May 30, 2018, Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, ME

After spending the weekend on Monhegan Island it felt like I hadn't been to my site in a while. It had only been about a week but it felt much longer. Of course, when I got there at about 5:00p, not much had changed since the last time I had been there. The weather today was a bit breezy, sunny, and probably in the mid60s.

I came in from the "backside" along the UNE fields through the knotweed. The first thing that struck me was all of the SENSITIVE FERNS and that the MORROW'S HONEYSUCKLE was all blooming. And the mosquitoes. So many mosquitoes. The CANADIAN MAYFLOWER and EUROPEAN LILY-OF-THE-VALLEY was still in bloom. Overall the general impression of the area was that of a jungle. Everything is green and leafy and it seems thick with plants.

I walked from the back to the front and then back to the bench to sit. I have come to realize that the bench isn't the best place to sit right now because of all of the plants. I am really limited in what I can see from this vantage point. Of course, I'll continue to use it as it is convenient but I'll have to move around a bit more as well.

The WILD GERANIUM was also blooming. I have recently learned that WILD GERANIUM has been used and currently is used as an astringent and hemostatic. Additionally, the NORTHERN BLUE FLAG (Iris versicolor) that I had been watching for a while finally bloomed. The FALSE SOLOMON's SEAL was also blooming, another plant which has many medicinal uses.

There were a couple GRAY SQUIRRELS doing their work, but not a lot of birds. AMERICAN GOLDFINCH, AMERICAN ROBIN, and AMERICAN REDSTART being the most numerous birds I found while at the site. I startled one GREEN FROG and watched a bumblebee doing its work, as I sat on the bench.

The female MALLARD and her babies were around. When I first found the babies there were five.

But now there were only two. The other three have gone missing. Presumably, taken by predators.

In those 8 days they have gone from small little balls of fluffy to smaller versions of their mother.

The entire time I was there one of the two MUSKRATs was moving between its den and a grassy area. It would head over to the grassy area and collect as much grass as it could put it its mouth. It would then swim over and disappear in its den. Just a few moments later, it would return to the grass and continue collecting more to take to the den. Later as I was leaving I found another MUSKRAT on the closer side of the pond eating quietly by itself. It was definitely not the first one as I could see both at the same time, the "lazy" one and the "hard-working" one.

As is always the case when I visit the noise pollution was very noticeable. There is a constant drone from the highway which is intermixed with local street noise and UNE noise. It is a remarkable thing to have such a wild seeming location which has a near constant reminder that it is in a city.

After 20 full minutes of observations I headed out towards the "front" or to the UNE road. It was at this point that I noticed the second MUSKRAT.

eBird Checklist, including the entire cemetery

May 31, 2018, Emmons Preserve, Kennebunkport, ME

It had been over a week and a half since I had last checked the vernal pools that I had found at Emmons Preserve, Kennebunkport (previous vernal pool posts). I believed that the small one which was formed in the hole of a fallen tree wasn't going to have any hatched eggs, so I didn't even check it this time. Instead I went to the first one which I felt had the best chance. When I got to it there was absolutely no water in it at all. None. I looked for a while and even got down closer to the "pool" and gently moved some leaves around but there was nothing. There was muddy leaves but they were almost totally dry themselves.

The bugs where still there though. It was super buggy the morning that I was there.

In my final reflection, I'm curious if this pool is a viable location when we experience springs with more rain. It had been a fairly dry season and I can't help but think that had something to do with the pool drying up so quickly and none of the eggs surviving.

eBird checklist

June 15, 2018, Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, ME

I've been trying to get over to the Junk Pond about once a week, but some weeks it hasn't happened. So Friday morning, I didn't have an pressing birds to twitch so I headed over before work. It was noisy with breeding birds, even before I got to the pond. As I was walking in I could hear people talking but I didn't really think anything about it. Then I saw a tent. So I walked around to another vantage and scanned over the pond. The mother MALLARD was out with only one young, who is much larger now. When I first found this duck and her brood there were 6 ducklings, now she is down to one.

I then decided to head over to my usual spot, but to get closer to my spot also meant getting closer to the the tent. As I walked up I heard the tent open and a voice say, "What the f*** are you doing here?"

