Happy New Year

I’ve been looking forward to the new birding year but the weather means that it will begin quietly. Flagstaff has had 17.2 inches of snow in the last two days and it will stay below freezing for a while. Frozen lakes and a snow covered golf course means that we may lose some of the good birds I’d been hoping to start the year with. Humbug! But my gloomy mood has improved slightly today after reading a 5000 word posting by Tommy DeBardeleben on the Arizona-New Mexico birding list serve claiming a Maricopa County Big Year record of 303 species (plus Peach-faced Lovebird). Congrats to him! Tommy managed 137 species in Maricopa in January 2010.  With a winter wonderland around me but some out-of-town trips on my agenda, I will set myself the simpler goal of 114 species by the end of January, the number I saw in Arizona in January 2009 during my personal big twitch year.

Birding Limitations

I have been birding for over 30 years and it is a shame that I’m not better at it. My skill level has followed a logistic growth curve which neared its horizontal asymptote a long time ago. I put the blame on two factors: 1) Family Time. The responsibility of being with children at home rather than disappearing every weekend meant that I birded little for a full decade.  I believe it important to give children a love of nature and, of course, at times I took them with me to look at birds. But it is hard to go birding with kids. The weather has to be nice and the birds close enough to be enjoyed. This is better achieved at a local zoo or aquarium than by dragging children out in the cold to look at a distant bird or expecting them to stand quietly until a small bird comes into view for a second or two. 2) My hearing. I suffer from otosclerosis, a hereditary inner ear disease which results in hearing loss. This has not yet affected my everyday life (I don’t wear a hearing aid) but it affects my ability to pick up bird sounds - I simply don’t hear things that others do: I don’t notice a great bird chirping overhead, instead I waste time on a skulking bird whose calls I know but just don’t hear. At some point surgery could take care of the latter problem but for now I will work with what I have. Birding can be enjoyed at many levels. I wish I was a black belt birder; alas I only wear blue.

The Year Ahead

In 2011 I hope to do plenty of birding at the weekend and on my days off. I’m sure there will be some travel too My local birding goals for the year are to see 250 species in Arizona this year and to average better than a state bird per month for the year. My global birding goals are to tally 400 species for the year and to add at least 50 species to my life list.

2011 Birdblog

After following the 2010 Big Year blogs of Bob Ake and Chris Hitt, I have decided to keep an on-line birding diary, or bird blog for 2011. It will look dull in comparison to the two I've followed. I am chained to my office during weekday daylight hours and so have no time to dash out after every interesting sighting unless it waits around until the weekend and is close enough to reach by car. And I don't have the luxury of taking a day off when something shows up. I know exactly what days I must be at work. Another problem, just as terminal, is that although I love my hobby I wish I was better at it!