My list was unsurprising, although probably more representative of what species I photograph most and not which species I’ve genuinely observed most. Surf scoter should probably be higher than white-winged, but I see both all the time. Forest birds are definitely underrepresented compared to shorebirds/waterfowl since they’re harder to photograph.
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Well for example the main reason that Common Ringed Plover is my number 3 is that one day I was looking for a super rare Semipalmated Plover known to occur at one place in Tenerife. But I couldn’t really ID them on the spot, so I just took photos of every individual … and since I had them, why not putt them on iNat.
In a smiliar vein - no, I am not the world’s biggest fan of Meadow Pipit, I am just always trying to find another species between those.
On the other hand, there is nothing to confuse House Sparrow with … but it’s a very easy species to find during a random stop somewhere and this immensely helps in filling in the map!
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And I have both you and @texas_nature_family for Whistling Ducks, and Whistling Ducklings, on a day when I needed a smile. Thank you both.
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I usually see swallows when I’m paddling my kayak (in Vermont). Sometimes they are so active, I just float for a long time watching them, and take countless videos on my phone, just to get a few identifiable frames. I can only catch them on the wing, because when they land, it is in the dense trees on the shore.
When they are silhouetted agains the sky, the best photos (with adjusted exposure) turn out like this:
The photos are much better when they are flying low over water, like these tree swallows. (I didn’t adjust these at all)
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/225591765
It feels magical to me, watching them!
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I’m not used to it saying that House Sparrows are native. Or just calling European Robins “Robin” and calling Eurasian Nuthatches just “Nuthatch”
Also I thought the Great Spotted Woodpecker was a Downy Woodpecker for a few seconds. Why do 2 Goldfinches have the same common name too??
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3 days ago I saw a Red-bellied Woodpecker pecking on a wooden utility pole. And it got something out of a hole on there that looked like a insect, I couldn’t take a photo of it, though, because it flew away.
I don’t want to get too off-topic, but FYI phone mounts for tripods are also a thing!
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One is Goldfinch and the other is Greenfinch
Wow! I wish places like those existed near my home, but they don’t. Good photos though!
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A helpful tool that I can afford!? IT’S AN EARLY CHRISTMAS MIRACLE (Things like this don’t happen often,ok? This would save me a lot of pain in photography.). I know what I’m asking for Christmas this year!
:D
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And you probably never will unless you specifically look for them nesting. Swifts stay in the air for (almost) all their lives, even sleeping on the wing.
As for photographing them, I find getting even bad record iPhone pictures is distinct enough for an ID, like https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/193198609. However, there is only 1 species of swift where I am located, and they are distinct enough from the swallows and martins, so idk how much that would affect your results…
Ha! On the contrary, I’m not used to calling a thrush dressed up like a ‘European’ robin just a robin! :)
Two which I think are missing are Collared Dove and Jackdaw. The doves, they come in hoards to the garden, and I have prioritized photographing others over them, which is maybe why they didn’t make the cut. I’m more surprised about Jackdaws, since they are almost as frequent as rooks in my area, and I cast my attention to them more or less equally. They did make it into the top 15 however.
I’m also a little surprised at mallard being in top 3, as I don’t feel like I have taken that much photos of them, lol. I suppose they will always creep into the top though…
Woodpigeons and herring gulls are my go to when I visit a new place and I want to fill in squares. :)
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Next time a swift flies by I’ll try to get a distinct enough photo. Thanks! Also, swifts can sleep while flying?! How? I didn’t even know that was possible!
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And smale foweles maken melodye / That slepen al the nyght with open ye
They sleep on one side, so they have one eye open and the other closed. I don’t think Chaucer knew that one side of the brain controls the other side of the body though.
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Cool! The more you know!
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… Thats all I have! Literally, the closest thing to an uncommon species I’ve ever seen is probably a crested serpent eagle, but thats it. The rest are common if you visit, like, any indian bird sanctuary (Or a good garden).
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I’m not a birder either, but isn’t this just a filtering of your observations by bird species and ranked by no. of observations of each that were submitted to iNat?
Then it makes sense that most people have submitted more local species.
Or by ‘favourite’ did you think it was something more subjective?
The problem with this ranking is that it reveals frequency of submissions but not actual real observation, with or without a camera.
By that measure I wouldn’t even need to run to the database. I’d just go something like,
- house sparrow
- mourning dove
- junko
- robin
- ring-bill gull
- mallard
- Canada goose …
And so on.
Like bugwatching, I don’t even come close to submitting a species observation record based on the actual distribution of species actually observed. I might post a couple of the common ones and move on, unless I find them doing something pretty unique.
(How many terabytes of server space can iNat spare for a collection consisting entirely of lake midges?)
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I did not ask for favorites.
What I did ask:
What do your top 10 most observed birds say? Do you think it is accurate? Any surprises? anyone missing who you would expect to be there who is not?
I do not intend to draw any scientific data/conclusions from this thread.
edit to add: I just ran your bird observations and none of the species you name appear in your top 10, so I think you must utilize iNaturalist differently than I do. I suspect we each find our own way which works best for what we need/want to do.
Happy birding/bugging.
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