The Armchair Tick
This is a real life photo of a wonderful observation of a curious Canyon Wren on an expedition trip into Mexico. After a year of no lifers , the ebird updates gave me several wonderful new bird species from splits. I had known at some point, these birds, with some research, would get split from subspecies status to their own species, except the Warbling Vireo . But I paid attention to the experts and took notes during my travels over the years. Arm chair ticks! While it has been a meaningful year of birding, I was bummed that I hadn't even added a single new species to my list. But because I did my homework in the past, I've added 5 new birds. A little AI of an older birder somewhat looking like me What's an armchair tick? Well, it sounds disgusting (like there's a bug infestation in your chair) but it's actually a term birders use to say that they've added new birds to their lists by just paying attention out in the field. Or in some cases, ...
