Vancouver Big Year

Well, 2018 is here and I finished 2017 with seeing 264 birds in the Metro Vancouver Checklist. I saw one bird in Point Roberts WA which was a Heermann's Gull. Nature Vancouver counts Point Roberts, WA in the Metro Vancouver Checklist; eBird does not. Therefore, according to eBird I ended the year with 263. I don't use eBird so I go by Nature Vancouver. Regardless what checklist you use I have officially beaten the previously held record of 258 (according to eBird, 260 according to Nature Vancouver) by Ilya Povalyaev in 2015. I am the first woman to do so too, which is kinda cool.

I never set out to do a big year it just happened as I like to see as many birds and I chase everything that shows up in the Metro Vancouver Area. This isn't for listing purposes I just find it fun and I truly enjoy seeing these birds over and over again I don't tire of them.

Anyways some big misses for me were mostly due to laziness as I didn't chase them right away. If you don't go right away my motto is you can't complain when it's not there.

There were several Clay-coloured Sparrows and a few Franklin's Gulls around in 2017 that I missed. I was out of town for a Burrowing Owl that showed up as well. That was probably a good thing as I heard the police were called and it suffered harassment.

Anyways so I could have for sure have finished the year with at least 265 and probably 266 but I'm very happy to have ended up with 264.

A few others ended up getting over 250 in Vancouver, which is no easy task. It shows they are almost as crazy as me :).

They were:

Roger Foxall who got 260
Quentin Brown (who declared a Big Year right away) who got 259
Carlo Giovanella who got 255
Keith Riding who got 253

Congrats to them all!

Let's see who who cracks 250 in 2018!! It's already begun as I noticed Jan 1st everyone who lists went out and started collecting the rarities that were still present in 2017. You know what I did? I slept in and then went and laid on a dock and shot some Wood Ducks.

I wouldn't of had it any other way.

Comments

  1. sandy paiementJanuary 5, 2018 at 3:04 PM

    Congratulations, melissa! A wonderful achievement and yay for us girls!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa HaftingJanuary 5, 2018 at 6:56 PM

      Thanks Sandy!! Happy new year hope to see you out there!

      Delete
  2. Mike TabakJanuary 5, 2018 at 8:24 PM

    Congratulations Mel, you played hard and worked hard to achieve your Vancouver big year success.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa HaftingJanuary 6, 2018 at 6:21 PM

      Thank you so much mike been great seeing you out so much this year looking forward to more birding with you in 2018.

      Delete
  3. LonelytravellerJanuary 5, 2018 at 9:21 PM

    Wow what a fantastic achievement, so many birds I can't believe what you've been able to accomplish this year!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. HuiSimJanuary 9, 2018 at 1:49 PM

    Congrats, Mel, on Your Well-Deserved Win!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa HaftingJanuary 10, 2018 at 6:52 PM

      Thanks Hui! not sure i'd call it a win though lol ;)

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Dowitcher Identification

Image
Birders notoriously find it difficult to tell Short-billed and Long-billed Dowitchers apart. I have got a request to do an identification explanation on them so here goes, I hope it will be helpful. Short-billed Dowitchers and Long-billed look so similar. Using their habitat is helpful but not diagnostic. Short-billed Dowitchers tend to prefer Salt water and brackish water and Long-billed Dowitchers tend to prefer fresh water. However, I have OFTEN seen Short-billeds in freshwater and Long-billeds in brackish and salt water. Therefore, DO NOT rely on habitat. Another feature many people will tell you to rely on is spotting on the side of the flanks of Short-billeds and barring on the side of Long-billeds. Usually this is a mark that you can use but it is not always as distinct as you like. I have seen Short-billeds with a barred appearance to the flanks. It is only at the side of the breast where you have to look for this diagnostic feature for the spots on a Short-billed and t
Read more

Hawk Identification Tips from every angle (Sharpie vs Cooper and Red-tailed Subspecies)

Image
I get several questions about the difference between accipiters. The most common ones are between Sharp-shinned Hawks and Cooper's Hawks and between Cooper's Hawks vs Northern Goshawks (to a lesser degree). Next, I get many questions dealing with a certain race of buteos the Western Red-tailed Hawk and Harlan's. So I thought I would do a post on these to help answer those questions. I will deal with Cooper's and Sharpies and not Goshawks because they are much more common here and look much more alike. My friend John Reynolds inspired me to write this up. COOPER'S AND SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS EYE COLOUR - YELLOW OR ORANGE? RED? Normally a juvenile Cooper's hawk has a bright yellow eye and a Juvie Sharpie has a orange eye but some cooper's can have a dull yellow eye that looks a bit orangish. Cooper's Hawks usually only transition to the orange eye colour when they are sub adults, so in good light, it's a very very reliable feature. However you
Read more

STINT IDENTIFICATION

Image
As per request, here are some tips that I hope will be helpful in identifying and differentiating Red-necked Stint from Little Stint. I will also do a brief intro on Long-toed and Temminck's Stint... if you build it they will come right?😉 Red-necked and Little Stints look very much alike in worn breeding plumage. The amount of Red on the face, throat and breast in Red-necked Stint is vary variable). They look even more alike in non-breeding plumage, that is why it is essential to learn structural differences to separate the two. They are similar to Semipalmated Sandpipers as well as Sanderlings. Both species are often confused for Red-necked Stints. Little Stints rarely get confused with Sanderling because they have a hind toe which helps differentiate it from this species. Sanderlings in breeding or worn breeding are usually confused with Red-necked Stints but they are much larger than Red-necked Stints. Let's first start with Bills in this complicated ID proces
Read more

*Updated - The most famous Red-tailed Hawk is eating fish on the ground just like a Bald Eagle!

Image
Update - There are plans in the works to make a documentary film on this young Red-tailed Hawk who thinks he's an Eagle. You can read the latest news about that on CBC HERE . Watch this incredible footage of the little Red-tailed Hawk who grew up in a family of three Eaglets and 2 Bald Eagle Parents. He is imprinted now on Bald Eagles. He looks and acts just like one, as you can see here in the video below. He is standing over a large salmon carcass, just like a Bald Eagle would and he's eating the decaying flesh. Red-tailed Hawks like to eat voles and rabbits etc. not fish! Imprinting is usually irreversible according to raptor expert David Bird. However, I hope it's reversible so that he doesn't attempt to mate with a Bald Eagle, as the Eagle would kill him because it would view him as a Hawk. Eagle expert David Hancock said that the bird will likely starve and get killed by an eagle. He said this possibly can be prevented if someone grabs it and takes it to O
Read more

My First Mother's Day Without My Mother

Image
This is my first Mother’s Day without my mom. I am still deeply affected and afflicted with emotional pain. I took the day off from the RBA to just remember her and honour her. My dad, sister and I visited her grave with a bouquet of flowers. I cried a lot but it gives me a bit of comfort that she now has a head stone that I can touch. I didn't want to leave. I can’t believe it’s been just over 4 months since I lost her. To my Mom: Mom you were so great. You were so loved. I miss you so much today. I wish every day that you were here with Meghan, Dad and I.  I will never be truly happy again until I see you once more. Thank you for being such a wonderful mother. I will never ever forget you. I cannot wait to see you again in Heaven. Since you died in my arms, this is one of the hardest days I have been through without you. Normally I would be taking you out for brunch today, hugging you and telling you how much I loved you. Mom, you watched me take my first breath and I unfortunate
Read more