110/10 Quick Update: Bird #111

111. Killdeer

In the fading light of yesterday afternoon (November 18th), while birding in the northern parish of St. Lucy, I recorded my 111th bird species for the year.  It was a noisy Killdeer (Charadrius vociferous).  Few shorebirds were around, mainly a few  Least (Calidris minutilla) and Semipalmated Sandpipers (Calidris pusilla) so I was surprised when the plover flew in.  This sighting took me past my year's goal of 110 bird species in 110/10 Big Year challenge.

Big 110/10 Big Year Update

Bank Swallow, my 110th local bird species for 2022

Get the bubbly stuff out and let the celebration begin - Today, November 14th, 2022, I Julian E Moore, for the first time ever, saw 110 bird species in Barbados for a calendar year.  The bird that took me to that mark was a Bank Swallow aka Sand Martin (Riparia riparia).  

Barn Swallow

The observation was magical, I was watching a few Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica) on a powerline, when this small, more delicate-looking swallow alight on the powerline and smiled at me, no joke, it looked directly at me, and appeared to smile.  The encounter lasted less than 10 seconds before the bird flew away.  

With a month and a half still to go in 2022, I am excited to see what my end-of-year tally will be as the 110/10 big year nears its end.

110/10 Big Year Update – October

A Black-and-white Warbler one of the lifers

Nine year-birds for October got me back on target. After a poor showing in September, the birds turned up in October for my 110/10 Big Year challenge.  Not only did I see 9 new birds for the year, but 2 of them were lifers. The Photographic side of the challenge continues to lag behind, with only 4 images added.

Summer Tanager lifer number two

The month started encouragingly with year-birds on the first and second, namely a rare White-winged Tern (Chlidonias leucopterus) and Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa haemastica) respectively. An amazing birding weekend at Harrison's Point, St. Lucy on the 15 and 16th landed five more, including two lifers.  The lifers were Summer Tanager (Piranga rubra) and a Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia). 

Blackpoll Warblers

The other birds were - Yellow-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus), Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), and Blackpoll Warblers (Setophaga striata).  The other two sightings for October were ducks, a femaleNorthern Pintail (Anas acuta) among a large flock of Blue-winged Teals (Spatula discors) at the WSR on the 24th, and four Ring-necked Ducks (Aythya collaris) on the 30th, completed my new sightings for October.

Grassland Yellow-Finch, one of the four images

The four new images were that of Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea), Caribbean Elaenia (Elaenia martinica), Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon),  Grassland Yellow-Finch (Sicalis luteola), and Black-bellied Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna autumnalis). See all the images here.

Goals for November

With just two species more needed to reach the target of 110, the hope is to get them both in November.  This is a month that is synonymous with rare birds, especially those from across the Atlantic.  I will definitely be keeping an eye out for them.  The website ebird.org suggested that there is a high probability of seeing a Ruff (Calidris pugnax), Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca), Wilson's Phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor), and Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia).  Both Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala) and Southern Lapwing (Vanellus chilensis), two local species, are still no-shows for the year thus far, I hope they're not extirpated, but that is something I can spend some time with next year.

Two more months for 2022 and two more birds to go, It may seem that the odds are with me but not necessarily so, this is birding and it is not over until the fat bird sings. Let's see if it will be singing for me in the month of November. 

Harrison's Point 2022 - Two Lifers, 5 Yearbirds

I would admit, I felt a bit down when I gave an update on my 110/10 big-year challenge just a few days ago.  I lamented the poor September birding returns and stated that if by month's end and I don't have at least 104 species, the task of reaching the target is next to impossible.  One weekend of birding at Harrison's Point, changed my mood completely.  Here is why.

I saw Yellow-billed Cuckoos on both days

The facility at Harrison's Points (HP) has taken on many faces over time, an American Naval Base, prison facility, and now an Isolation Facility, a key in the island's fight against COVID.   Through all the changes one thing remained consistent - during the month of October, the small wooded area between the Isolation Facility and the Light House is the best place on the island to see migrating songbirds, most notably Blackpoll Warblers (Setophaga striata) and Yellow-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus).  

