The Best of Birdingblogs.com in 2011
Looking back at 2011, there were tons of great bird-related blog posts that touched us, motivated us to be better birders/people, and made us laugh (or cry); so I thought I would look back through the birdingblogs.com archives and dredge out some of the posts that really stood out to me this year.
Are you a real birder?
by Tom McKinney
Tom McKinney made me laugh more than anyone else this year. Which is rather sad. But, just take a look at his poignant questionnaire entitled “Are you a real birder?“.
As an example, question 8 reads:
8. You are in a hide and overhear a conversation between two people who are clearly new to the hobby. They are discussing whether a wader is a Black- or Bar-tailed Godwit. They decide to take a photograph of the bird and consult their books when they get home. After looking at the bird you immediately identify it as a Black-tailed, but what do you do next?
a) you smile to yourself, recalling how similar identification problems also once troubled you. We all have to start somewhere.
b) you lean over and explain that the bird is a Black-tailed Godwit, and then give them a number of useful tips on how to separate the two European godwits in future.
c) you tut loudly and mutter that there was a time when hides used to be quiet places for birdwatching, not idle chit-chat. And besides, instead of taking shit digi-scoped photos, they should be taking notes. Birding is going to hell in a fucking handcart, and these new birders haven’t got a fucking clue. It’s probably the fault of the fucking internet. Or that bitch Thatcher.
I think Tom is disturbed and needs help, but he has certainly enriched my life. Actually, come to think of it, superman didn’t get famous for being normal either.
World Bird Cup – the ultimate bird
blog series/poll by Gunnar Engblom
Gunnar has just run a blog series entitled “World Bird Cup – the ultimate bird” in which he polled all our readers to start off with a huge open category of cool birds and slowly whittle this mass down to one-on-one match ups for the final places. Many hundreds of people have voted in the various “matches” and the results have been somewhat surprising. It is always difficult to rank birds, and there are always so many complexities that weigh in to the consideration, but I believe that Gunnar’s approach was rather ingenious in that it used the averaging-out effect of masses of data/opinions (let’s call it democracy) and a simplification (one-on-one comparisons) to come up with something of a ranking.
Check out a run-down of the birds that made it in to the final 16 in the World Bird Cup.
The stunning Snowy Owl (aka Hedwig) made it in to the last 16 of the World Bird Cup, only to be knocked out by Wilson's Bird of Paradise. Image (c) John Afdem www.johnafdem.com
Dendroica Farewell:
new classification for the American warblers
by Kenn Kaufmann
One of our most popular posts this year was a fascinating look at USA/Canadian wood warbler classification, with specific reference to the familiar genus of “Dendroica“.
We had been hearing rumbles for several years about how the classification of the American warblers was open to some question. Still, for field purposes, it was very useful to think of the genus Dendroica as the most “typical” warblers, the most colorful, flighty, highly patterned ones, and then deal with those other genera that differed somewhat. Well, we can’t do that now, because the genus Dendroica is ceasing to exist.
KK: The artist formerly known as Dendroica: This Black-throated Green Warbler, photographed in northwest Ohio in May 2011, is on its way to a new classification in the genus Setophaga. photo/Kenn Kaufman.
The Big Year Movie
by a few of us
As expected, the upcoming release of a Hollywood movie about birders attracted a lot of attention in the birding world in 2011, and we were not immune to this, publishing a number of posts with on-set photos and the first trailers and clips as they became available.
Reviews have been somewhat mixed, with birders tending to like it, but many muggles finding the whole idea of birdwatching and birders to make for a “stupefyingly boring movie”. Judging by the box office results, I suspect Fox might be regretting having made this movie. Does anyone know anything about any visible (or not) effects that the movie has had on birding/bird conservation in the USA?
Christalino Jungle Report
by Rich Hoyer
Rich’s posts from the depths of the Brazilian Rainforest will have resulted in one of two emotional reactions from his readers: you will either have felt inspired to get to your nearest neighbourhood tropical jungle, or you would have felt uncontrollable jealousy/rage. Rich talks about the Sunbitterns as we talk about Sparrows (well almost):
I’m blown away by taxonomic oddities such as the monotypic family (containing just one species) Eurypygidae. Based on recently analyzed genetic evidence, it and the Kagu from New Caledonia were removed from the clumsy giant order Gruiformes and placed in their own order, Eurypygiformes. One order, two families, two species, and an entire hemisphere apart. Hooray for plate tectonics.
I’ve been guiding lots of guests at Cristalino Jungle Lodge lately, and since everyone gets to see Sunbittern, I try to get them equally fascinated with this species – not only its taxonomy but also its mind-blowing wing pattern, visible only when it flies. It never fails to please.
One of Rich Hoyer's incredible images of the Sunbittern
Banded Pitta in Southern Thailand
by Alex Vargas
Alex joined birdingblogs in September 2011 with an absolute bang. Over the past few months he has captivated us with his incredible photography and the way he weaves a tale around his bird and birding adventures. His Banded Pitta post blew my mind away. If you do not know it, take the time to visit it and be delighted.
Early morning, Khun Sak (Khun in Thai is equivalent to Mister) took us into the jungle and after passing 3 streams and “sweating a river“, we got to the end of the trail. There, at a very dark and humid spot with a mix of dense vegetation and bamboo, 3 other Thai photographers were inside their blinds already and the magic started right away!… it was surreal!… Meanwhile we got our pop-up blinds set up, the female came so close -checking on the mealworms’ box!- that I couldn’t connect in my brain how this was the bird I had aimed to approach and photograph for such a long time! The male kept his distance a few steps away, hiding a bit…
One of Alex Vargas' (c) incredible photos of the Banded Pitta
Featured Bird Butt Blogger of the Week
by Dawn Fine
Dawn did a whole long series of blog posts featuring a “Bird Blogger of the Week” and they were inevitably excellent and always a great read, but one of her posts really stood out to me. Dawn writes:
If you are at all into looking at Birdie Butts, … you will appreciate this fun, amusing blog. If you are having a bad day and need to smile…..just go over to Dave’s blog for a bird Butt fix, you wont be disappointed!
The post is about Dave Lewis of Birds from Behind – “Miscellaneous ramblings about trying to photograph the proper side of a bird.”
Northern Cardinal butt by Dave Lewis
Birding is not a blog
by Tom McKinney
The future of birding
by Gunnar Engblom
British Birders – a separate subspecies
by Dale Forbes
I have lumped these three posts together because they are all more like longer editorial pieces than traditional blog posts and take a critical look at who we are as birders, what motivates us, what is truly important, and the meaning of everything.
Inca Tern Eyegasm
by Gunnar Engblom / Alfredo Fernandez
A photo blog post that will blow your mind. It blew mine.
Inca Tern (Larosterna inca) by Alfredo Fernandez
Interview with the Digiscoper of the Year 2011: Tara Tanaka
by Dale Forbes
Tara was a deserving winner of this year’s Digiscoper of the Year competition and the interview I did with her was really interesting and inspiring. Be inspired. Go digiscoping 😉
Tara's winning image of a Roseate Spoonbill
I hope you enjoyed these posts as much as I did.
Happy birding,
Dale Forbes