There’s no getting around it. No continuance can be granted. I have no timeouts. No whistle will stop this clock, my Big Year is down to the final two months. In between upcoming trips all I can do is watch the rare bird alerts hoping something shows up. Around this time of year in 1998, krazy Komito still needed Ross’s Gull. He got on a 5 pm flight in Newark, over nighted in Anchorage, caught a 6:30 am flight to Barrow via Fairbanks, hooked up with a local birder, found some Ross’s Gulls, and arrived in New Jersey the next day at 3 pm. If that’s what it takes to be a Big Year champ, I’ll settle for chump.
Monday I chased a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Arizona’s 6th, at Patagonia Lake State Park but nobody relocated it from the day before. The first Ruddy Ground-Dove of the season is now showing in the Verde Valley, a little too far to chase, unless today was December 30. The Rufous-backed Robin in Yuma County of a few days ago was a one day wonder. Speaking of Yuma, Henry Detwiler of Yuma checks in with 663 for his Big Year as of yesterday. At this late date he has no chance of even reaching 700 let alone the record.
My current position is 537. Here’s how I top Roger Tory Peterson. I should get 3 more in Arizona, like Mountain Plover, Ruddy Ground-Dove, and one other, who knows what, that’s 540. I hope to find 10 in Texas, 10 in New Hampshire, and 10 in San Diego, that’s 570. The final 3 at Sandia Crest will serve up my goal of 573. I’ll need a few lucky breaks to offset some misses and extraordinary luck would bring me to 580, but I’ll be thrilled with 573. I spend the next few days getting ready for Texas. Up until a day or two ago a Green-breasted Mango was regularly seen at Edinburg Scenic Wetlands and on Monday a Northern Jacana appeared at Estero Llano Grande. Two very choice birds. Will either one reappear next week? Will something else come along instead?
Here’s a shot I didn’t get a chance to post from Washington, one of our more colorful ducks:
robsbigyear2019.com 