The 2023 Review

                                                        Photo by my friend Julee Dawson

Life is full of surprises.  It turns out that 51 was the year that everything would change.  Relationships, both work and personal, were redefined. For now, I stay true to what makes me happy, the birding world. 

The future of "what ifs?"

Travel is such a bizarre thing.  It exposes us as observers to things that we may never have thought possible. Wellington, New Zealand was that for me this year.  Like so many other places I've visited, it changed me in my ways of thinking. I could see myself retiring there.  While I was on the North Island, I saw nothing but kindness around me.  And it was easy.  Not stressful like it is here. Plus all that misty ocean breeze with tea or coffee put a smile on my face. To stand on a pier and observe a pod of orcas pass us by was such a beautiful thing. 

   the Weka was considered a pest by locals because they were "naughty" like raccoons.  I thought their antics were hilarious.  And they aren't common but people seemed irritated by them.  Keep those coolers of food closed...with a lock:)

Generally, birders reflect during this time of year as we close out our 2023 bird journals. It's also a great way to look back and celebrate some very special moments out in the field. So let's get started.....

Favorite "new" birds of the year. 

I have wanted to see the very rare South Island takahē for so long.  I didn't think I ever would see this bird because at one point, it was thought to be extinct. It is one of those cool looking "dinosaur" birds.  Turns out that they are very gentle creatures that reminded me of a dog. It is a flightless bird and was eradicated from most of its range due to being hunted. UNTIL a wild population in a remote area on the South Island was found. The North Island takahē is extinct. In 1948, a team discovered this species in an isolated valley on the South Island. Today their numbers are rebounding and number around 500!

                                                            a crazy boat ride to Kapiti Island!

Getting to locations was an absolutely incredible experience.  Me and my wonderful friend took our time catching up and each day we explored new hotpots in Wellington.  We spent the rest of our day catching up and enjoying all that Wellington had to offer. At one point, we were standing on top of a mountain looking down into Wellington and the bay. I began to experience a strange feeling of wanting to take the "road not taken".  It was all things lonely, strange and exciting at once. A spark inside snapped me back into focus and made me face my own reality and confront some inner doubts that had been tugging at my heart. More on that later. 

                                                                     the Red-crowned Parakeet

This year, the hardest bird for me to capture on camera was the Stitchbird.  They are fast and often observed in dark forest settings. Very much like any rain forest bird in Central or South America. It's one of those gorgeous birds I had hoped to see and hear.  When it flies, it makes a sound like rolling two marbles together.  I made some clicking sounds on this trail to the male to see if he would check me out.  Luckily I got smashing views.  My ears tracked his movements while he gave off the marble sounds in the dense vegetation. For five brief seconds, he sat above my head looking down at me. Such a cool experience. 

World Lifer totals

I added 61 new species to that world life list. The hot debate over the years about the Pacific-slope and Cordilleran Flycatchers would finally be put to rest after genetic studies showed that they are all subspecies of the Western Flycatcher. So I "lost" a species this year. Now hopefully birders can come to a resolve about the re-naming of birds named after people. 

                                                                 Hello again Western Flycatcher!

Magical winter moments

Winter is my favorite time to bird across the US. We celebrate cooler temps without all the bugs. In Arizona, it's a pretty wonderful time to be outdoors for those nature hikes. 

In Phoenix, a gorgeous pair of White-winged Scoters came to a local park for a few days.  I was stuck at work anxiously wanting to see this beautiful male.  I knew it was only a matter of time before the pair flew off.  I have seen this species often but never this close!  I want to hang this one up on my wall.  It would happen that during our visit, we would watch them fly off for the last time and never see them again.  Just in the nick of time!

During a beautiful evening with friend Julee, we went to the Whitewater Draw to watch the blackbird murmuration.  It was quite the show as were the thousands of cranes and sunset. 

During a trip in March to Nebraska, we stopped to see this lovely American Tree Sparrow foraging along the ground in ice cold temps. 

New Arizona birds

I had made a collage of the birds in October thinking that I wouldn't add more to the list by December.  Well, I was wrong.  Between the months of September to December, I added 5 new state birds!  And I added 1 state (and lifebird) to my list in January bringing my totals to 6 new state birds! That brings my total closer to 500 at 492. The very rare Sharp-tailed Sandpiper and Cape May Warbler were lifers and state birds for me. 

 

New Pima birds

Pima was once again hot this year in all senses of the word. There were a lot of first records in the county which included the Red-throated Loon and Iceland Gull. Other super rarities included an American Dipper, 2nd record Pomarine Jaeger(RIP you lovely bird), Kentucky Warbler and 2 female Surf Scoters. 

I added 11 news birds to my Pima List.  The most exciting birds for me were the Pomarine Jaeger, Iceland Gull, American Dipper and Kentucky Warbler. Many of these birds I have seen often, either in the state or outside of it. The Surf Scoters were female and seen at sunset. And on and on it went for the Hooded Warbler, Eastern Kingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Ovenbird, Red-throated Loon and Rose-breasted Grosbeak.  To observe the Pomarine Jaeger and Iceland Gull up close was a real treat. I don't get to see those birds that often so it was exciting!

