ZooChat Big Year 2020

but i got a new mammal today
37 house mouse Mus musculus)

 

Fishes

Snorkeling in Punta Campanella AMP (Marine Protected Area)...

1. Saddled Seabream, Oblada melanura

2. Two-banded Seabream, Diplodus vulgaris

3. Mediterranean Rainbow Wrasse, Coris julis

4. Salema Porgy, Salpa salpa

5. East Atlantic Peacock Wrasse, Symphodus tinca (only females, males seem very rare to spot)

6. Five-spotted Wrasse, Symphodus roissali (probably one of my favourite species)

7. Ornate Wrasse, Thalassoma pavo

8. Mediterranean Damselfish, Chromis chromis

9. Painted Comber, Serranus scriba

There were also some other fishes I wasn't able to identify.

Invertebrates

2. European Hornet, Vespa crabro

3. Pill Woodlouse, Armadillidium vulgare

 

A roller was found near Beerse, Antwerp yesterday evening, but when someone from the region went to look this morning it seemed to have disappeared. I wasn't quite ready to give up on it though, so after my exam despite that information I went anyways... And saw it! Absolute dream come true to see this stunner of a bird in Belgium, only the third in the country since 2000! Crazy that I was the only person there, despite its rarity and beauty...

BIRDS:
215) European roller, Coracias garrulus

 

yester day a went twiching not for a lifter but a species i havent sean in a long time only once before. it is a regular wargrant hear
251. cutrine wagtail
and also a herad only lifer little crake witch is even rarer here then the wagtail

 

A couple updates:

Birds
53. Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
54. Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)

Mammals
9. Northern Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

 

BIRDS
266 - White-bellied Cuckooshrike (Coracina papuensis)
267 - Olive Whistler (Pachycephala olivacea)

 

Another outing, another lifer! Went to the coastline of Imi Ouadar today and didn't expect much but ended up getting two additions for my year list: the first one of which I thought I'd miss this year since they're pretty much spring birds (their numbers get scarcer and scarcer in summer until none are seen in fall and winter) and one of the most common water bird I was still lacking here, probably due to me not having binoculars in the past.

Another great day!

01/07/2020 (Imi Ouaddar, Morocco)
BIRDS:
121 - Gull-billed tern, Gelochelidon nilotica
122 - Northern gannet, Morus bassanus

 

Long overdue for an update. Here are birds for now other groups will come soon.

Birds:

105. Blue-winged Teal Spatula discors
106. Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca
107. Northern Gannet Morus bassanus
108. Semipalmated Plover Charadrius semipalmatus
109. Willet Tringa semipalmata inornata
110. Eastern Towhee Pipilo erythrophthalmus
111. Northern Waterthrush Parkesia noveboracensis
112. Broad-winged Hawk Buteo platypterus
113. Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor
114. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea
115. American Kestrel Falco sparverius
116. Northern Rough-winged Swallow Stelgidopteryx serripennis
117. Yellow Warbler Setophaga petechia
118. Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
119. Chimney Swift Chaetura pelagica
120. Upland Sandpiper Bartramia longicauda
121. Green Heron Butorides virescens
122. Eastern Kingbird Tyrannus tyrannus
123. Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes
124. Common Tern Sterna hirundo
125. Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus
126. Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia
127. Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii
128. Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla
129. Black-bellied Plover Pluvialis squatarola
130. Short-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus griseus
131. Bonaparte's Gull Chroicocephalus philadelphia
132. Cape May Warbler Setophaga tigrina
133. Nashville Warbler Leiothlypis ruficapilla
134. Purple Gallinule Porphyrio martinicus
135. Great Crested Flycatcher Myiarchus crinitus
136. Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
137. Piping Plover Charadrius melodus
138. Northern Parula Setophaga americana
139. Semipalmated Sandpiper Calidris pusilla
140. House Wren Troglodytes aedon
141. Least Tern Sternula antillarum
142. Cedar Waxwing Bombycilla cedrorum
143. Scarlet Tanager Piranga olivacea
144. Baltimore Oriole Icterus galbula
145. Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus
146. Ovenbird Seiurus aurocapilla
147. Yellow-throated Vireo Vireo flavifrons
148. Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas
149. Blue-winged Warbler Vermivora cyanoptera
150. Eastern Wood-Pewee Contopus virens
151. Prairie Warbler Setophaga discolor
152. Chestnut-sided Warbler Setophaga pensylvanica
153. White-crowned Sparrow Zonotrichia leucophrys
154. Magnolia Warbler Setophaga magnolia
155. Bay-breasted Warbler Setophaga castanea
156. Blackburnian Warbler Setophaga fusca
157. Least Flycatcher Empidonax minimus
158. Eastern Whip-poor-will Antrostomus vociferus
159. Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus
160. Little Blue Heron Egretta caerulea
161. Orchard Oriole Icterus spurius
162. Warbling Vireo Vireo gilvus
163. Purple Martin Progne subis
164. Willow Flycatcher Empidonax traillii
165. American Redstart Setophaga ruticilla
166. Veery Catharus fuscescens
167. Hooded Warbler Setophaga citrina
168. Wood Duck Aix sponsa
169. Red-eyed Vireo Vireo olivaceus
170. Clapper Rail Rallus crepitans
171. Acadian Flycatcher Empidonax virescens
172. Saltmarsh Sparrow Ammospiza caudacuta
173. Seaside Sparrow Ammospiza maritima
174. White-rumped Sandpiper Calidris fuscicollis
175. Purple Finch Haemorhous purpureus
176. Black-throated Green Warbler Setophaga virens
177. Yellow-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus americanus
178. Eastern Bluebird Sialia sialis
179. Ruby-throated Hummingbird Archilochus colubris

 

Now, I am got up with all but inverts, that will take a bit longer but will include a bunch of lifers.

