"What the hell's that doing here?"

 As a beginning birder, I rely heavily on the expertise of others as I am checking species off my list. I have two methods of finding birds, either going on a guided walk with an expert or, the far more unsure but exciting method, chasing a rarity. So far in 2023, I've chased after 3 rare birds in New England, but have yet to find any of them.

The first hunt was for the pink footed goose, appropriate as that was the species that eluded Jack Black's character in 'The Big Year' until the very end of his quest. It's actually becoming a bit more common in the United States, being occasionally seen tucked into flocks of Canada geese, but typically it's a cold weather bird that prefers Eastern Canada and Greenland. While the weather is chilly here, I'll be taking more road trips to where it's been seen around Ellington, CT.

Pink Footed Goose - Photo credit - Connecticut Audubon

The second bird is a bit harder to spot. The yellow breasted chat is about the size of a sparrow and likes to hide in thick brambles, but it has a bright yellow chest to help it stand apart. Normally seen in areas to the south and west of New England, there have been recent sightings at Harkness State Park in Waterford, Connecticut. I joined a guided walk led by the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center of Mystic, and while we saw various sparrows and waterfowl, the chat proved to be elusive. I'll keep this one on my day trip list as well.

Yellow Breasted Chat - Photo credit - Connecticut Audubon

The third and most spectacular of my target species this month was the incredibly rare Steller's Sea-Eagle that has been spotted on the coast of Maine over the last few weeks. There are estimated to be only about 5,000 of these birds in existence, primarily living in Southern Siberia and Northern Japan, but in 2021, a lone SSE was seen in the United States for the first time. With brief appearances in Alaska and Texas, it took up a temporary residence near Bath, Maine at the end of the year and was seen there until the beginning of March 2022, when it migrated up to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland for the summer. The birding world became very excited when 'Stella' returned to Maine this month. Since it was only a 4 hour drive from home, I made the trek, staying over one night in Portland and spending two chilly days outdoors on the hunt. Sadly, while the magnificent bird was spotted, it was never in my view. This my prove to be the most difficult rarity for my Big Year list, but I have hope for some summer trips to Canada so it's not out of the question.

Steller's Sea-Eagle - Photo credit - Matt Felperin

My hunt for rarities may not have been fruitful regarding the target species, but I've seen quite a few common residents with the assistance of experienced birders on their own quests. And that leads me to one of the best parts of birding, which is documented in the film 'The Big Year' - the camaraderie. Sure, there are the occasional arrogant loners who barely speak to others and won't share information, but those are few and far between. The majority of my fellow bird enthusiasts have been friendly, warm and generous. Case in point, the area in which the Steller's Sea-Eagle has been seen most frequently is reached by a narrow dirt road, which became very heavily traveled over the last few weeks. Unseasonably warm temperatures have thawed the area and turned the road into a deeply tracked mud track that eventually was closed to the public to stop the damage. At the suggestion of other birders on Facebook, I started to GoFundMe page to raise money to send to the town in hopes of offsetting some of the road repair expenses that we created in our fervor. I raised over $1500 in three days, with more donations being sent by check straight to the town. It's this type of attitude that gives me hope for our community and makes me glad to be part of it. I hope my Big Year leads me to more wonderful people like this, and perhaps even some deeper friendships, initially created by a shared love of birds.

Species spotted while looking for rarities:

    Mourning Dove

    Northern Cardinal

    Brant

    Canada Goose

    Gadwall

    American Black Duck

    Bufflehead

    Great Cormorant

    Northern Mockingbird

    White-throated Sparrow

    American Crow

    Mallard

    Hooded Merganser

    Common Goldeneye

    Bald Eagle

    Red-tailed Hawk

"I saw a flamingo in the Everglades last week. Got about a thousand mosquito bites, but it was worth it."