I replied with a quick, "Going for a walk," and I promptly turned around, as the face in which the voice emanated was looking very friendly. As I was heading back to my car, though I spotted what at the time I thought was a dead rodent, I snapped some quick pictures and kept walking.

Once in the car I called the University of New England security office and informed them of the angry "campers." Later, once I had posted the "rodent" on iNaturalist I was corrected and informed that it was actually a NORTHERN SHORT-TAILED SHREW. I wonder what happened to it. It was the first time that I had seen a shrew, which apparently is related to moles.

Here is my full eBird checklist from the short time that I was there.

The same day that I finished my first bird book of the year I stumbled across a blog asking people to join the author in reading 12 bird books in 2018. Sounds fun, so I'm going to give it a go. Here are the requirements:

At least 12 books, one book per month of 2018
Books must be about birding or birds (a broader topic of the natural world is okay as long as there is a connection with birds or birding)
Field guides don’t count
Choose authors you haven’t read before
At least three must be written by women
At least three must be written by an author from a country (or about a country) you haven’t read about before

I haven't figured out the full list of books that I'm going to read but this is where I'm at right now.

1. The Wonder of Birds: what they tell us about ourselves, the world, and a better future (complete 1/27/2018) by Jim Robbins --- I really loved this book. Each chapter was set up as its own essay about some aspect of birds, their evolution, or their relationships to humans. Many chapters left me wanting to know more and I have already started to dive into the bibliography for further reading.

2. Birding Without Borders: An Obsession, a Quest, and the Biggest Year in the World (completed 2/12/2018) by Noah Stryker --- Great book, which follows some of the highlights of Noah Stryker's World Big Year. He hits on some of the challenges, moments of joy, and amazing world of birds and birders throughout his attempt to see as many birds in one year as possible.

3. The Private Lives of Birds (completed 2/16/2018) by Bridget Stutchbury --- Very interesting book which borders the line between a birding travel log and a scientific paper. Numerous insights into the breeding behaviors of various birds and how humans have impacted and continue to impact those species.

4. The Naturalist's Notebook: An Observation Guide and Five-year Calendar-Journal for Tracking Changes in the Natural World Around You (competed 2/17/2018) by Nathaniel T. Wheelwright and Bernd Heinrick --- Okay so this one isn't really a bird book and it is pretty short but it is packed full of information and tips about keeping a naturalist notebook. It even goes takes it a few steps past just keeping a notebook and talks about experiments one could perform and ways to analyze your data. Not to mentioned that Bernd Heinrick's illustrations are amazing.

5. Ecology of a Cracker Childhood (completed 3/1/2018) by Janisse Ray --- This is the second time that I have read this book. The first time was while I was studying environmental philosophy in college about 10 years ago. I loved the book then and still find that it holds up very well. Then as now I love the mixture of family history and insight with the look at the land upon which they lived and grew. There is a heavy tint of sadness running throughout the book but overall it is clearly a book of love that Ray feels towards her family and the land she grew up in.

6. What the Robin Knows (completed 4/8/2018) by Jon Young --- To be honest, I liked a lot of this book and a lot of the ideas of this book, but I felt that it could have been so much shorter. So much shorter. There was a fair bit of repetition and some of the anecdotes just seemed a little longer than they needed to be. This book would be best as a long paper coupled with an actual field presentation. But since that isn't something we can all have or find, then this book is an okay substitute.

7. The Most Perfect Thing: Inside (and Outside) a Bird's Egg (completed 5/18/2018) by Tim Birkhead --- I enjoyed the combination of history and science which this book provided. It gave me a much better understanding of eggs.

8. North on the Wing: Travels with the Songbird Migration of Spring (completed 5/22/2018) by Bruse M. Beehler --- I enjoyed this book.

9. The Hidden Lives of Owls: The Science and Spirit of Nature's Most Elusive Birds (completed 5/30/2018) by Leigh Calvez --- The story of the Great Gray Owls near the end of the book made the entire thing worth it.

10. Mozart's Starling (completed 6/26/2018) by Lyanda Lynn Haupt --- This book is very well written and gives a fascinating look at a much maligned species.

