Category Archives: Bird-a-Day Challenge

I ended my 2019 Bird-a-Day Challenge on Thursday, May 16th, when I didn’t find a new bird to add to my list. I’m out after 135 days, which is better than my last try, 127 days in 2017. I didn’t come close to my record of 154 days in 2015 (I also played in 2014, 2013, 2012, and 2011).

JANUARY
This year I started with the advantage of being overseas. I added my first seven birds in France and the Netherlands. And then I was almost out on January 8th! Our flight home from Amsterdam was to have a long layover in Dublin and I expected to get a final easy European bird there before the flight home. Our Aer Lingus flight was cancelled, though, and we were re-routed through Atlanta. I didn’t see any birds on the way to the airport in the morning (I honestly wasn’t looking). During our layover at Atlanta I stood by the terminal window hoping for a House Sparrow or Rock Dove; I scanned the skies for vultures but I saw nothing. We arrived in Orlando as the sun was going down. Arthur pointed out an Anhinga in a pond when we took the airport shuttle so I could continue the challenge.

The two best birds of January were both found at Douglas Stenstrom Bridge over the St. Johns River at the Seminole/Volusia County border. There had been reports of Snail Kites at this location. I usually bike out there so any birds listed will be on my Green List. Arthur really wanted to see the kites, though, so we drove out there on a Wednesday morning. We saw several Snail Kites, which were actually a life bird for both of us! Later in the week I made the journey over on my bike. I got the kites and my other targets for the location (Purple Gallinule, Eastern Meadowlark). As I was leaving I was absolutely shocked to see a Crested Caracara fly right over my head! This was my most-wanted Volusia Co. bird for some time!

I tried to get out and bird most days in January, but did take three birds from home for the month (Eastern Phoebe, Cedar Waxwing, Sandhill Crane).

FEBRUARY
I didn’t get out birding nearly as much, so a lot of these birds are from home (8!), incidentals during my Thursday volunteer shifts at the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey (3), and other incidentals around town and doing other things. My best bird of the month was probably Painted Bunting. A pair of females visited our feeds for a few weeks; we didn’t have a male in the yard this spring.

MARCH
I didn’t have a goal for the challenge this year going in, but sometime in March I thought it would be great if I could make it to the first week of May, when Arthur and I would visit Fort De Soto on the west side of the state. At this time I compiled a list of remaining “gimme” birds — species I could expect to see with some certainty at my local patch or in my back yard.

Most birds I picked up in March were from typical local birding outings to places like Gemini Springs (9 birds) and other spots I can bike to. March 27th it rained and stormed the entire day and it looked a bit dire for the game until I noticed a pair of Mourning Doves that took shelter in our back yard. My best bird was the Wilson’s Snipe I found in a local residential pond I biked by on my way home from the post office. There was also a Greater Yellowlegs and a Lesser Yellowlegs in the pond; all would have been pretty good to use in the game at that point. When I biked over the next day only the Greater Yellowlegs was there.

APRIL
I started to visit Mead Garden on Thursdays after my volunteer shift at the Center for Birds of Prey. This is a local migrant trap and I hoped I could add some warblers and other songbirds to my list that I might not find locally. While the birding there was pretty good, for the first three weeks I didn’t end up with anything spectacular to use. In fact, one day after Mead Garden I went shopping at Aldi and ended up using a parking lot Brown-headed Cowbird for the day instead of anything I saw at Mead. My best bird of the month came the following week when I found a Yellow-billed Cuckoo lurking at Mead Garden after an extremely quiet and frustrating migrant-free walk. I was glad to get out of April using just two birds from home (Great Crested Flycatcher and Northern Cardinal).

MAY
I only lasted two weeks in May. My “gimme” list of birds was down to just 11 species. I was glad to have made it to Fort De Soto, where I added Magnificent Frigatebird, Black Tern, and Eastern Kingbird to my list. I finished with Eastern Towhee, virtually guaranteed and my target during my visit to Lyonia Preserve in Deltona.

I left the game with a lot of easy birds still available, but never chosen on the right day. I was somewhat shocked to discover I hadn’t used some very easy species like Red-tailed Hawk, Barn Swallow, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mottled Duck, and Eastern Bluebird. I know virtually guaranteed spots for some, like Barn Swallow and Eastern Bluebird, but I elected not to make a special drive just to stay in the game another day. I also always have a lot of really easy seabirds left that I never get to use since we don’t visit the coast all that often. So Brown Pelican, Laughing Gull, Royal Tern, Ruddy Turnstone, and Willet also didn’t make the list this year. With a lot of extra driving around I could likely have stayed in the game for at least two more weeks without a lot of serious birding effort. Just driving.

