My First Little Big Year 2014

Monday, December 29, 2014

North Trip!

Our Trip

daddy and I went to look for Rough-legged Hawk and Northern Shrikes. We did not find them but we did see a white pigeon. We were looking at bird feeders in peoples yards for grosbeaks and didn't see any but we did get 1 Pine Siskin!

Checklists

Red Apple Farm, Worcester County, Massachusetts, US

Templeton Development Center, Worcester County, Massachusetts, US

Royalston Town Center, Worcester County, Massachusetts, US

Owen after his lifer Pine Siskin

and Merry Christmas!!!!

Year Birds

275

Pine Siskin

Royalston Town Center

US-MA

24 Dec 2014

Lifers

286

Pine Siskin

Royalston Town Center

US-MA

24 Dec 2014

Monday, December 22, 2014

Redhead Trip!

Our Adventure

Daddy and me were going to try and find some Pine Siskins and we didn't know where to go and we just went to a random spot in Rhode Island or Connecticut so we just went home. Then I went home and grammy came and got me and we went to go get a Redhead. At the Redhead spot grammy and me walked along a trail in the woods. We were looking for the bird in the lake through the scope and we found one Redhead and a couple mallards and some other ducks!

Year Bird

274

Lifer

285

Redhead

Bart's Pond

US-MA

13 Dec 2014

Bart's Pond, Worcester County, Massachusetts, US

Coachlace Pond, Clinton, Worcester County, Massachusetts, US

Redhead

Owen after his lifer Redhead!

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Townsend's Solitaire Trip!

Our Adventure!

Me and Daddy were driving to southern Mass to get the Townsend's Solitaire that was in a cemetery. The weather was rainy and we saw it on top of a tree. Daddy recorded the bird calling. It was a lifer! I also seen a Eurasian Green-winged Teal. Then we drove to a nature area (Allen's Neck) and we were walking in the nature area then we finally saw a Winter Wren! Then we went to the beach and we were looking for a Snowy Owl, but we didn't find it and we walked a lot. We also found no special gulls. Then we were driving out from the beach and we saw a white bird. Then we saw it was a Great Egret!

Checklists
Evergreen Cemetery, Marion, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, US
Allens Pond--Allens Neck Trail (Dartmouth), Bristol County, Massachusetts, US
Gooseberry Neck, Bristol County, Massachusetts, US
Horseneck Beach, Bristol County, Massachusetts, US
Westport River Marsh (Westport), Bristol County, Massachusetts, US

Townsend's Solitaire calling audio

Owen's "lifer" subspecies Eurasian Green-winged Teal

Late Great Egret

Owen's lifer Townsend's Solitaire

Owen after his Eurasian Green-winged Teal "lifer"

Owen after his lifer Townsend's Solitaire

Owen after his lifer Winter Wren!

Year Birds

271	Townsend's Solitaire	Evergreen Cemetery, Marion	US-MA	06 Dec 2014
272	Winter Wren	Allens Pond--Allens Neck Trail (Dartmouth)	US-MA	06 Dec 2014

Lifers

282	Townsend's Solitaire	Evergreen Cemetery, Marion	US-MA	06 Dec 2014
283	Winter Wren	Allens Pond--Allens Neck Trail (Dartmouth)	US-MA	06 Dec 2014

Saturday, November 29, 2014

New York Trip!

Our Adventure

Me, Daddy, Liam and Grammy went to New York and it was like over 3 hours to get there. New York City is the biggest city in the country and I got to see it. When we got to the Cassin's Kingbird spot it was right on a playhouse in a park. The Cassin's Kingbird flew right at daddy and ate bugs around him! I took pictures of the Cassin's Kingbird. After we were done we went to Long Island to look for the Common-Ground Dove. There were Horned Larks and Snow Buntings in groups flying. There was a Merlin trying to catch prey! We didn't get the Common-Ground Dove at first then we went to the Coast Guard station and we got a Marbled Godwit that was with American Oystercatchers! There were loads of Brants everywhere!! We went back to the Ground Dove spot and waited hours and we never saw it! I got two lifers! We also saw a Pine Warbler and a Vesper Sparrow!

Hartford

Manhattan

Checklists
Floyd Bennett Field--Community Gardens, Kings County, New York, US
Jones Beach SP--West End, Nassau County, New York, US
Jones Beach SP--Coast Guard Station, Nassau County, New York, US

Owen's picture of the Cassin's Kingbird

Owen after his lifer Cassin's Kingbird

Manhattan in the backround of where the Cassin's Kingbird is being seen.

Jones Beach West End area

Marbled Godwit

Owen after his lifer Marbled Godwit!

Some other good birds Owen liked seeing at Jones Beach despite no Dove!