11. Lost Among the Birds: Accidentally Finding Myself in One Very Big Year (completed 9/6/2018) by Neil Hayward --- I have to admit that I didn't really enjoy this book when I first started it. To be honest, it felt that he was attempting to punch a little bit above his weight. He was attempting to blend together time in a way which seems like it might be cool but wasn't pulled off very well, but as the book went on he backed off and focused more on the nature of his depression and relationships and how birding both helped and hindered him in those areas of his life. It was this, personal introspection which ultimately kept me reading. Overall, as a "birding" book this falls more into personal narrative sprinkled with birds rather than the other way around and therefore was a nice mix in an otherwise bird-focused list of books.

12. Call Collect, Ask for Birdman (completed 10/11/2018) by James Vardaman --- This isn't written all that well, but it is very interesting none-the-less. A historical document of one of the first people to attempt to see 700 birds in one year. While he didn't make it his way of going about it, his strategy team, and ranking of birds by probability of occurrence which is still used in a form today.

13. A Naturalist at Large: The Best Essays of Bernd Heinrich (completed 10/27/2018) by Bernd Heinrich --- This is the 3rd book by him I have read this year and it is fascinating. He does a wonderful job throughout his essays, showing his curiosity and observation skills. Great writer and great fun.

14. Kingbird Highway: The Biggest Year in the Life of an Extreme Birder (completed 11/29/2018) by Kenn Kaufman --- I really enjoyed this one. Particularly with his struggles with listing and simply viewing the birds. I could completely relate to the draw of listing and the draw to just view the birds and what is lost by focusing so much on listing. I'm not sure if gave me any answers to my own questions about listing but it was nice to read someone else's thoughts on the matter.

15. The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century Hardcover (completed 12/6/2018) by Kirk Wallace Johnson --- This is totally fascinating and crazy. Great read and interesting look into the fight between greed and science and how it lead a young fly tyer to rob Tring museum in England of hundreds of bird specimens, which were resold for fly tying.

16 Beaks, Bones and Bird Songs: How the Struggle for Survival Has Shaped Birds and Their Behavior (completed 12/23/2018) by Roger Lederer --- Like an entry level ornithology class, this books covers the basics of why birds are birds, some of their various adaptations, their threats, and their future.

The 5-mile radius patch list. A patch, in birder terms, is basically a favorite birding area or site. I have a number of patch lists, including my yard, Evergreen Cemetery, Capisic Pond and Charles Jordan Road, to name a few. Usually (at least for me) they are a location fairly close to my house which I bird at regularly throughout the year.

A 5-mile patch list is a list of all the birds seen or heard within a 5-mile radius of your home. There are a number of reasons why I like this idea. First, it is contained yet covers enough space to offer some variety. In my case, because I live in Portland, ME I have habitat ranging from forested hills in Westbrook and Falmouth, to city oases of parks and cemeteries, to a couple islands of Casco Bay. Second, I was drawn to the low-carbon footprint of birding a 5-mile radius from your house. It is a struggle I have with birding which still doesn't sit well with me. I enjoy listing and even chasing but I also am aware of the environmental impact of the internal combustion engine. So focusing on a 5-mile radius helps to limit that impact, I hope.

The first step I took in creating my list was drawing a circle around my house. This tool allowed me to do just that. Here is my map. As I mentioned above there is a lot of good habitat within this circle.

Next I went to eBird and looked around to see what shared and personal hotspots I had in the area. There was a lot. In fact, it was a little overwhelming at first. I tried to create the patch from just looking at my locations and adding the ones I thought fit, but it was clear to me that wasn't going to work. So instead I downloaded all of my eBird data as a CSV file and went about the process of editing everything out what wasn't in my radius. I started by sorting by county (luckily my radius is in just one county) and deleting everything not in that county. I then sorted by hotspot and removed all the ones which I was sure didn't fit. Unfortunately, a recent life bird, a Painted Bunting, was just outside of my radius by probably 50 feet.

Next, I took out all of the multiple hits per location so my list was down to about 80 data points. Finally, with my map open in one screen and my hotspot list in the other I weeded it down to 58 hotspots. Note that is 58 spots out of 18,656 data points. At the time I made the list I ended up with 198 species and since that time have added two more to give me 200. With a wonderful Snowy Owl being the 200th bird.