As summer heats up here in central Florida I expect I’ll be birding a bit less. My running club has a summer challenge that should take up more of my free time (as long as I can motivate myself to get out of bed for these early morning runs!). I may keep a June Challenge (my version – all green and including heard-only) list. I will certainly keep up with Fantasy Birding as the year continues. I’m in a few games but I’m not in any to win — it’s just so much fun!

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A bad photo of a B-A-D lifer: Vermilion Flycatcher on February 15

Today is the 100th day of the year. This is the third year in a row I have made it at least this far in the Bird-a-Day Challenge. My goal in the past was simply to improve upon the previous year’s total. This year my goal is a bit less ambitious, because soon I will be traveling somewhere where there are no birds! I will be out of the game before the end of April, probably by the 27th (17 days!).

This exact bird’s second B-A-D appearance: Lesser Black-backed Gull on January 25

Knowing I don’t have a chance to beat last year’s record has made my strategy this year much simpler. I’ve certainly fretted less about using up easy birds early in the challenge. It helped that I got some pretty good birds in our yard: Painted Bunting on January 14; Ovenbird on January 29; House Finch on March 20.

A B-A-D staple: Florida Scrub-Jay on March 23

Even so, picking out a bird each day still makes me think about things like the timing of migration and species abundance on a regular basis. Doing this for the last few years has been a great exercise in learning local birds in my new home state.

Best B-A-D of the year so far: Hooded Warbler on March 31

And again it’s been a lot of fun! I am already looking forward to playing in 2015, with a target date to beat. 🙂

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Today is the 100th day of the year, and I am still alive in the Bird-a-Day Challenge! But I am fading fast…

Last week Arthur and I bought a house. We got the keys late Tuesday and have been busy with it every day since. Moving stuff, cleaning everything, little repair jobs, meeting contractors, and trying to keep up at least a little bit with work has made keeping up with the challenge extremely difficult. There’s not much time to gaze at the back yard feeders at length, let alone go out birding.

15-MAR: Brown Thrasher | DeBary, Volusia Co. FL

Since my last update on March 13th I have added 28 birds. Of these, an alarming number came from the back yard (some at the new house, some at the old house): Downy Woodpecker; Mourning Dove; Fish Crow; Blue Jay; Great Crested Flycatcher; Tufted Titmouse; and Red-bellied Woodpecker. A further five were added from various spots in DeBary as we have been running around shopping and doing house-related errands: Brown Thrasher; Pileated Woodpecker; European Starling; White Ibis; and today’s House Sparrow in the parking lot at the grocery store.

25-MAR: Swallow-tailed Kite | Gemini Springs, Volusia Co. FL

I did sneak out to Gemini Springs a bit, especially before last week, where I got 8 species. Most were expected birds: Snowy Egret; American Crow; American Coot; and Black-necked Stilt. The American Redstart I found on April 1st was my first of the year (FOY). I also had my FOY Indigo Bunting that morning and had a hard time picking which of those to use.

26-MAR: Black-crowned Night-Heron | Gemini Springs, Volusia Co. FL

Swallow-tailed Kite is pretty common down the Spring-to-spring Trail towards Lake Monroe, so seeing one at Gemini Springs was not totally unexpected but a very pleasant surprise. (I added Sharp-shinned Hawk on a bike ride along the Spring-to-spring Trail on March 24th.) On March 26th I laughed out loud when I saw a Black-crowned Night-Heron standing across from the fishing pier — “yippee!” — BCNH is a very good bird for Gemini Springs. The very next day I was extremely surprised to see my first ever Lesser Scaup in the park, swimming in the spring run behind the dam.

27-MAR: Lesser Scaup | Gemini Springs, Volusia Co. FL

On March 14th I stopped at Lake Monroe on the way home from Audubon Center for Birds of Prey. There I found my best bird of the day, a Common Yellowthroat. On March 21st I had the great opportunity to release a pair of Short-tailed Hawks near to where I live. The birds were picked up following a territory fight and brought to the Audubon Center for rehabilitation. Fully healed, both birds were released close to where they were first found. And the local Chimney Swifts returned to the Audubon Center last week, so they were my species of the day for April 4th.