Bobolink at HP

I visited HP on Saturday 15th, hoping to see both of these species. After walking for just over a mile I got a brief glance of a  Blackpoll Warbler with a caterpillar in its mouth.  A few feet from that location I heard the familiar call of another migrant I was not expecting to see. It took me a few minutes to follow the call but eventually, it drew me to its bearer a Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), my second yearbird for the morning.  The third, presented itself soon after, three of them as a matter of fact, Yellow-billed Cuckoos skipping around in a field of young cassava plants.  Satisfied with my morning I headed home with a smile.

One of the Blackpoll Warblers we saw on Sunday

I had no plans of going birdingt the following day but Dr. John Webster was going to HP and asked if I wanted to accompany him. My son, Jason, also was not  happy that I went to HP without him, and saw 3 birds that he needed for the year. So Sunday morning found the three of us at Harrison Point.   As I  got out of my car, Jason and I saw our first of our five Blackpoll Warblers for the morning.  John arrived just as it disappeared into the woods.   As we prepared to make our trek along the path that leads through the wooded area, John jokingly said "come let's go find a Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)".  That was funny because the last time that bird was recorded on the island was in 1988 at Turners Hall Woods, St. Andrew.  

Summer Tanager was our first lifer for the day 

We were intrigued by the large number of Grey Kingbirds (Tyrannus dominicensis) that were feeding on the seeds of the Black Willow (Capparis cynophallophora) plants just around the first corner on the trail.  Also the tamed nature of the Shiny Cowbirds (Molothrus bonariensis) unflustered by our presents, as their fed on grass seeds about a hand's length away from us, got our attention.  We stopped and had many photographic opportunities.  Suddenly, a yellowish colored bird about the size of the cowbirds appeared on the Black Willow plant.   John and I both took images in an effort to  identify this very active bird.  On seeing its bill color and shape, I thought Summer Tanager (Piranga rubra) and searched  for the species on the Merlin field guide app.  The comparison images helped with the identification but  a screen shot from the rear of the Canon was sent, by Whatsapp,  to our resident expert, Ed Massiah for further confirmation.  

2nd lifer a Black & White Warbler

We continued birding as we awaited his response, with John finally seeing his first Blackpoll Warbler for the morning, and we all saw our first Yellow-billed Cuckoos for the day.  Finally, Ed's confirmation came, our strange bird was indeed a Summer Tanager (Piranga rubra), a lifer for all three of us. (My 151st lifer for Barbados).  About five minutes later we had our second lifer but this one was easier to identify as no other bird has these features - white underparts with a black and white designed upper.  It was a Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)(My 150th lifer for Barbados). This bird was even more difficult than the tanager to photograph as it kept hopping up and down and all around tree trunks and branches but we got a few decent images between the two of us.  I dubbed John the bird whisper for calling this iconic bird to HP.   

We searched in vain for Bobolinks but we did not find any of them.

For that weekend I saw 28 species of birds, which included 2 lifers - Summer Tanager (Piranga rubra) and a Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia).  These along with Yellow-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus), Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus)  Blackpoll Warblers (Setophaga striata) took my 110/10 count to 106 species, just 4 short of my goal.  Can you guess where I will be birding this weekend?

110/10 Big Year Update – September

Gull-billed Tern one of the two year-birds seen in September

Missed birds in September may have derailed my 110/10 big year.  At the end of that month, the Big Year total was 99 species.  Two species were added during the month- Gull-billed Tern (Gelochelidon nilotica) and Least Tern (Sternula antillarum).  It was not that September was a bad month for birding, no, it was not, but it was because of a series of unfortunate events that caused me to miss seeing about five species.  The other big year challenge, Photo Big Year sat at 60 images.  As I post, it's the middle of October, and  I am still "behind the eight ball" adding just two species for the month.  I am afraid that if the month finishes and I don't have at least 104 species, the task of reaching the target is next to impossible.