Since having first written this I have added a number of patch birds to this patch, getting me up to 206.

A 5-Mile Radius Patch is simply a birding patch with a 5-Mile Radius centered on your home.

Here is mine centered on my home very close to Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, Maine. I have a number of great birding hotspots in my radius, including the aforementioned Evergreen Cemetery, but also Capisic Pond, Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, River Point Conservation Area, and Mackworth Island.

Here is my list compiled from my eBird entries:

1. Razorbill. Bug Light, South Portland. 16 Jan 2019
2. Lesser Black-back Gull. Presumpscot River, Westbrook. 12 Jan 2019
3. Dickcissel. Finch St, Westbrook. 20 Dec 2018
4. Evening Grosbeak. Falmouth High School, Falmouth. 1 Dec 2018
5. Great Black Hawk. Deering Oaks Park, Portland. 29 Nov 2018
6. Barrow's Goldeneye. Presumpscot River, Westbrook. 18 Nov 2018
7. Nelson's Sparrow. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 13 Oct 2018
8. Black-bellied Plover. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 26 Aug 2018
9. Tennessee Warbler. Hinckley Park, South Portland. 24 May 2018
10. Golden-winged Warbler. Hinckley Park, South Portland. 16 May 2018
11. Bay-breasted Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 15 May 2018
12. White-eyed Vireo. Capisic Pond. 09 May 2018
13. Eastern Whip-poor-will. Evergreen Cemetery. 03 May 2018
14. Glaucous Gull. Portland Fish Pier. 28 Jan 2018
15. Snowy Owl. Portland International Jetport. 11 Jan 2018
16. Clay-colored Sparrow. Gray Rd, Falmouth. 07 Jan 2018
17. Lesser Scaup. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 12 Nov 2017
18. Fork-tailed Flycatcher. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 17 Sep 2017
19. Black Guillemot. Mackworth Island. 09 Sep 2017
20. Cape May Warbler. Mackworth Island 09 Sep 2017
21. Black-billed Cuckoo. River Point Conservation Area. 28 May 2017
22. Alder Flycatcher. Evergreen Cemetery. 27 May 2017
23. Cliff Swallow. Capisic Pond. 09 May 2017
24. Hooded Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 09 May 2017
25. Little Blue Heron. Tidewater Farm. 09 Apr 2017
26. Thick-billed Murre. Portland Fish Pier. 22 Jan 2017
27. Gadwall. Mackworth Causeway. 22 Jan 2017
28. Common Merganser. Presumpscot River, Allen Ave Bridge 14 Jan 2017
29. King Eider. Portland Fish Pier. 23 Dec 2016
30. Rough-legged Hawk. Capisic Pond. 23 Nov 2016
31. Snow Bunting. Thompson Point. 05 Nov 2016
32. Northern Saw-whet Owl. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 27 Oct 2016
33. Common Tern. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 31 Jul 2016
34. Indigo Bunting. Hinckley Park. 26 May 2016
35. Philadelphia Vireo. Evergreen Cemetery. 21 May 2016
36. Prairie Warbler. Duck Pond Rd, Falmouth. 20 May 2016
37. Field Sparrow. Duck Pond Rd, Falmouth. 20 May 2016
38. Least Sandpiper. Capisic Pond. 17 May 2016
39. Semipalmated Sandpiper. Capisic Pond. 15 May 2016
40. Lesser Yellowlegs. Capisic Pond. 12 May 2016
41. Fish Crow. Capisic Pond. 01 May 2016
42. Marsh Wren. Capisic Pond. 01 May 2016
43. White-faced Ibis. Providence Ave, Falmouth. 26 Apr 2016
44. Glossy Ibis. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 23 Apr 2016
45. Red-shouldered Hawk. Hardy Road Conservation Area. 13 Mar 2016
46. Winter Wren. Sebago to the Sea Trail. 06 Mar 2016
47. Iceland Gull. Mill Creek Cove. 30 Jan 2016
48. Northern Pintail. Bay Harbor Car Wash. 07 Jan 2016
49. White-winged Scoter. Mackworth Island. 28 Dec 2015
50. Red-throated Loon. Mackworth Island. 28 Dec 2015
51. Ross's Goose. Stroudwater St. fields. 02 Dec 2015
52. Orange-crowned Warbler. Capisic Pond. 07 Nov 2015
53. Surf Scoter. Mackworth Island. 24 Oct 2015
54. Great Cormorant. Mackworth Island. 24 Oct 2015
55. Golden-crowned Kinglet. River Point Conservation Area. 18 Oct 2015
56. Bonaparte's Gull. Portland Waterfront. 30 Jul 2015
57. Little Egret. Back Cove. 09 Jun 2015
58. Olive-sided Flycatcher. Evergreen Cemetery. 19 May 2015
59. Willow Flycatcher. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 19 May 2015
60. Snowy Egret. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 18 May 2015
61. Greater Yellowlegs. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 18 May 2015
62. Virginia Rail. Capisic Pond. May 2015
63. Eastern Kingbird. River Point Conservation Area. 10 May 2015
64. Lincoln's Sparrow. River Point Conservation Area. 10 May 2015
65. Least Bittern. Capisic Pond. 09 May 2015
