2014 was an amazing birding year for me. I haven’t tallied
the number of lifers that I got but the year included a portion of the
Ecuador/Galapagos trip which spanned from the end of 2013 to the beginning of 2014;
an epic trek through Chiapas, Mexico; another trip to Mexico, this time to
Chihuahua and Sonora; and guiding trips to The Biggest Week in Northwestern
Ohio and the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival in South Texas; plus everyday
birding in New Mexico. My estimate is that I got close to 500 new birds. Yes, 5-0-0
NEW birds for my lifelist in 2014. Simply mind-blowing. In order of appearance
during the year, here, I have selected 10 species that are my “Birds of the Year.”
All of these, except for the last one were new for me. Each of them are not
only incredible birds, they also have some extreme significance in terms of the
sighting, the people I was with, the location, or all of the above! Without
further ado:
Striped Owl- Larry, Steve, Nancy, and I, along with our
guide Remy, found this bird, on an island in the Napo River in Eastern Ecuador
on the second day of the new year. The bird flushed up from the ground, perched
in the open, looked directly at us, and then disappeared into thick, tall,
brush. Though Steve, Larry, and I all had cameras ready and in the hand, we
were all so absolutely blown away by the encounter that none of us attempted a
photograph. We just stared at it, slack-jawed. It was an absurdly stunning
find, a beautiful bird, and a rare one at that for the area.
Red-billed Tropicbird- I wrote a piece about finding a nest
of this species on our first full day in the Galapagos. It is a species I had
longed to see and the experience that I had with that bird is one that usually
brings tears to my eyes when I recall how simply extraordinary it was. It is
quite simply one of the most incredible and fortunate moments of my birding
career and one that helps to define what was a mesmerizing week in the Galapagos
Islands.
Giant Conebill- This was the last bird we saw on our phenomenal
trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos. Our group of four, plus Sam, spent a truly fantastic
day birding the East Andes from the highs of Papallacta pass to… well… there
were no lows. We had spent some time looking for this species earlier in the
day without any luck and decided to try again on our way to the airport. The
sun was low in the sky and light was fading. While Sam, Nance, and Steve went
in one direction, Larry and I decided to check in the other direction. I was
tired but determined and managed to track one down for our group to see. This
bird is big and beautiful and mind-blowing which was exactly what our time in
Ecuador had been.
Pink-headed Warbler- This is the bird that sent Larry and me
on an amazing trip to Chiapas, Mexico with Dave, Christopher, Mary, and others.
This was also the trip on which Larry and I met David, Amy, and Jorge. The
Chiapas trip was simply one of the greatest adventures I’ve ever been on.
Finally seeing this bird, my “most wanted lifer” for many years was somewhat
indescribable. And to add just a little bit of extra awesomesauce to the
experience, we got the bird on day one of a two week trip. The rest was that
frosty icing on the Pink-headed Warbler! I still cannot believe a bird exists that is
this “cute” and just plain charming. I certainly do hope that in this lifetime
I get to know this species much better. My first experience with it is
something I shall remember for the rest of my days.
Horned Guan- We quested for this bird for a full day before
finding it on our third day in El Triunfo. While quietly walking down the trail,
I heard David whisper my name. I stopped and turned to see him gazing at a
Horned Guan that was very, very close, very, very large, and perched on a
horizontal branch staring us down. Ahead of us was half the group, walking
away. I needed to get their attention without freaking the bird out. I let out
a soft double-toot, which Mary picked up on. She turned toward me, I made a
sign for “unicorn,” and she knew exactly what I meant. It was an exciting
moment and we all got to see this glorious male! We found two more that
morning; I was able to find the third one. This bird is simply mythical,
bizarre, and unique. It. Was. Outrageous.
Fulvous Owl- There is something enchanting about owls and I
have never met a birder who felt otherwise. The bird was calling during the
late afternoon behind our dormitory at El Triunfo. The afternoon had brought
low, thick clouds into the forest offering us a chance to see this bird through
eerie fog and sort-of daylight. Donning tank top, shorts, and a pair of sandals
(though it may be for some, this is NOT my usual birding garb), I dove under a
barbed wire fence and raced up a slope to see this wonderful bird calling in
the mist. It was pure magic. I sometimes get goosebumps while birding. Not
often, but on occasion when my entire being is just overwhelmed by the moment.