Mammals:
6. Muskrat Ondatra zibethicus
7. Coyote Canis latrans
8. Raccoon Procyon lotor
9. American Red Squirrel Tamiasciurus hudsonicus

Herps:
5. American Toad Anaxyrus americanus
6. Spotted Turtle Clemmys guttata
7. Bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus
8. Green Frog Rana clamitans
9. Common Snapping Turtle Chelydra serpentina
10. Pickerel Frog Lithobates palustris

Fishes:
2. Striped Killifish Fundulus majalis
3. Mummichog Fundulus heteroclitus
4. Sheepshead Minnow Cyprinodon variegatus
5. Atlantic Silverside Menidia menidia

 

On Ponza Island...

Reptiles

2. Moorish Gecko, Tarentola mauritanica

Fishes

10. White Seabream, Diplodus sargus

11. Sharpsnout Seabream, Diplodus puntazzo

12. Sand Steenbras, Lithognathus mormyrus

I also had a glimpse of a "marlin-like fish" (probably a T. belone).

 

A good day of birding at the coast (Zwin), looking for one of Belgium's only breeding pairs of little terns, got me a few good additions! The tree frogs were at least equally as awesome as the terns, of course. Also got great views of another zitting cisticola.

BIRDS:
216) Sandwich tern, Thalasseus sandvicensis
217) Little tern, Sternula albifrons

HERPS:
3) European tree frog, Hyla arborea

INVERTS:
71) Essex skipper, Thymelicus lineola

 

Fishes

13. Dusky Grouper, Epinephelus marginatus

14. Cardinal Fish, Apogon imperbis


Reptiles

3. Lataste's Lizard, Podarcis latastei

This is a complicated one.
This lizard was recognized as a new species ( endemic to the "Pontian Archipelago" in Italy) last year but some scientists think it's simply a subspecies of Podarcis siculus (Podarcis siculus latastei) and not an effective species.
I don't know if I should sign it in this checklist.

 

Birds
221. Zebra Finch
222. Hooded Robin
223. Pied Butcherbird
224. Brown Treecreeper
225. Nankeen Kestrel
226. Wedge-tail Eagle
227. Plum-headed Finch
228. Jacky Winter
229. White-winged Chough
230. Crested Shrike-tit
231. White-browed Babbler
232. Musk Duck



Hix

 

Birds
222. Virginia Rail Rallus limicola

The number didn't change because I removed Dunlin from the list after looking at my photo again. I think it was just an odd Pectoral Sandpiper.

 

Coming back from Ponza Island...

Mammals

1. Common Bottlenose Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus

Birds

26. Audoin's Gull, Ichtyaetus audouinii

 

Came back from absolutely one of the best weekends ever yesterday! Drove to see the sociable lapwing near Frankfurt 2 days ago (Mittlere Horloffaue), then went looking for good woodpeckers, and after that a forest with midwife toads, Daubenton's bats, and apparently dormice (Giessener Bergwerkswald). Yesterday morning we went back to look for more woodpeckers, and on the way back to the Netherlands/Belgium we stopped by a small group of breeding bee-eaters (Brachter Wald). Great stuff!

BIRDS:
218) Red kite, Milvus milvus
219) Sociable lapwing, Vanellus gregarius
220) Spotted redshank, Tringa erythropus
221) Middle spotted woodpecker, Dendrocoptes medius
222) Grey-headed woodpecker, Picus canus
223) Common redstart, Phoenicurus phoenicurus
224) European bee-eater, Merops apiaster

MAMMALS:
10) Daubenton's bat, Myotis daubentonii
11) Edible dormouse, Glis glis
12) Western hedgehog, Erinaceus europaeus
13) Wild boar, Sus scrofa

HERPS:
0) Common midwife toad, Alytes obstetricans (heard only)

INVERTS:
72) Green shield bug, Palomena prasina
73) German wasp, Vespula germanica
74) Green-veined white, Pieris napi
75) Silver-washed fritillary, Argynnis paphia
76) Riband wave, Idaea aversata
77) Marbled white, Melanargia galathea

 

While looking back at old pictures I noticed that one of the warblers I saw on the first day of the year had very light legs and it turned out to be a lifer!

01/01/2020 (Champs d'Aghorimze, Morocco)
BIRDS:
24 - Willow warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus

This means I'm on 123 birds for the year currently.

 

152 red-backed shrike
one of the last common breding birds i was mising. now i need som mirgrants and some sub rarity

 

A few additions from a couple of dusk excursions in the last 2 weeks - into the Peak District for bats and to the fringes of Sherwood forest in Notts for some crepuscular ornithology (plus a little butterfly catchup of a couple of common species).

Birds:
178. Eurasian Woodcock - Scolopax rusticola
179. European Nightjar - Caprimulgus europaeus

Mammals:
20. Soprano Pipistrelle - Pipistrellus pygmaeus
21. Daubenton's Bat - Myotis daubentonii

Invertebrates:
47. Red Admiral - Vanessa atalanta
48. Meadow Brown - Maniola jurtina

 

sory it is 252 not 152