Red-faced Warbler

Favorite New Hotspot

It's hard to choose a new hotspot, but I fell in love with New Zealand and enjoyed birding in the state of Nebraska more than I thought I would.  I will say driving through Nebraska on the interstate is pretty boring, but once you get off the highway, it's incredibly beautiful. I think that my favorite place to meander had to be Red Rocks along the rocky shores of Wellington. It was peaceful and I could think about things without the background chatter of the public.  In fact, anywhere along the ocean, or on the ocean, was my favorite.  I'd often grab my lunch and sit in the park with all the people and just watch life pass by. 

                                                                       at Red Rocks with Heidi

Random Trek-the mysterious Tundra bean goose of LA County!

Every year a rare Eurasian Tundra bean goose shows up somewhere in the US. Normally, it's too far to chase.  But for some reason this one was within "close" range.  Normally a bird like this does not make it down into LA county, but it did.  Thankfully this goose was not near the city at all. Instead, it was found in a park oasis in the middle of nowhere! 

And every year, California seems to call us back with a fine rarity to chase. The men got together to save on gas and limit that carbon footprint everyone always talks about. Then we went on a wild good chase. Literally. 

The area we went to visit was in the middle of nowhere.  It was all sage brush and flat desert.  And yet someone decided that they would put this lush green forested space in the middle of the desert.  I've never seen so many birds enjoying this green space. Not only did we find the goose, but we were also able to witness a thriving population of Red Crossbills feeding young ones! It is incredibly unusual to find these birds at lower elevations here in the desert and yet, the Aleppo pines in the park sustained a small population of these birds. Another thrill was to find Bell's Sparrows feeding around the perimeter of the park!

So the saying remains true, "If you build it, they will come."

Coldest Morning

Our trek out to Nebraska was quite rewarding with some great birds.  But our main target, the Greater prairie chicken, was a must.  This was probably the most catered trek I've taken to see a grouse. The McCook conservation crew was awesome and so was our stay in the town of McCook.  Gordon's niece, Trina, lives there and took us to all these fun places to go birding. It was COOOOOLD.  During the big show, we stayed in horse trailers with no heaters.  

We put on a million layers to stay warm but it was so cold!  I lost feeling in my fingers and toes.  Whenever I had to use my camera, I had to take my gloves off and touch the icy controls.  It was 17 degrees outside! Thanks to Judith's electronic warmers, I survived the ordeal.  

And a grouse-a-year was accomplished!

High tides

How much can a person take? Life, death, tragedy. It has been overwhelming for me since covid happened. Or perhaps the age of covid was the catalyst we needed to change our lives? Rain had been hitting the coast of California all winter. I have a Mexican niece who just lost her father and had been alone with her husband and 2 kids for several years.  I did a special trip to hang out with them in San Diego during the month of January. 

I was a bit nervous driving to San Diego as the highways had been washed out in certain areas. As I arrived into La Jolla, where I had been staying, I noticed the very high tides. The waves were incredible and massive as they plunged into the coastline. And who should all be staring at the ocean?  Why eager birders counting rare ocean birds pushed close to the shore!  It was a good day for birds along the coastline and people saw some great wildlife that day!

It was cold and each morning, I found my moment of zen. 

Nemesis NO MORE!

How many times have a I tried for the Cape May Warbler?  Too many times to count.  Therefore it became my nemesis bird. Until one decided to winter in agricultural wasteland known as Yuma.  It's a place of swampy year round temps and home to many great rarities which included this Cape May Warbler below. 

We got in the vehicle and picked up Gordon.  Once there we watched this lovely warbler forage around the trees.  It's a rare day to get a lifer and state bird all at once. 

Winter's thrushes

And probably the most incredible thing that happened for us in Tucson this past winter was the invasion of thrushes.  Thousands of thrushes descended upon Tucson to feed from our berry bushes and trees.  They attacked every palm tree in the city with fruit, including the one in our yard!

One cold morning, I opened my door to the courtyard and heard the unmistakable call of a Townsend's Solitaire.  I rushed to get my camera for proof!  This bird, along with 20 some American Robins, 14 Western Bluebirds, and around 120 Cedar Waxwings would visit our courtyard everyday for about a month feeding off our palm berries or resting in our oak trees. 

California's rain became our rain and made for an exciting winter in the Old Pueblo.  Sadly, once summer set in, it would hold strong until November.  Arizona had one of the hottest summers on record. Today, the temps are back to cool and chilly, but how long will they stay?

This was a year to remember and forget.  My mother had a stroke.  Thankfully, I have 5 other siblings who can heckle her into maintaining her health.  They caught it in time and thankfully today she is doing well, but it reminds me that we are all getting older. And each day is a gift. I went through some dark days at my old job trying to figure out why I was feeling the way I did.  I needed a change of routine. And my marriage was coming to an end. Obviously we are still friends and I do love Micheal. I always will. It will be fun to watch his transitional journey into a female. I obviously support him, but it's not easy for both of us. I am sad. 18 years is a long time. It's not a complete shock, but it did change the dynamics of our marriage. It's funny how one day, a person can feel on top of the world and then by the next, their whole world flip flops and slams down around them.  There are just some things we can't control....our health, people wanting to change their gender, death, etc, etc. I am grateful to the birds and community.  I am grateful for my new friends at work. And the old friends that I've known for years. I am grateful to be alive. And I am grateful to be able to do the things I do now.  2024 will certainly bring in new challenges and adventures. I wish everyone a wonderful holiday and happy new year!  Until next time.