This was one of those moments. Beyond that, I cannot describe it.
King Rail- When I’m out guiding, I don’t expect to get
lifers. On a “big day” van trip for which I had very low expectations as a
result of constant rain, I was totally floored when Gabriel spotted a couple of
rails just outside the van in the ditch not 10 feet away. The young whipper
snappers with cameras and I started blasting away at one of the birds and when
they had both retreated into the reeds we were left with point-blank pictures
of King Rail, many smiles, and a life bird for every person in the vehicle. It
was a splendid moment and a superbly fun day spent birding with some very savvy
young birders! Though that week was marked by so much kinship, love, and so
many crazy-cool birds, this was the birding moment that took the cake.
Thick-billed Parrot- This is another bird that, in my mind,
was a legendary creature of pine forests. I knew I had to see one someday.
Larry and I were lucky enough to spend another few days in Mexico birding with
David, Raymond, Jorge, and Amy in August in order to seek this species and
others. I can close my eyes and hear their laughter-like calls. They are stunning
birds and almost certainly my favorite parrot I’ve ever seen in the wild. This
is another species that elicited a piece of writing.
Hook-billed Kite- For my close friends, this one needs
little explanation. I have been skunked when seeking this species over many
years and in many countries; almost to the point of it being comical if it
hadn’t been so damn frustrating. I had come tantalizingly close on a number of
occasions and had thrice shed tears over this creature but for some reason the
former “Bird That Shall Not Be Named” refused to reveal itself to me. Until one
lovely day at Bentsen State Park when Doug and I were leading a trip for the
RGVBF when I was lucky enough to spot a pair of juvenile birds soaring. We
watched them for several minutes and while Doug was making sure everyone else
in the group was on the birds, I had perhaps the only selfish moment I have
afforded myself while out guiding. I felt I had not just earned it, but battled
for it. Finally! TICK!
Lewis’s Woodpecker- This is the only bird on the list that
wasn’t a life bird. For anyone who has seen this pink and green woodpecker,
however, you know how special this bird is. Though I’ve seen many over the
years, Larry and I really hoped to find one for Lynn and Bruce when they were
visiting New Mexico. After a remarkably epic day of birding a loop through the
Jemez Mountains, which involved an early sighting of a Lewis’s Woodpecker that
decided to fly “into oblivion” as Bruce put it, we decided to try one of
Larry’s and my “old trusty” sites for this species. It seems a little weird
perhaps, to just drive through this certain neighborhood in Espanola. But Larry
and I have had success here in the past. It had been a few years since we last
ventured here though, and so when we thought we had passed the neighborhood, I
decided to turn down a random street to whirl about and get us back on track.
But alas, birding is sometimes funny, and as I crept down that random 15mph
street, a Lewis’s Woodpecker came flying directly toward and over my car.
Before we even got out of the vehicle, Bruce and Lynn both had looks at the
bird that only got better once out. It was an incredible way to cap off a
beautiful day with friends. A day of luck and of laughter and of wonder.
It’s hard to sum up any year of birding with only ten
species or sightings. This year was especially difficult for me since we
crammed so many memorable adventures into our year. Ask me tomorrow and I might
pick different species for my list (well, maybe some of them).
For me, having a chance to relive some of those birds helps
bring me back to specific places and times. It helps me remember how alive I
felt when I was hiking through the Amazon, sweating out pints of fluid and how,
just a week or so later, my body felt completely foreign to me when walking on
the marshmallow world above the clouds at 14,100 feet in the Andes. I am
transported back to a time when I stood alone in the forest at El Triunfo,
watching Spotted Nightingale Thrushes chasing all around me, with nary a care
to my presence. I remember sitting on the boardwalk at Magee Marsh, helping
hundreds of people get looks at a female Golden-winged Warbler and later, helping
scores get their lifer Henslow’s Sparrow. I remember the exact sensation of
finally vanquishing the nemesis and only minutes later when my cell phone began
exploding with congratulatory texts from friends, especially Martin and Marci, who knew the whole story. I
remember hugs, I remember smiles, I remember high fives.
And I’m ready to do it all again in 2015.