Well, no. I've never seen a flamingo in the wild, but I did make a trip to Florida this week. It was to Walt Disney World, which is actually a fabulous place to look for birds. Even with all the theme parks, hotels, parking lots, etc, they have set aside a lot of land as wildlife preserves with natural water features, so it's not unusual to spot ibis hanging around 'it's a small world' or ducks in the moat in front of Cinderella Castle. I love the Connecticut birds I have at home now, but I was happy to see some of the birds I used to spot right in my Tampa backyard. And not a single mosquito bite!

White Ibis

Species spotted:

    White Ibis 

    Mallard

    Common gallinule

    Anhinga

    Great egret

    Black vulture

    American Crow

    Northern Mockingbird

    Common Grackle

    Boat Tailed Grackle    

"I'm doing a Big Year, Dad. Spending the year trying to see as many different species of bird as I can."

 A new year and I'm in a new home in a new state. I moved from Florida back to my home state of Connecticut at the end of 2022, and I was excited to start my new year watching our feeders for winter visitors. I splurged on birdseed infused with cayenne pepper to keep the squirrels away and settled into my cozy blankets to welcome my feathered guests. I was not disappointed.

Eastern Bluebird

House Finch

Dark-Eyed Junco

Downy Woodpecker

White Breasted Nuthatch

Tufted Titmouse

Black Capped Chickadee

Carolina Wren

Species spotted:

    Eastern Bluebird

    Northern Cardinal

    White Breasted Nuthatch

    Black Capped Chickadee

    House Finch

    Downy Woodpecker

    Tufted Titmouse

    American Goldfinch

    Dark Eyed  Junco

    Carolina Wren

    Wild Turkey

"What's A Big Year? I'll let this English guy tell you."

In 2011, the film 'The Big Year' was released in theaters. Starring Jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson, with an amazing array of supporting players, it was loosely based on the true story of three men attempting to break the world record for seeing the greatest number of bird species in North America in a calendar year. I thought it was funny, heartwarming and a little bit inspirational. What a fun thought, being free to follow the birds and live your passion! My husband and I loved watching the birds at our backyard feeder, especially the occasional hummingbirds that would appear in Florida in February. 

Ruby Throated Hummingbird - February 2020 - Lutz, Florida

Two years later, I lost my husband unexpectedly in a car accident, and I found myself trying to reshape my life. We have so little time, and we never know what moment will be our last, shouldn't we be spending it doing what makes us feel happy and fulfilled? I didn't necessarily want to spend all my time watching birds, but I couldn't stand the idea of spending my days in a cubicle or on a phone, sending strangers to places I wanted to see myself. A friend suggested a career as a tour manager, leading groups on trips to various destinations around the world, and I ran with it. I quit my job as a travel agent, got certified as a Tour Manager through the International Tour Management Institute in San Francisco and one month later I was in Alaska, preparing for a summer  of leading cruise ship guests through The Last Frontier

Bald Eagle - June 2017 - Juneau, Alaska 

I started with two summers in Alaska and a few student tours, then got full time work with a major tour company and really started expanding my repertoire. America's National Parks, The Pacific Northwest, California, South Dakota, Iceland, Austria, Germany, Switzerland - I was working in places I had only dreamed of and loving my work. The pandemic upended everything for a couple of years, but I was back nearly full time in 2022, just entirely within the United States. 

As 2023 begins, I find myself more and more interested in the many species of birds I am able to see in my travels. With regular trips from coast to coast from March through December, I get to see a variety that most birders can only dream of. But I'm still very much a beginner, only able to identify the most obvious birds and struggling to see the subtle differences between similar species. So here I am, starting what I am calling A Beginner's Big Year. I hope to learn a lot this year, keep track of everything I can identify in my travels and hopefully spot something rare along the way. I hope you'll join me virtually in my quest to become an accomplished birder and perhaps meet me somewhere along the way. Who knows where the journey will take us!

Burrowing Owl - March 2020 - Wesley Chapel, Florida