Birding

Backyard visitor–Red Bellied Woodpecker

I admit the title “Birder” sounds a little strange to me, as it suggests something more participatory than watching birds. And although I may be a birder, I’m certainly not a twitcher (someone who travels long distances to see birds). I prefer to let them come to me. I am a list maker however, and keeping a list of birds in my special list book is something I enjoy. My bird list contains few rarities–these are just the birds that inhabit the same environs I do. I’ve been keeping a life list for several years now, but throughout 2019 I kept a list of all the birds I saw. Today I sat down and took a final count–there were 75. A few birds that I didn’t quite identify didn’t make it on my list–like the black duck I thought I saw just before Christmas. I figure confirming it over the next few days will give me a jump on the 2020 list.

January 1	Black Capped Chickadees
January 1	Northern Cardinal
January 1	Wild Turkey
January 1	Dark Eyed Junco
January 1	American Gold Finch
January 2	Red Breasted Nuthatch
January 2	White Breasted Nuthatch
January 2	Mourning Dove
January 3	Ringbill Gulls
January 11	Raven
January 14	American Crow
January 14	Red Tail Hawk
January 17	Purple Finch
January 19	Hairy Woodpecker
January 20	Redpoll
January 20	Sharp Shinned Hawk
January 28	Rock Doves
January 29	Pileated Woodpecker
February 7	Blue Jay
February 6	Snowbirds
February 24	European Starlings
February 6	Snowy Owl
March 4	Canada Goose
March 12	Brown Creeper
March 14	Common Grackle
March 17	American Robin
March 17	Red Wind Blackbird
March 18	Turkey Vulture
March 20	Blue Heron
March 20	American Kestrel
March 20	Common Merganzer
March 21	Killdeer
March 23	Mute Swan
May 5	Bald Eagle
May 6	Eastern Bluebird
April 17	Red Headed Woodpecker
April 17	Double Crested Cormorant
April 21	Common Loon
April 21	Osprey
April 21	Yellow Shafted Flicker
April 21	Eastern Phoebe
April 21	Northern Meganzer
April 29	Belted King Fisher
May 6	House Finch
May 11	Tree Swallow
May 14	Cowbird
May 17	Catbird
May 17	Field Sparrow
May 20	Baltimore Oriel
May 19	House Sparrow
May 24	Brown Thrasher
May 26	Bobolink
May 27	Barn Swallow
May 24	Mallard Duck
July 26	Green Heron
June 27	House Wren
June 27	Ruby Throated Hummingbird
July 5	Cedar Waxwings
August 18	Herring Gull
August 18	Yellow Warbler
August 18	Lesser Yellowlegs
August 18	Caspian Tern
August 18	Common Tern
August 18	Dowitcher
August 18	Least Sandpiper
August 18	Semipalmated Sandpiper
August 18	Egret
August 18	Downey Woodpecker
August 19	‎Gallinula
August 19	Willet
August 19	Bairds Sandpiper
August 19	Black Bellied Sandpiper
August 27	Phoebe
October 10	Song Sparrow
October 12	Red Bellied Woodpecker