One of my best years of birding, having surpassed my previous NYS big year total. This year 333. :)
February brought...
Great Grey Owls ( I saw two: one in Massena, one in Keene ). so majestic, and a NYS bird.
Clark's Grebe as a 1st record NYS bird.
Thayers Gull, if only temporarily - Finally get it for the lower 48 and it went poof!
April saw another superbly spectacular trip to Panama with Ian, and joined this time by Arlene. Our guide Euclides once again finding lots of birds and remarkable rarities for us such as Maroon-chested Ground dove and Blue Seedeater. It is quite sublime to recount what we had seen and have significantly more experienced world birders incredulous and giving me an even bigger thrill. My great joy on that trip was spotting a lifer for him: a Connecticut Warbler, which is only the 5th record for that country.
June was when I finally got the notorious one-day-wonder White-winged Dove for NYS. I then spotted another ( or the same bird? ) in August.
July had an exceptionally cooperative White-winged Tern in PA. Much better and closer looks than my lifer, which had also in August, but back in 1993 in DE.
October began the avalanche of rarities as the year wound down. Common Greenshank in NJ was a lifer!
November brought a Corncrake to the beach in my town! So many said: "I never thought I'd see one" and birders were flying in from far and wide. Sadly the bird was struck by a car. I wonder what mayhem would have ensued had it continued being cooperative in its adopted patch of grass and brush along the ocean highway.
The month of December, not wanting to be left out of the ever increasing great birding gifts department, brought a North American first record Mistle Thrush, that despite being 760 miles away, provided Ian, Elizabeth, and myself with a terrific experience.
Phew!