Pine Warbler

Vesper Sparrow

Year Birds

269	Cassin's Kingbird	Floyd Bennett Field--Community Gardens	US-NY	28 Nov 2014
270	Marbled Godwit	Jones Beach SP--Coast Guard Station	US-NY	28 Nov 2014

Life Birds

280	Cassin's Kingbird	Floyd Bennett Field--Community Gardens	US-NY	28 Nov 2014
281	Marbled Godwit	Jones Beach SP--Coast Guard Station	US-NY	28 Nov 2014

Thursday, November 27, 2014

King Eider Trip!

Our Adventure

me, daddy, liam and kim went to near Boston to get the King Eider. We went to the King Eider spot and we walked on the longer path and then we went to the end and it wasn't there. I got to run around and play with my little brother. we spent an hour and then we left and went to try and find a Lark Sparrow that was close by. There were loads of dogs and there were big hills. Then I spotted the Lark Sparrow!! I already saw a Lark Sparrow in Connecticut but it was good to get it in Massachusetts! Then we went to the King Eider spot again for one last try as the sun was going down! When we got back to the spot a woman said that the King Eider was back. We ran to the short path at the beach and daddy saw it in the scope and showed me! When we left it was only gonna be 1 hour to get home and it took us 3 hours! Then we went to Mcdonalds!! Happy Thanksgiving!!

Checklists
Stodders Neck, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, US

BHI--Webb Memorial SP, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, US

King Eider

Owen after his lifer King Eider

Kim, Owen and Liam

Boston Traffic....it was just the beginning !

Year Bird

268

King Eider

BHI--Webb Memorial SP

US-MA

25 Nov 2014

Lifer

279

King Eider

BHI--Webb Memorial SP

US-MA

25 Nov 2014

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Lark Sparrow Trip!

Our Trip

Ocean Beach Park, New London County, Connecticut, US

So it was me, daddy, grammy and auntie. we went to Connecticut to go to a marsh area. also there was a beach and water slides and there was a nature walk trail. we went all the way to the end but we didn't find the Lark Sparrow.Then we saw a guy that said the Lark Sparrow was on the path back the other way. So we went back and then daddy pointed out a lighter color bird. and had red on his head and a black spot on his belly so it was a Lark Sparrow! we had to go over a fence to get closer to the Lark sparrow. I took a picture of it! after our trip I went to cooties house for the night!

Owen's photo of the sparrow

Owen after his lifer Lark Sparrow

Year Birds

267

278

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Eared Grebe Trip!!

Me, grampy and grammy were coming from Maine but daddy didn't come and he told us to go try to see the Eared Grebe. When we got there there were a bunch of gulls on the boat ramp. we didn't see the Eared Grebe then a guy drove in with his blue car and he was a birder. he looked in his binoculars and found the Eared Grebe. Grammy looked through the scope and then we found it! Then we got ice cream on the way home!

Eared Grebe!

Owen after his lifer Eared Grebe

Year Bird

266

Lifers

277

Ash-throated Flycatcher dayyyyyyy

We drove down to the same spot we had the Barn Owl earlier this year. Mommy and Liam stayed in the car while daddy and I went to find the bird. We had to walk down path to get to the Ash-throated Flycatcher. This guy walked over and said the bird just flew away. Then we found in the path! it was calling and flycatching!! we couldnt look around more because daddy had to go to work! but we did eat some good pizza afterwards!

Sachuest Point NWR, Newport County, Rhode Island, US Panoramic

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Owen after his lifer Ash-throated Flycatcher!!

Year Bird

265

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Sachuest Point NWR

US-RI

11 Nov 2014

Lifer

277

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Northern Saw-whet Owl Trip

Daddy and me drove to the owl banding place. we got there and they had an owl already banded. I held the saw whet owl . My dad took a picture of me holding it. We heard coyotes and a Great Horned Owl. Before when we went to the owl banding place and we got nothing all night! After we let the owl go it went right into a tree and put its wing up. Then a little bit later it flew off into another tree!

Year Birds

264

Northern Saw-whet Owl

Lookout Rock

US-MA

05 Nov 2014

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Sparrow Search Trip!

Our Adventure

Checklists, clickable
Model Airplane Field, West Bridgewater, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, US
Egypt Lane Ponds (Fairhaven), Bristol County, Massachusetts, US
Hacker St. Marsh, Fairhaven, Bristol County, Massachusetts, US

My dad and I went out to try and find a Lark Sparrow. We didnt find it. There were some other birders there and they didnt see it either. So we took a cool picture of me! Then we went to see if we could find the Common Gallinule and some Nelson's Sparrows. I already have Nelson's sparrows when we were in Maine. It took so many minutes but then the Common Gallinule swam out in the open. it was a lifer for me. we then went to a different spot and walked into the marsh and we saw lots of Nelson's Sparrows! Then we went to lunch and went home. Tomorrow night we are going to do a Northern Saw-whet Owl banding trip!!!! Last year i did it and i got to touch one! it was so cool!!

Owen's cool photo!