A Least Tern was one of the birds seen in September

Goals for the Remainder of October 

That is easy, find more birds! In the second half of October, we will  be looking for species such as - Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), Blackpoll Warblers (Setophaga striata), Buff-breasted Sandpiper (Calidris subruficollis), and Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus). The race is not over as yet, there is still lots of birding to be done before throwing the towel but one thing is for sure - October is going to be the make-or-break month. 

110/10 Big Year Update – August

Red Knot, one of the new birds for the month, Ruddy Turnstone in the background

I had a fairly good month of birding in August.  Five species were added to the 110/10 Big Year list, closing the month with ninety-seven species.  The five additions were White-rumped Sandpiper - Calidris fuscicollis ⁹³, Bridled Tern - Onychoprion anaethetus⁹⁴, Red Knot - Calidris canutus⁹⁵, Cliff Swallow - Petrochelidon pyrrhonota⁹⁶, and Ruddy Duck - Oxyura jamaicensis. 

This image of an American coot was one of the new image additions 

In the image section of the challenge, the Photo Big Year, I am still very far behind even after reaching 50 photographed species.  The goal must be to step up the images if I am going to reach my goal of 100 species.

Goals for September

Shoot, shoot, shoot is my motto for September because with just 50 species with 4 months to go I will need to add at least 13 images per month to reach the 100 photographed species. That is some task for a busy person like myself but will go for it.   The average for the 110/10 is 4 species a month and ebird.org suggested I be on the lookout for these new birds during the month:

• Gull-billed Tern   Gelochelidon nilotica
• Upland Sandpiper Bartramia longicauda
• Least Tern Sternula antillarum
• Buff-breasted Sandpiper Calidris subruficollis
• Bank Swallow Riparia riparia

Of course, I am still missing the Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala) that is on the top of my list. So let’s see what type of birding month September will be.

110/10 Big Year Update – May, June and July

84. Fulvous Whistling-Duck

I have not updated the 110/10 Big Year or the 2022 Photographic Big Year since the end of April.  At that point, I saw 83 species and was way behind in the photo challenge only displaying 20 images.  In the three months since then, a few more birds were added to both groups, closing July with  92 species in the big year and still a bit behind in the photo big year with 36 images.

Three species were added in May. There were the rare Fulvous Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna bicolor) ⁸⁴ and Striated Heron (Butorides striata) ⁸⁵ and one of the few species that migrate here to nest, Black Swifts (Cypseloides niger) ⁸⁶.

89. Roseate Tern 

Three more species were added in June.  The elusive Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) ⁸⁷ was finally bagged on the Ermy Bourne Highway, Saint Joseph, while my 150^th lifer, a Red-footed Booby (Sula sula) ⁸⁸ was seem along the same stretch of road seven days later.  The last bird recorded during the month of June was a Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) ⁸⁹ at Oistins, Christ Church. I thought I landed what is becoming my nemesis bird for the year, a Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala). Still, thanks to a heads up from a birding expert on the Birds of Barbados Facebook group, Ed Massiah,  I reexamine the image and found the bird in question to be a hybrid, Orange-winged X Yellow-crowned.

91. Collared Plover

In July the trend of three additions continued, this time three rare birds were added, two early in the month and one later. The two, a Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)⁹⁰ and Collared Plover (Charadrius collaris)⁹¹ seen earlier in the month were both logged  on the same day, the 8^th, both in the parish of St. Lucy, both shorebirds but at the opposite end of the shorebird size spectrum. With the plover very small and the stilt tall and lanky.  My final entry on the 110/10 was a Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis)⁹² seen on a buoy at Oistins, Christ Church. 