21-MAR: Short-tailed Hawk | Seminole Co. FL

Twice in the last 28 days Arthur and I went to Blue Spring State Park to see some special visitors. A cold snap on March 29th meant that the manatees might be back — and they were, probably for the last time this spring. I heard a Red-eyed Vireo for my B-A-D. Then yesterday we went back to Blue Spring to see the fireflies, which are only active for 2-3 weeks each spring. I used another heard-only bird yesterday: my FOY Chuck-will’s-widow.

An outing last month to Disney World got me Purple Martin for March 22 and a stop at Kennedy Space Center on March 19th yielded Roseate Spoonbill.

Prognosis

Now, since it seems like I have been bleeding easy birds of late, I made a list of the birds I can still expect to find as the challenge goes on. There are just nine birds I can expect to find in my yard or on a local errand run. There are another 10 I would expect to see on a typical day at Gemini Springs. Just getting out there is a problem these days, though. Another 4 species would be easy peasy if I could just get to where they are. See my lists below and fear for my future in the challenge when you see them get checked off! And wish me luck as we prepare the house not only for ourselves, but for house guests – nonstop from April 18 to May 6! I seriously doubt I’ll stay in the challenge through April. Surpassing or even reaching my total from last year is extremely unlikely. But I’ll certainly try!!

Remaining birds expected to see or hear (estimated % of the time) at home or locally:
(100%) Carolina Wren
(100%) Northern Cardinal
(100%) Northern Mockingbird
(100%) Osprey
(100%) Turkey Vulture
(95%) Black Vulture
(95%) Carolina Chickadee
(90%) Northern Parula
(80%) Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Remaining birds expected to see or hear on a normal day at Gemini Springs:
(100%) Boat-tailed Grackle
(100%) Common Gallinule
(100%) Red-shouldered Hawk
(90%) Great Blue Heron
(90%) Red-winged Blackbird
(90%) Tricolored Heron
(85%) Great Egret
(75%) Anhinga
(75%) Barred Owl
(75%) Barn Swallow

Remaining special birds:
(100%) Eastern Towhee (at Lyonia Preserve)
(100%) Rock Pigeon (I-4 in Longwood)
(95%) Florida Scrub-Jay (at Lyonia Preserve)
(85%) Loggerhead Shrike (local neighborhood)

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Today is the 72nd day of the year. Last year I made it through 144 days in the Bird-a-Day Challenge, so I’m just shy of halfway to making my goal (to beat last year’s total). The halfway point seems like a good time for me to share some more awful photos and a little progress update.

As in my last update, 10 birds of the most recent bunch came from Gemini Springs: Blue-winged Teal; Fox Sparrow; Tree Swallow; Pine Warbler; Glossy Ibis; Northern Harrier; Bald Eagle; Marsh Wren; White-eyed Vireo; and today’s Double-crested Cormorant.

06-MAR: Northern Harrier showing white rump very nicely! | Gemini Springs, Volusia Co. FL

Two birds were found at Epcot: Ring-billed Gull and Green Heron. Two birds came from Trout Lake, a rather dry wetland along I4 in Orange City: Wood Stork and Least Sandpiper.

I only went to the coast with Arthur twice in this last bunch, where I used Dunlin on February 20th, and a famous Lesser Black-backed Gull on February 27th (more on this bird in a future post).

27-FEB: Lesser Black-backed Gull | Frank Rendon Park, Daytona Beach Shores, Volusia Co. FL

On a really nice six-mile walk at Lake Woodruff NWR on March 10th I used one of the first birds I saw as I began my walk: Sedge Wren.

10-MAR: Sedge Wren | Lake Woodruff NWR, Volusia Co. FL

I only used one yard bird: Common Grackle; the rest of the birds came from various locations during routine errands or making stops between errands or other outings. In this way I used a surprise inland Brown Pelican on a volunteer day at Audubon Center for Birds of Prey; a Cattle Egret between house viewings in DeBary; one of the many abundant Savannah Sparrows at Audubon Park during a pit stop on the way home on February 28th; and a Bonaparte’s Gull at Merritt Island NWR before viewing the SpaceX launch from nearby Playalinda Beach.

