Monday, April 28, 2008

Texas Big Sit Update #3

Monday, April 28, 2008
6 comments
Great-tailed grackle.

When the rains come, they run and hide their heads.


The end of our Big Sit on South Padre Island was hastened by the rains which arrived late in the afternoon and brought a dark, wet, windy curtain down on an otherwise fabulous day.

We finished with 127 species. It looks like we did not win the Big Sit category for the Great Texas Birding Classic, but we certainly are the champions in the category of Most Fun Had Inside a 17-foot Diameter Circle.

Some highlights-n-tidbits:
  • This was my highest Big Sit total ever.
  • We set a new Big Sit record (127) for the location of our Sit, the South Padre Island convention center, beating the record of 124 set by another team last year.
  • I believe we saw and heard at least 300 dickcissels.
  • Ben Lizdas of Eagle Optics, the team's co-sponsor, got a life bird: magnificent frigatebird.
  • The tie-dyed shirts I made for the team with anis stencilled on them were a hit (team photo coming soon).
  • We ate like pigs, slept barely a wink, and laughed in the face of the elements.
  • Oh and we saw some totally ossum birds (more pix of them coming, too).

6 comments:

On April 28, 2008 at 11:30 AM Patrick Belardo said...

Sorry you didn't win Bill, but sounds like an awesome time!

On April 28, 2008 at 10:39 PM Mary said...

Congratulations on a great Big Sit! Glad you're having a blast. Love that grackle photo!

On April 29, 2008 at 6:35 AM Jayne said...

Sounds like you made up for not winning in the fun that was had by all! Can't wait to see the photos. :c)

On April 29, 2008 at 7:52 AM nina at Nature Remains. said...

What fun!
Even not winning--the time spent with others, watching and wondering--a great way to gather.

On April 29, 2008 at 3:58 PM Deborah said...

Dear Bill,
I am a complete stranger. My name is Deborah Meyler, and I live in England, and my church asked me to paint a picture to welcome new people to the church in the autumn. I was a bit stuck, and I had seen the silhouette of you on Indigo Hill, and so I "borrowed" it for the poster, but I changed you into St Anthony, with birds. So this has been troubling my conscience a little bit, because I snaffled it without asking, although it wasn't for profit. Would you like me to send you a jpeg of the picture? Yours, Deborah Meyler. (My email is deborahmeyler at america online, but you have to change it to make it into a real one.)


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