunistically during work - though caterpillars of two hawk-moth species were quite a find! The osprey is a neat little story: I had fieldwork scheduled close to the Biesbosch - the osprey's main stronghold in my country. It turned out my schedule was quite a bit more flexible than I anticipated, and I decided to have a long lunch break on a spot with a good overview. Within the hour I could note fly-by's of two marsh harriers, a kestrel, a honey buzzard, two white-tailed eagles and two ospreys! Best lunch break in a long time.

Birds
217. Osprey, Pandion haliaetus
218. Whinchat, Saxicola rubetra

Moths
102. Rusty Tussock Moth, Orgyia antiqua
103. Orange Swift, Triodina sylvina
104. Pine Hawk-moth, Sphinx pinastri
105. Privet Hawk-moth, Sphinx ligustri
106. Flounced Rustic, Luperina testacea

Dragonflies
44. Migrant Hawker, Aeshna mixta

Grasshoppers
17. Common Field Grasshopper, Chorthippus brunneus
 
3/7/24-1/9/24

Birds:
65. Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
66. Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides)
67. Australasian Gannet (Morus serrator)
68. Singing Honeyeater (Gavicalis virescens)
69. Brown Goshawk (Accipiter fasciatus)
70. Spotted Pardalote (Pardalotus punctatus)

Mammals:
16. Common Ring-tailed Possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus)

Amphibians:
1. Striped Marsh Frog (Limnodynastes peronii)

Total Species: 101
Birds: 70
Mammals: 16
Reptiles: 6
Amphibians: 1
Fish: 1
Invertebrates: 7
 
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