Goals for August

As we enter the busy end of the year, fall migration, birds will be coming fast and furious.  High on my to-see list for most of the year was Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala) and the search will continue.  On the ebird.org Target list for the month my objective would be the White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis), Southern Lapwing (Vanellus chilensis), and Wilson's Plover (Charadrius wilsonia).  With 18 species to go in 5 months, I must admit I am feeling a bit of pressure, especially on the photo side of the challenge but let us see how it goes in August. 

110/10 Big Year Update – March

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

Five year-birds, four images equal a good month of March. Those five birds took the 110/10 big year tally at the end of March to 80 species. The five birds were:

• Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva) which I saw on the 2^nd
• Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) was on the 3^rd;
• Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri) flew in on the 9^th
• Gray Heron (Ardea cinerea) at Tappy Pond, St. John on the 15^th
• Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) at Oistins on the 19^th

I am placing more effort into quickly increasing the number of photographs for the Photo-Big Year and was able to add a few during the month, my favorite being that of a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) at Oistins. This bird was very cooperative allowing me to capture not only stills but also video.

Goals for April

Scarlet Tanager photographed April 2015 

Spring migration is happening, even though not as noticeable as the fall migration it can produce a few eye-popping birds.  One such bird is the Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea), a fiery red bird with a patch of black on the wings, that bird will be on my radar.  Much easier birds to see will be Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala), even though it eluded me thus far, and Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica).  Ebird’s Target Species tool is also suggesting I also look for Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) and Willet (Tringa semipalmata). My target in April is four or more species for the Big Year but I am way behind in the Photo Big Year so 10+. Let's see how that goes. 

110/10 Big Year Update - March 3rd Week

Last week was a good week of birding for the 110/10 Big YearChallenge.  It ended with two new year-birds, both rare to the island, and a couple of decent images.  The first year-bird came early in the week when I paid a brief visit to Tappy Pond, St. John. 

Grey Heron

It was a location I normally would not stop at because the deep irrigation pond there seldom attracted any birds of note, but on this occasion, I did and was rewarded with a Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)^(#79), the old world equivalent to the Great Blue Heron (Ardea Herodias). These birds can prove difficult to separate but I took my reference from the color of the thighs, which are brownish on the Great Blue, and pale, like the thighs of this bird, on the Greys.

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

The second bird was much easier to identify, it was an adult Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) ^(#80) I saw it on a bright sunny morning at Oistins, Christ Church on the 19^th.  One of the photographs of that bird became my 8^th image in the Photo-challenge 2022 along with a male Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) at number 7.

Shiny Cowbird

Thus far for Mach, 5 new species were added. With another twelve days to go, I will hope for at least 2 more species. Let’s see how that goes.

110/10 Big Year Update: February

Caribbean Martin

I was very busy during the month of February and was not able to do a lot of birding.  This was reflected in my month’s tally for the 110/10 Big Year, only adding two species ending the month with 75 bird species.  The first-year bird came in the first half of the month, a Caribbean Martin (Progne dominicensis), while the second bird was American Wigeon (Mareca Americana).  Two photographs were added to the Photo Challenge finishing the month with 5 images.  I have a lot of work to do. I will be playing catchup during the month of March. Let see how that goes.

110/10 Big Year Update: 1st 2 weeks of February

After a very active January, the first two weeks of February were really slow birding.  I did not do much birding, to be honest, and only add one more species, Caribbean Martin (Progne dominicensis) to the 110/10 Big Year list.

The Goal for Next Two Weeks

Two rare birds were reported in the last two weeks. A Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens) by the Belleplaine Bridge, Belleplaine St. Andrew reported by Ian Glaves a visitor from the UK on the Birds of Barbados, Facebook Group.  The second bird, Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus), was also seen by a visitor, this time at the Hilton, Needham's Point St Michael.  This was the same location the first sighting of this species on the island was made in 2016. So both birds are on my list.   A few feasible species that ebird February target list suggested were Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica, Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala), and Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) will also be on my radar.  So on to the second week of February. 

