Best moment of 2021? Probably being one of my best years ever for anything, it’s hard to choose what was the best part. October was probably the best for birds (Emperor Goose, Brown Booby, Ancient Murrelet, Northern Fulmar), August the best for lifers. After years of failed attempts, I finally was able to tick all of the woodpeckers off my list.
I made the yearly goals post last year and in terms of keeping those goals:
Birds: 3/3 – Completed
Mammals: 1/3 – Missed Bobcat and American Pika
Reptiles and Amphibians: 0/6
Fish: 1/3 – Missed Bull Trout and Coho Salmon
Insects: 2/3 – Missed apotes
- Reach 2,000 species on my list life – Failed (1,470)
- Reach at least 10th place in Oregon species list – Failed (11th with 1214)
- Reach at least 10th place in Idaho species list – Failed (14th with 441)
- Photograph all the undescribed species of Steiroxys – Failed (3 out of 16 that we know of)
- Photograph the Idaho endemics of Melanoplus and add the first iNat obs – (Failed but I got some previously unobserved species of the genus in Oregon)
Overall Goal Completion: 7/23
NEW GOALS FOR 2022:
- Observe the top 10 life birds on iNat’s Oregon list (Common Murre, Purple Martin, Sooty Grouse, Wrentit, Tufted Puffin, Hermit Warbler, Hutton’s Vireo, Surfbird, Short-billed Dowitcher, Red-throated Loon)
- Observe the top 10 life birds on iNat’s Idaho list (Cordilleran Flycatcher, Pinyon Jay, Red-eyed Vireo, Northern Hawk Owl, Virginia’s Warbler, Black Rosy-Finch, American Redstart, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Red-flanked Bluetail
, White-winged Dove) - If I move to Wyoming this fall, I’d like to bump my state list to 300 species.
- Bump my Orthoptera life list to 100 species.
- Instead of two thousand, let’s set the bar lower and see if can get 1,800 on my life list.