66. Blackpoll Warbler. Capisic Pond. 08 May 2015
67. Rusty Blackbird. Capisic Pond. 07 May 2015
68. Veery. Evergreen Cemetery. 07 May 2015
69. Eastern Towhee. Capisic Pond. 06 May 2015
70. Northern Waterthrush. Evergreen Cemetery. 06 May 2015
71. Northern Rough-winged Swallow. Capisic Pond. 03 May 2015
72. Red Crossbill. Evergreen Cemetery. 03 May 2015
73. Chimney Swift. Capisic Pond. May 2015
74. Vesper Sparrow. Capisic Pond. 29 Apr 2015
75. Savannah Sparrow. Evergreen Cemetery. 28 Apr 2015
76. Laughing Gull. Mackworth Causeway. 26 Apr 2015
77. Greater Scaup. Mackworth Island. 26 Apr 2015
78. Black Scoter. Mackworth Island. 26 Apr 2015
79. Long-tailed Duck. Mackworth Island. 26 Apr 2015
80. Common Loon. Mackworth Island. 26 Apr 2015
81. Merlin. Capisic Pond. 24 Apr 2015
82. Blue-headed Vireo. Evergreen Cemetery. 23 Apr 2015
83. Bald Eagle. Evergreen Cemetery. 19 Apr 2015
84. Eastern Bluebird. River Point Conservation Area. 17 Apr 2015
85. Palm Warbler. River Point Conservation Area, Falmouth. 17 Apr 2015
86. Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Evergreen Cemetery. 14 Apr 2015
87. Bohemian Waxwing. River Point Conservation Area. 05 Apr 2015
88. Killdeer. Stroudwater St. fields. 04 Apr 2015
89. Eastern Meadowlark. Stroudwater St. fields. 04 Apr 2015
90. Wilson's Snipe. Capisic Pond. 03 Apr 2015
91. American Woodcock. Evergreen Cemetery. 03 Apr 2015
92. Brown Creeper. Home. 20 Mar 2015
93. Turkey Vulture. The Mill Store. 09 Mar 2015
94. Carolina Wren. Evergreen Cemetery. 17 Feb 2015
95. Common Redpoll. Home. 27 Jan 2015
96. Brown Thrasher. Spring St. 17 Jan 2015
97. Horned Lark. Thompson Point. 03 Jan 2015
98. Greater White-fronted Goose. Stroudwater Crossing. 03 Jan 2015
99. Ring-billed Gull. Presumpscot River, Westbrook. 02 Jan 2015
100. Great Black-backed Gull. Fore River Trail/Hobart Street. 02 Jan 2015
101. Great Horned Owl. Evergreen Cemetery. 28 Jun 2014
102. Swainson's Thrush. Duck Pond Rd. 23 Jun 2014
103. Great Crested Flycatcher. Home. 22 Jun 2014
104. Eastern Wood-Pewee. Evergreen Cemetery. 31 May 2014
105. Common Nighthawk. Evergreen Cemetery. 29 May 2014
106. Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Capisic Pond. 29 May 2014
107. Green Heron. Capisic Pond. 29 May 2014
108. Rock Pigeon. Portland. 18 May 2014
109. Red-eyed Vireo. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
110. Tree Swallow. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
111. Barn Swallow. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
112. House Wren. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
113. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
114. Cedar Waxwing. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
115. Magnolia Warbler. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
116. Scarlet Tanager. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
117. Rose-breasted Grosbeak. River Point Conservation Area. 18 May 2014
118. Warbling Vireo. Capisic Pond. 16 May 2014
119. Canada Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 15 May 2014
120. Northern Parula. Capisic Pond. 15 May 2014
121. Black-throated Blue Warbler. Capisic Pond. 15 May 2014
122. Yellow-rumped Warbler. Capisic Pond. 15 May 2014
123. Common Grackle. Capisic Pond. 15 May 2014
124. Great Egret. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
125. Least Flycatcher. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
126. Common Yellowthroat. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
127. Blackburnian Warbler. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
128. Yellow Warbler. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
129. Pine Warbler. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
130. Wilson's Warbler. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
131. Orchard Oriole. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
132. Baltimore Oriole. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
133. Red-winged Blackbird. Capisic Pond. 14 May 2014
134. Spotted Sandpiper. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
135. Solitary Sandpiper. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
136. White-breasted Nuthatch. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
137. Hermit Thrush. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
138. Ovenbird. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
139. Black-and-white Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
140. Nashville Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