01-MAR: Bonaparte’s Gull | Peacock’s Pocket, Merritt Island NWR, Brevard Co. FL

The next couple of weeks should be fine, but I’m expecting some major (but very welcome! and very good!) disruptions to my normal routine coming up in April, including some highly anticipated visits from a good friend and my in-laws. Eek! For now though, I’m halfway there! Onward to the next 72!

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14-JAN: Painted Bunting | our back yard in DeBary, Volusia Co. FL

I had hoped to share frequent updates and photos from the Bird-A-Day challenge this year, but several days of gloomy weather, a new camera I’m not sure of, and a generally unlucky start to the birding year have all conspired against me.

That said, I’ve survived the first two weeks plus of the challenge, even if I don’t have fine photos or exciting stories to show for it.

After a fun night ringing in the new year at Epcot, Arthur and I got a late start on January 1st. We hit a couple of birding spots on our way to our second annual New Year’s Day dip into the Atlantic Ocean. I ended up with just 39 birds at the end of the day; for my first B-A-D I picked a species I didn’t use at all last year: American White Pelican.

The week rounded out with birds found in our back yard (Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and American Robin), one at my volunteer gig (Wood Duck), at Gemini Springs (Wilson’s Snipe and Blue-headed Vireo), and around town (Wild Turkey). The robin and Wood Duck were a bit painful to cross off, but they were the besties for their days.

Week two started off with a bird at my local patch (Ruby-crowned Kinglet). Last year I got 41 out of 144 birds at Gemini Springs, a pace I expect to continue into this year.

09-JAN: Purple Sandpiper | Lighthouse Point Park, Ponce Inlet, Volusia Co. FL

Arthur volunteers in Ponce Inlet each week, and I tag along when I’m able. While he heads to his good work, I take off to watch birds at spots along the coast. The car’s going there anyway, ya know?

In this way I was able to use Purple Sandpiper on the 9th and Red-breasted Merganser a week later. Three of the remaining birds of week two were found in our back yard (Baltimore Oriole, American Goldfinch, and Painted Bunting). Three weeks ago I wouldn’t have dreamed of using American Goldfinch as my B-A-D so soon, but about ten days ago our goldfinches scattered and we only see one or two a day, if any.

13-JAN: American Kestrel | Brickyard Slough, Volusia Co. FL

An American Kestrel at Brickyard Slough, a Hooded Merganser at Magic Kingdom, an Orange-crowned Warbler at Gemini Springs, and a Little Blue Heron round out the first 17 days of the challenge.

11-JAN: Hooded Mergansers | Magic Kingdom, Orange Co. FL | photo by Arthur de Wolf

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Well, I’m getting down to my last gasps in the Bird-a-Day Challenge. I am really happy to have made it to today, though, since my last mini-goal was to bring the game to Chicago. Tomorrow I’ll fly up north to visit my family and friends… and pick up seven new birds. 🙂

In this last batch, Gemini Springs came through with 8 of 18 birds. Unfortunately, all of these were expected species, except for the surprise – though not super-rare – Cooper’s Hawk I saw as I was leaving the park on April 30.

Downy Woodpecker at Gemini Springs | 29 April 2012

Of course I took advantage of trips outside of DeBary to pick up birds. A quick stop on the way to Turtle Day at the Marine Science Center yielded American Oystercatcher for April 21st. On May 4th, Arthur and I went out to Merritt Island to watch an Atlas V rocket launch – and a quick spin around Black Point Wildlife Drive gave me a few special birds to choose from. I picked Least Sandpiper.

Least Sandpipers at Merritt Island | 04 May 2012

We drove out to Lake Monroe Conservation Area on the night of the “super moon,” May 5th. A Florida listserv post suggesting that birders go out and listen for Chuck-will’s-widows was all the encouragement I needed. I checked eBird for local sightings, but came up empty. Not wanting to drive too far, I checked Google Maps and thought the Kratzert Tract of Lake Monroe C.A. looked promising. Score! We ended up hearing at least three Chucks, plus a bonus Barred Owl.

I’m hoping for lots of birds to choose from in the coming week. White-crowned Sparrows, White-breasted Nuthatches, and Black-capped Chickadees are regular visitors to my parents’ feeders (and unlikely in central Florida). Other possible challenge birds I expect to find include Eastern Wood-Pewee, Canada Goose, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Bobolink, and Mute Swan. And warblers! Oh, how I miss warblers! I’ve seen a few this spring, but not enough to satisfy. Hope to remedy that in the coming days! Bring it on.

American RedSTART at Gemini Springs | 27 April 2012

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