110/10 Big Year Update

Lifer 147, Year 70 - Baltimore Oriole

January 2022 was the best month of birding I have ever had on this little rock, EVER! It was simply awesome right down to the last day.  Look at these stats, 73 species seen for the month, a new personal record, 4 lifers, tons of rare and mega rare birds. let’s first look at what happened in the last week of January.

Final Week

In the final week of January, I saw five year-birds, with two, which included a lifer, on the very last day of the month.  On Sunday 23rd, I birded with my son, who is also doing a big year, in the south and east of the island.  The bird he really wanted to see was the Northern Parula (Setophaga Americana) at Graeme Hall, which would have been a lifer for him.  After not seeing it we continued birding the areas along the south coast slowly moving on to the east coast, with him collecting a few year-birds of his own along the way.  Of course, these were birds I have already seen until we got to Woodbourne Shorebird Refuge (WSR) to see four Lesser Scaups (Aythya affinis) that were there from late last year. 

#69 - Northern Shoveler

It was there that I saw my first new bird for the week a Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata).  Surprisingly I only noticed this very unique duck while examining the photographs taken on the day.   Bird Number 70 came on the 26^th and it was a shocker. Happily unlike my previous shocker for the year, the yet-to-be-identified blurry image of a warbler at Turners Hall Woods, I was able to capture a few serviceable images of this bird, a beautiful male Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) at Chimborazo St. Joseph.  Later that afternoon I got one of my targeted birds for the week a Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus).  This male was hunting for bats over the Scotland District valley bordering St. Thomas, St. Joseph, and St. Andrew. Then on the very last day of the month, I added Orange-winged Parrot

Lifer 148, Year 73 - Cape May Warbler

(Amazona amazonica) and Barbados lifer #148, a Cape May Warbler (Setophaga tigrina). The latter was first seen by John Webster at the Graeme Hall Swamp on January 23rd.

February's Goals

I would like more lifers! January has spoiled me into thinking 150+ lifers is possible by year-end.  In February, finding the identity of the blurred bird in the image from Turner Hall will be a priority, also birding Graeme Hall and other wooded areas for songbirds and other migrants. Caribbean Martin (Progne dominicensis) is just one of the forty-four species ebird.org Target Species highlighted for the month.  About five of those birds, like the above mentioned, the odds of seeing them are very high, 70 – 100%, another 15 about 10 -30% while the most of them lie between 0 – 5% chance of seeing.  Let’s see if the trend started in January continues as we enter the 2^nd month of the 110/10 Big Year.

110/10 Big Year Update: 2nd Week of January

Week two of 110/10, my 2022 big year challenge was very productive.  I reached most of the goals set for the week and also added a few of the more common species ebird.org target list highlighted I needed.  After adding 11 species, my tally at the end of the second week of the year stands at 64, a new high for January.  My previous best was 61 in 2019 and 2020.  Here is how the week went.

Caribbean Elaenia

I collected a few common species while traveling around the island on Tuesday 11th. A singing Black-whiskered Vireo (Vireo altiloquus) in the Black Rock, St. Michael area, and a Caribbean Elaenia (Elaenia martinica) feeding on pittosporum berries from a hedge in a carpark. Then on my way home from work, I stopped at Pile Bay and was rewarded with a lone Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster) sitting on a yellow buoy far out to sea.

 Glossy Ibis 

I visited the north on Friday afternoon, with my son who is also doing a big year.  We both got the long stay rarity, the Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) and Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes), my other targeted bird for the north, but was unable to locate the Fulvous Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna bicolor), which was last seen on December 6^th.  From that trip, I also added Short-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus), American Golden-Plover (Pluvialis dominica) Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), and a Sora (Porzana Carolina).