141. American Redstart. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
142. Chestnut-sided Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
143. Black-throated Green Warbler. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
144. Chipping Sparrow. Evergreen Cemetery. 13 May 2014
145. Canada Goose. Evergreen Cemetery. 11 May 2014
146. Wood Thrush. Evergreen Cemetery. 11 May 2014
147. White-crowned Sparrow. Home. 11 May 2014
148. Broad-winged Hawk. Evergreen Cemetery. 04 May 2014
149. American Kestrel. Evergreen Cemetery. 12 Apr 2014
150. Canvasback. Presumpscot River, Westbrook. 21 Mar 2014
151. Ring-necked Duck. Presumpscot River, Westbrook. 21 Mar 2014
152. Blue-winged Teal. Evergreen Cemetery. 18 May 2013
153. American Golden-Plover. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 19 May 2013
154. Swamp Sparrow. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 04 May 2013
155. House Sparrow. Portland. 01 May 2013
156. Pied-billed Grebe. Mackworth Island. 27 Apr 2013
157. Northern Harrier. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 24 Apr 2013
158. Green-winged Teal. Evergreen Cemetery. 20 Apr 2013
159. American Wigeon. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 20 Apr 2013
160. Red-bellied Woodpecker. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 20 Apr 2013
161. Downy Woodpecker. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 20 Apr 2013
162. Brown-headed Cowbird. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 20 Apr 2013
163. Wood Duck. Capisic Pond. 16 Apr 2013
164. Common Goldeneye. Mackworth Island. Apr 2013
165. Red-breasted Merganser. Mackworth Island. 13 Apr 2013
166. Common Eider. Mackworth Island. 07 Apr 2013
167. Bufflehead. Mackworth Island. 07 Apr 2013
168. Horned Grebe. Mackworth Island. 07 Apr 2013
169. Red-necked Grebe. Mackworth Island. 04 Apr 2013
170. Hooded Merganser. Mackworth Island. 03 Apr 2013
171. Sharp-shinned Hawk. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
172. Hairy Woodpecker. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
173. European Starling. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
174. American Tree Sparrow. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
175. Fox Sparrow. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
176. Song Sparrow. Portland. 01 Apr 2013
177. Pileated Woodpecker. Evergreen Cemetery. 01 Mar 2013
178. Pine Grosbeak. Evergreen Cemetery. 01 Mar 2013
179. American Goldfinch. Evergreen Cemetery. 01 Mar 2013
180. Cooper's Hawk. Portland. 01 Mar 2013
181. Tufted Titmouse. Home. 21 Feb 2013
182. Red-breasted Nuthatch. Home. 21 Feb 2013
183. House Finch. Portland. 01 Feb 2013
184. Red-tailed Hawk. Portland. 01 Jan 2013
185. Mourning Dove. Home. 13 Oct 2012
186. American Robin. Home. 13 Oct 2012
187. White-throated Sparrow. Home. 3 Oct 2012
188. Barred Owl. Evergreen Cemetery. 11 Oct 2012
189. Northern Mockingbird. Evergreen Cemetery. 11 Oct 2012
190. Wild Turkey. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 09 Oct 2012
191. American Bittern. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 09 Oct 2012
192. Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 09 Oct 2012
193. Mallard. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
194. American Black Duck. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
195. Double-crested Cormorant. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
196. Great Blue Heron. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
197. Osprey. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
198. Herring Gull. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
199. Belted Kingfisher. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
200. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
201. Northern Flicker. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
202. Peregrine Falcon. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
203. Eastern Phoebe. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
204. Black-capped Chickadee. Evergreen Cemetery. Oct 2012
205. Gray Catbird. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
206. Dark-eyed Junco. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
207. Northern Cardinal. Evergreen Cemetery. 08 Oct 2012
208. Blue Jay. Home. 01 Oct 2012
209. American Crow. Home. 01 Oct 2012
210. Common Raven. Home. 01 Oct 2012
211. Bobolink. Gilsland Farm Audubon Center. 01 Aug 2012
212. Purple Finch. Home. 28 Apr 2012
213. Pine Siskin. Home. 31 Oct 2009
214. Black-crowned Night-Heron. Back Cove, Portland 01 Jul 2009

