300

I always set 300 species a year as an informal goal of what I'd like to see in Louisiana. Hitting 300 in a year used to be a little harder to reach than it is now.  Between range expansion, introductions getting common, and splits of species (Baltimore/Bullock's, Eastern/Spotted), there are more species available now compared to just a few years ago. Just as $300 isn't as much as it used to be, 300 species in a year for Louisiana has lost some of its luster.  I still use 300 as a yearly benchmark, but I adjust the figure upwards for inflation.  Nowadays, I think of the 315-320 range as the new 300.

Caracara is pretty much a gimme today.  Just a few years ago, this bird was nearly impossible to see in Louisiana.  

This has been an exceptionally birdy year in Louisiana, so even with some misses, I hit my target a couple of months ago.  I'm not sure exactly where I stand today, here on the final day of 2011. I may stop to tally it up, but I doubt it.  It is informal, after all.

Merry Xmas!

Click on the photo above to see the ornaments.

It's Getting Better

During rain delays on the Lacassine-Thornwell CBC yesterday, Mike Musumeche and I had a nice discussion about birds that used to be difficult to impossible to get within the past decade or two that are now "gimmes," or pretty close.  We came up with a list that included some of the following birds:

Black-bellied Whistling Duck (taking over)
Ross's Goose
White-tailed Kite
Crested Caracara (how cool is that?)
Lesser Black-backed Gull (probably present the year around)
Eurasian Collared-Dove (from 0 to 60, and then some)
Inca Dove (from rare to a backyard near you)
Calliope Hummingbird
Cave Swallow (taking over)
Clay-colored Sparrow
Yellow-headed Blackbird
House Finch

At the same time, it seemed to us that some rare or uncommon birds have also become much more regular.  We tossed a few names around, but never settled on a list.  I've cobbled one together, including the following:

California Gull
Glaucous Gull*
Great Black-backed Gull*
Allen's Hummingbird*
Broad-tailed Hummingbird (not a Review List bird, but not quite a gimme)
Broad-billed Hummingbird
Anna's Hummingbird
Say's Phoebe*
Ash-throated Flycatcher (not a Review List bird, but not quite a gimme)
Great Kiskadee*
Bell's Vireo*
Black-whiskered Vireo
Black-headed Grosbeak*
Bullock's Oriole*

All of these birds are still good finds, but if the trends continue, I think it's possible at least some of them (*) will be removed from the Review List.

Different drivers seem to be responsible for different species becoming easier to find here.  Some of these birds are introduced and have invaded Louisiana.  Some are "Texas" birds that are expanding into Louisiana.  Others are birds that are expanding on their breeding grounds.  Whatever the reason for their increase, it's nice to see.

Oh, and by the way, Mike and I didn't find many of these birds on the CBC.  We stunk it up, but seeing a White-tailed Kite flying over the cold rainy fields was a nice sight!