ZooChat Big Year 2018

Amphibians
1. Palmate Newt, Lissotriton helveticus
2. Great Crested Newt, Triturus cristatus

 

Some more additions over the last week or so, the first being from my own front yard!

76. Eurasian Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola)
77. Common Gull (Larus canus)
78. Long-eared Owl (Asio otus)
79. Common Goosander (Mergus merganser)
80. Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata)
81. Eurasian Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

 

Went birding in the Northeast of my country, and got a few very nice species!

BIRDS:
150) Black woodpecker, Dryocopus martius
151) Parrot crossbill, Loxia pytyopsittacus
152) Lesser spotted woodpecker, Dryobates minor
153) Crested tit, Lophophanes cristatus

The black woodpecker was the best look I've ever had of one, which I'm very happy about as those may well be my favorite birds. The parrot crossbill was a single female of a group of 8 animals that had been staying in that forest for quite some time now. I'm glad to finally have seen them, as last year I missed (or only heard) them a few times..

 

Just one more winter-y lifer at the start of spring. I also got a very good look at a large group of common redpolls. There was suppossed to be a lesser redpoll amongst them but I couldn't find it.

Birds
124. Common chiffchaff [Phylloscopus collybita]
125. Rough-legged buzzard [Buteo lagopus]

I'm really happy with the buzzard. I've been checking every single buzzard this winter but all turned out to be common buzzards. And then this week on my way home a rough-legged just landed right next to the road! 125 done, 100 to go.

 

And, 2 days later, the third member of the slimy trinity:

3. Smooth Newt, Lissotriton vulgaris

Mammals:
8. Field Vole, Microtis agrestis

 

Finally some nice additions since last time I went birding. Went to Marrakesh yesterday (again) for a basketball tournament but I did have some free time to go birding and I even got a lifer (which, weirdly, should already be gone to Northern Europe).

32 - Ruddy shelduck, Tadorna ferruginea
33 - Northern shoveler, Spatula clypeata
34 - Little grebe, Tachybaptus ruficollis
35 - Grey heron, Ardea cinerea
36 - Pallid swift, Apus pallidus

 

I had a great few hours of birding today. One of the first and probably the best bird was a woodcock we accidentally flushed. There were very few little birds around but we saw a raven and jays and woodpeckers were all over the place. Among them was an absolutely stunning pair of dispaying black woodpeckers, which gave great views. We started to wonder were all the little birds had gone, but then we stumbled upon a few bushes teeming with finches and redpolls and blackbirds and tits. So I definitely enjoyed my afternoon!

Birds
126. Eurasian woodcock [Scopolax rusticola]
127. Northern raven [Corvus corax]
128. Woodlark [Lullula arborea]
129. Black woodpecker [Dryocopus martius]

 

A few additions from a short break in Slovenia - not a wildlife trip in any particular way so just what I encountered on my travels. The kite is in the UK on the return journey; the others are all Slovenia - including a lifer from central Ljubljana and my first identifiable invertebrate of the year from a sunny embankment at Lake Bled.

Birds:
135. Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix
136. Grey-headed Woodpecker - Picus canus
137. Black-necked Grebe - Podiceps nigricollis
138. Red Kite - Milvus milvus

(UK-only total: 135)

Invertebrates:
1. Common Brimstone - Gonepteryx rhamni

 

Finally another mammal, I don't know how it took so long to see this one (8/3/2018):

4. Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus

 

A weekend in the Ardennes gave me a good few extra species, of which half were lifers!

BIRDS:
154) Red kite, Milvus milvus
155) Eurasian treecreeper, Certhia familiaris
156) Marsh tit, Poecile palustris
157) Yellowhammer, Emberiza citrinella
158) European serin, Serinus serinus
159) White-throated dipper, Cinclus cinclus
160) Willow tit, Poecile montanus
161) Western barn owl, Tyto alba

 

Yet another wave of migrants has arrived:

Birds
38. Sandhill Crane Antigone canadensis
39. American Kestrel Falco sparverius

 

Had quite a productive day today, taking me from the hills of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug to see a couple of crossbills and passing through the city center of Utrecht on the way back to see a certain rare gull. I've uploaded some photo's to the Netherlands wildlife gallery.

82. European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola)
83. Woodlark (Lullula arborea)
84. Parrot Crossbill (Loxia pytyopsittacus)
85. Red Kite (Milvus milvus)
86. Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
87. Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus)
88. Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
89. Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
90. Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus)
91. Iceland Gull (Larus glaucoides)

This trip also brought me my first herp of the year!
1. Smooth Newt (Lissotriton vulgaris)

 

One more from Orgreave Lakes this afternoon:

Birds:
139. Greater Scaup - Aythya marila

(UK-only: 136)

 

Went birding (again), and yet again it was one awesome session not because of the number of additions but because of some of the species I added to my list (including a long-awaited lifer) and the whole experience!

BIRDS:
37 - Atlas pied flycatcher, Ficedula speculigera
38 - Western subalpine warbler, Sylvia cantillans inornata
39 - Western Bonelli's warbler, Phylloscopus bonelli
40 - Woodchat shrike, Lanius senator

REPTILES:
1 - Bibron's agama, Agama impalearis

 

Why do exciting things appear outside my window when i'm meant to be writing an essay?
Birds
67. Common Firecrest, Regulus ignicapilla

Why do I insist on posting them on Zoochat immediately, instead of carrying on with my essay?

 

Fish
265. Spotted Garden Eel
266. Lionfish
267. Sad Surgeonfish
268. Ringtail Surgeonfish
269. Brownbanded Eviota
270. Bridled Triggerfish
271. Goldstripe Wrasse
272. Giant Moray
273. Tailspot Lizardfish
274. Giant Trevally
275. Saddled Butterflyfish
276. Bluestriped Barracuda
277. Blacksaddle Filefish



Hix

 

Some more species showing up because of the nice weather.
2. Common Frog (Rana temporaria)

INVERTS
3. Common Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni)

 

I think you can officially call it spring when you start seeing these:

Mammals
7. Woodchuck Marmota monax

 

Went for a Night Dove last night (and going on another tomorrow night).

Fish
278. Spotfin Lionfish
279. Honeycomb Grouper
280. Samoan Cardinalfish
281. Stars-&-Stripes Puffer

Inverts
22. Marbled Shrimp
23. Marmorated Sea Cucumber
24. Christmas Island Paper Wasp
25. Eggfly Butterfly



Hix

 

Two herps from Texas:

Reptiles
1) Spiny Softshell Turtle Apalone spinifera
2) Pond Slider Trachemys scripta

~Thylo