The Big Year: Positives and Negatives

Savannah Sparrow

When I started my "diet" Big Year nearly 8 months ago, I was extremely excited about what my final number would end up being.  I set a goal of 300.  I had no idea what a realistic goal was, but 300 seemed like a good number.  To date, I have 260 birds.  I think 275 is possible before my trip down to Texas at the end of the year.  Nabbing some fall migrants and a possible trip to Whitefish Point would almost guarantee 275.  But...so what?

As my Big Year has progressed from month to month, I have been less and less preoccupied with the number.  In fact, at times I feel it has gotten in the way of truly enjoying the birds.  Before this year I didn't keep great records of my sightings, but when I went out birding I tended to study the birds a lot more.  I spent more time looking at them, really getting to know their quirks and behaviors, and it was a lot of fun!  I'm not saying that I'm not having fun this year.  It's just that sometimes "the list" has, in some ways, taken away from my birding rather than added to it.  An inverse relationship?  Help me out math teachers.  The more birds I add, the less I like listing?  That's sort of how I feel every now and then.

Spotted Sandpiper food.  Yum!

I can't deny, however, that listing birds this year has really motivated me to get out there and see new stuff.  This year I have added 57 birds to my life list.  So many cool experiences with a lot of great people.  Sherrie Duris helped get me my first Short-eared Owl (among other species) at Maumee Bay State Park.  Greg Miller got me that pesky Blue Grosbeak.  Greg Links' time and expertise has been invaluable to me.  Yes he helped me get birds, but his knowledge about those birds was the real gift.  Sherry Plessner, Matt Anderson, Tim Thompson, Tim Haney, Kenn Kaufman, Kimberly Kaufman, Kate Zimmerman, Lulu Lee, Jeff Loughman and numerous other wonderful individuals have made my year so much more than just a test to see how many birds I could see.  I would gladly trade in my list of birds for the list of birder friends I have accumulated over the past 8 months.

A shorebird assortment

So what's next for the final third of the year?  Well lots of stuff.  Today my wife and I will be heading to North Turkeyfoot on the Maumee River.  I feel like this area may be one of the best most under birded places in Northwest Ohio.  I hope we get some fall warblers today.

On Saturday we're headed down to Findlay in search of Buff-breasted Sandpipers.  This is an event tag teamed by Birding Ohio and The Toledo Naturalists' Association.  I'm sure I'll see a lot of friendly faces.  On September 15th, my Aunt Woody and I will be birding Little Cedar Point Wildlife Refuge.  This area is closed to the public, but TNA has permission to get in there every so often.  The event is billed as one in which the daily list of birds could reach 100 species!

Eastern Wood-Pewee

What I really am cautiously looking forward to is a trip to Whitefish Point.  Elissa and I are not sure how possible it will be given the fact that we have two little kiddies, but a trip with just the two of us before she goes back to work sounds pretty good to me.  My wife is my favorite person to take with me birding.  There's a few reasons for this.  Firstly, she is a much better spotter than me.  She sees movement that I simply don't pick up on.  Secondly, she's always asking questions.  At times this has annoyed me (especially when I don't know the answer), but I've always been a curious person too.  Asking the questions forces us to find the answers.  Lastly, she's my best friend (besides Teddy of course..just kidding...sort of).  I'm still puzzled at the fact that someone like me somehow managed to end up with someone like her.  I'm waaaaay out of my league! 


Fall migration is on people, and shorebirds are king!  Get outside and enjoy them while they're still around.  Happy birding!