Edit: I have recently created this map which shows my 5-Mile Radius Patch with all of the eBird locations within which I have visited. There is more information about this map on my page about creating a map from your eBird data, which will be posted shortly.

A couple years ago I came across this blog entry which showed you how to map out your eBird data. It was fun to play with at the time and I had it filed away in the back of my mind.

My favorite is the pelagic trips and how they make lines out into the ocean. Clearly I live in Southern Maine as that is were most of my birding happens. I also like the map where I add my 5-Mile Radius Patch area, because that does give me a better sense of it.

Just for the reference the colors are broken down as follows and each represents the first year that I submitted an eBird checklist for that area.

pre-2012 – grey
2013 – white
2014 – brown
2015 – blue
2016 – green
2017 – yellow
2018 – red

This blog post is a little late to the party as most people were sharing their goals at the first of the month. Whatever. Posted within the first month counts for me.

For the last three or four years I have set birding or naturalist goals for myself. Each year it seems that I add more and more goals to the list. This year I have landed on 10 goals for myself.

1. Have photos for 75% of my life birds.
I had this goal last year as well but only got up to 63% so this year I’m looking to move it up.

2. Audio for 25% of my life birds.
To be honest, I’m not really sure about this one. I currently don’t even own any recording equipment except a small microphone which plugs into my iPhone.

3. Participate in a dragonfly moon.
Inspired by Josh Fecteau’s website, I have attempted to do at least one or two moon challenges each year. In this case I will spend one moon cycle seeking out and identifying at least 15 dragonflies and damsel flies.

4. Participate in a mushroom moon.
I will spend one moon cycle seeking out and identifying at least 15 different types of mushroom or fungus.

5. Screen-light summer.
Once school ends for the year then I have little need to be on a computer or my phone. So this summer, as I did a couple years ago I’m going to go screen-light and attempt to limit my total screen time to about 1-2 hours a day.

6. Complete all eBird challenges.
I will probably talk about this one again later, but basically each month eBird issues a challenge. Each person who meets the challenge will have his or her name entered into a drawing for a free pair of binoculars.

7. Increase monthly bird numbers throughout the year.
I have been keeping track of how many birds I have identified on a monthly basis for the last few years and this year I am setting a monthly goal to beat my highest number.

8. Identify over 300 birds this year.
Each year I give myself a number goal. The last couple years it has been 300 and that keeps me busy but not too crazy busy.

9. Draw 1 nature picture a week.
This one is probably the hardest of the bunch, as I have no drawing skill at all. That said, if I can stick with it, then I should be better by the end of the year.

10. Start a blog/website as a way to share what I see and learn.
Subgoal. Post on that blog/website at least once a week throughout the entire year.