Under Clear Skies

I decided to embark on a Bigby or Big Green Big Year (something of an explanation here) to see how many species I could find without burning any fossil fuels. It appeals to me as it is a way of spurring myself to get out as much as I can pre or post-hawkwatching and also to see how many species one can see without having to expend money and hydrocarbons by driving around chasing birds. I am also hoping that it might entice me to get a little bit fitter by encouraging me to get a bike out when the weather gets nicer – lets see!

This page, is really just going to be for keeping my list up to date. I’ll be posting about anything interesting I find etc on the blog. I have highlighted those birds that would be notable for Connecticut (where I do the majority of my living/birding). Many of these are not really so notable up here. rarities found so far include a Barrow’s Goldeneye (self found), American White Pelican (self found at the hawkwatch but had to twitch it for my Bigby list at Salmon Creek) and one twitched Snowy Owl!

Bigby List – 204 Species (bolded birds are those reportable on CT Birds)

Red-Throated Loon

Common Loon

Horned Grebe

Pied-Billed Grebe

Red-Necked Grebe

American White Pelican

Double-crested Cormorant

Green Heron

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Mute Swan

Tundra Swan

Trumpeter Swan (wild birds although probably not officially countable so not included).

Snow Goose

Canada Goose

Brant

Wood Duck

Mallard

American Black  Duck

Gadwall

American Wigeon

Northern Pintail

Northern Shoveler

Canvasback

Redhead

Ring-Necked Duck

Greater Scaup

Lesser Scaup

White-Winged Scoter

Surf Scoter

Long-Tailed Duck

Barrow’s Goldeneye

Common Goldeneye

Bufflehead

Common Merganser

Red-breasted Merganser

Hooded Merganser

Ruddy Duck

Turkey Vulture

Black Vulture

Mississippi Kite

Osprey

Northern Harrier

Golden Eagle

Bald Eagle

Sharp-Shinned Hawk

Coopers Hawk

Northern Goshawk

Broad-Winged Hawk

Red-Shouldered Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

American Kestrel

Merlin

Peregrine Falcon

Wild Turkey

American Coot

Sandhill Crane

Semipalmated Plover

Killdeer

Greater Yellowlegs

Lesser Yellowlegs

Solitary Sandpiper

Spotted Sandpiper

Dunlin

Wilson’s Snipe

American Woodcock

Bonaparte’s Gull

Ring-Billed Gull

Herring Gull

Iceland Gull

Glaucous Gull

Great black-backed Gull

Sooty Tern

Caspian Tern

Common Tern

Rock Dove

Mourning Dove

Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Black-Billed Cuckoo

Long-eared Owl

Great Horned Owl

Barred Owl

Snowy Owl

Eastern Screech Owl

Northern Saw Whet Owl

Common Nighthawk

Whip-poor-will

Chimney Swift

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Belted Kingfisher

Red-Headed Woodpecker

Red-Bellied Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Pileated Woodpecker

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Eastern-Wood Pewee

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher

Alder Flycatcher

Willow Flycatcher

Least Flycatcher

Eastern Phoebe

Great-crested Flycatcher

Eastern Kingbird

White-eyed Vireo

Yellow-throated Vireo

Blue-headed Vireo

Red-eyed Vireo

Philadelphia Vireo

Warbling Vireo

Blue Jay

American Crow

Fish Crow

Common Raven

Horned Lark

Tree Swallow

Purple Martin

Bank Swallow

Cliff Swallow

Northern-rough-winged Swallow

Barn Swallow

Tufted Titmouse

Black-capped Chickadee

Brown Creeper

White-breasted Nuthatch

Red-breasted Nuthatch

House Wren

Winter Wren

Carolina Wren

Marsh Wren

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Eastern Bluebird

Wood Thrush

Swainson’s Thrush

Hermit Thrush

American Robin

Gray Catbird

Northern Mockingbird

Brown Thrasher

European Starling

American Pipit

Cedar Waxwing

Blue-Winged Warbler

Orange-Crowned Warbler

Nashville Warbler

Northern Parula

Chestnut-Sided Warbler

Cape May Warbler

Magnolia Warbler

Yellow-Rumped Warbler

Black and White Warbler

Black-Throated Blue Warbler

Cerulean Warbler

Blackburnian Warbler

Black-Throated Green Warbler

Prairie Warbler

Bay-Breasted Warbler

Blackpoll Warbler

Pine Warbler

Palm Warbler

Yellow Warbler

Mourning Warbler

Connecticut Warbler

Canada Warbler

Wilson’s Warbler

Northern Waterthrush

Common Yellowthroat

American Redstart

Scarlet Tanager

Eastern Towhee

American Tree Sparrow

Field Sparrow

Chipping Sparrow

Clay-colored Sparrow

Fox Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow

Lincoln’s Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Vesper Sparrow

Swamp Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Snow Bunting

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

Northern Cardinal

Indigo Bunting

Bobolink

Eastern Meadowlark

Red-Winged Blackbird

Common Grackle

Rusty Blackbird

Brown-Headed Cowbird

Orchard Oriole

Baltimore Oriole

Purple Finch

House Finch

Pine Siskin

American Goldfinch

Common Redpoll

House Sparrow