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December 2015

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From:
Haans Petruschke <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Haans Petruschke <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 22 Dec 2015 07:56:18 -0500
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Back in the 1990's Vic Fazio and I estimated about 250 or so just being
dedicated  and going to appropriate locations. A good way to estimate is to
look at a resource like "Birds of the Cleveland Region" 2004- Rosche, ed.
and start counting.  Given enough time in the field you will likely find
all the common and uncommon species. Plus some rare ones.  Also that
reference is old so some birds have changed in status over the past
decade.  Mostly increasing in numbers and occurrence with one or two
exceptions like Rusty Blackbird.  So you are far more likely to find a
Sandhill Crane or Merlin today than 10 years ago.

Haans

On Tue, Dec 22, 2015 at 7:05 AM, Jon <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> To say that I have spent a lot of hours driving with my friends Kent and
> Ben over the past 2 years would be an understatement.  During those drives
> we have talked about birds, family, life, and everything in between.  Here
> is a subject that we began kicking around a few months ago and I thought it
> might make for some interesting conversation here.  If you would rather
> just chase reports of birds, then you can hit the delete button now.
>
> We started pondering this question:  How many birds could a person see in
> Ohio in a calendar year WITHOUT using any outside resources?  Think of it
> as a “Pure Big Year”.  Outside resources would include this listserv, all
> social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), phone “hotlines” (yes, some still
> exist), or information gained in any way outside of your own finding of a
> bird.  If you aren’t the one who literally finds the bird on your own, it
> does not count.  NO CHASING.  We think that historical resources such as
> the Annotated Checklist, or Peterjohn’s Birds of Ohio would be perfectly
> appropriate as this constitutes doing research in order to develop a game
> plan.
>
> We often see folks getting over 300 birds in Ohio lately, which is a
> pretty remarkable number.  Clearly a HUGE part of that is the ability to
> chase the reports of birds found by others.
>
> So the question is:  How many species of birds do you think that an
> experienced birder could locate in a year without ANY kind of outside help?
>
> Clearly, those who have been birding in Ohio for years would have the
> advantage of knowing where and when to seek out species to increase their
> odds, but that is what I mean by an experienced birder.  During our
> conversations about this subject we have tossed around a few numbers that
> we think would be possible, but I will not share them here so as to
> encourage others to weigh in without undue influence.  There have been
> county efforts that may be a good reflection of what would be possible
> state-wide (like Jen Brumfield’s Cuyahoga effort).
>
> I am also interested to hear what kinds of pitfalls you can imagine for
> such an endeavor.  For instance, how would you handle a trip to the
> boardwalk at Magee Marsh in May?  How could you NOT be using the efforts of
> others (clogs on the boardwalk around a Mourning Warbler) in that circus of
> people?  How would a person cope with the psychological challenges
> (loneliness, mental fatigue) of undergoing such a difficult endeavor?
> Would photo documentation be required to make the tally “legitimate?"
>
> I truly hope that some of the excellent birders who call Ohio home will
> weigh in on this thoughtfully.  I wonder if anyone would attempt such a
> challenge?  I wonder if an optics or other birding-related company would
> consider sponsoring such an endeavor?
>
>
> Jon Cefus
> Cuyahoga Falls
>
>
> “Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from
> the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent
> disinclination to do so.”
> -Douglas Adams
>
>
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