It starts this Friday and runs through Monday. Anyone can do it. Here is a good description of how and why: GBBC is an annual 4 day event that involves birders of all ages to count birds across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning birders to experts. The count is used to look at bird populations (declines, changes), migration times, bird diseases, differences in bird diversity in cities vs. suburban, rural, and natural areas. Participants count birds anywhere for as little or as long as they wish during the four day period. You tally the highest number of birds of each species seen together at any one time, and fill out an online checklist at the GBBC website (www.birdsource.org/gbbc). It’s easy. It’s fun. It’s citizen science. It’s part of a greater effort for the benefit of birds.
Saturday
Birding up-river with friends. Lots of birds. The coolest surprise of the day, an up close extended flyover by a Zone-tailed Hawk!
Second sighting ever. By far the best look ever.
I wonder why
We don’t accidently call Henry “Matt” nearly as often as we call Annie “Becky”.
Time
Time for a Northern Pintail picture.
And maybe another.
Graceful, aren’t they? Good looking ducks.
Yard count
There are great birds at locations all around us, but we don’t usually see very many birds in the park. We get doves, mockingbirds and sparrows every day. Maybe we get 6 different kinds of birds. Today was different though. Every time we looked up there was something else flying past. We got 15 species: Flyovers by: Greater White-fronted Goose White-tailed Kite White-tailed Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Crested Caracara Sandhill Crane And the usual suspects: Eurasian Collared-Dove Mourning Dove Inca Dove Ruby-throated Hummingbird Golden-fronted Woodpecker Northern Mockingbird Northern Cardinal Great-tailed Grackle House Sparrow Tonight we met some friends in McAllen to watch Green Parakeets and have Chinese food.