Magnolia Warbler

Saturday was Turners Hall Woods with the tedious task of searching for wintering wood warblers.  While it is a difficult place to bird, it provides the best opportunity of seeing these migratory warblers.  The downside is that it is dark, very difficult for photography, the birds are small and move around very quickly, and tend to stay at the top of the trees.  It also involves hiking for over a mile over uneven, slippery terrains, navigating fallen trees and deep water trenches quarried by fast-moving water of torrent rains pass, extreme birding for sure.  I got the two warbler species I was targeting in the woods, both rated as rare for the island, American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) and the beautiful Magnolia Warbler Setophaga magnolia*). 

??

I saw and photographed a bird, a warbler, I was unable to identify at first glance, and sadly the image quality was so poor that thus far it identity is still up in the air. These were my last additions for the week.

Photo Big Year

Masked Duck

The Photo Big Year is finally on its way with two images, a Masked Duck (Nomonyx dominicus) and a Green-throated Carib (Eulampis holosericeus).  More images are on their way so stay tuned.

This Weeks Goals

I know the weeks of adding 10+ even 5+ species are just about done as most of the more common birds are accounted for, with just a few exceptions – the parrots and Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus).  I will continue my search for wood-warblers mostly at Graeme Hall, not sure I can make it back to Turners Hall this month. Fulvous Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna bicolor), and our missing Snail Kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) will also be on my radar. 

I am happy with the start of the 110/10 but have a lot of work to do with the photo big year. So Stay Tuned!

*correct was made to the post on January 21,2022, that the bird I  identified as Prothonotary Warbler was later correctly identified as a Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)

110/10 Big Year Update: 1st Week of January

At the end of the first week of my 110 for 10 (110/10) 2022 birding big year I have seen a mixed bag of birds. One lifer, a few rare birds, and lots of local birds, all of this in birding just in the southern and south-easterly parishes. Thus far my checklist stands at 53 species but because of technical difficulties – no images have been posted for the photo challenge.

The Lifer

Northern Parula

Adding a new bird to one's life list is always a big deal, but it is nothing to compare to getting a lifer, in the first week of a big year, it’s an amazing feeling. The bird that gave me that wonderful feeling was a Northern Parula (Setophaga americana) I saw it, my 145th Barbados lifer, at the Graeme Hall Swamp on the 3^rd. It gave me hope for the remainder of the year.

The Rare Birds

Along with the Northern Parula (Setophaga americana) I saw three other rare birds:

Purple Gallinule

• A juvenile Purple Gallinule (Porphyrio martinica) at Bayfield
• Tricolored Heron (Egretta tricolor) also in the parish of St. Philip and a

  

  Lesser Black-backed Gull

• Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) that flew right over my car while parking at Carlisle Bay, Bridgetown.

Goals for this Week

My goal for this week is to get into the North for Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus), Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes), and Fulvous Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna bicolor).  In the south, I will continue my search for wintering warblers at Graeme Hall Swamp.  Other than that Ebird Target Species said there are 23 species I have over a 2% chance of seeing in January.  I am taking those odds and seeing as many of those birds as I can this week.

I hope everyone will have a good and safe week, birding-wise and otherwise.

110 for 10

Common Gallinule my spark bird

For those cricket lovers, don’t panic, this is not the latest cricket score from our beloved West Indies Cricket team, but it is my goal for 2022.  It was on March 12^th, 2012, while on a family outing at Cherry Tree Hill, St. Peter, I saw my spark bird, a Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata) just outside of the gates of the world-famous St. Nicholas Abby.  2022 will be my 10^th year of birding and to celebrate it, I will be striving to reach 110 species, hence 110 for 10.   I will also try to photograph at least 100 species along the way to turn into a photobook at the end of the year as a keepsake.  If all goes to plan, I should get a major lens upgrade during the year which should help in this venture.

You can be on the lookout for weekly updates, photographs and maybe even videos.  Both challenges will have their own page on the blog, you can also join our Twitter page for live updates.  

Here is hoping you all have a wonderful 2022 birding wised and other wise.