Animal Log of your native fauna

[JimoAi]

A malayan water monitor walked pass me

[Advicot]

Oh hes Gwangi, I'd love to see some North American birds on your feeders 

JimoAi, you saw a monitor, how big was this specimen?

As I write this post, and school has started, I can see in my garden

Pica pica
Parus major
Parus caeruleus
Parus ater
Turdus merula

[JimoAi]

Oh hes Gwangi, I'd love to see some North American birds on your feeders 

JimoAi, you saw a monitor, how big was this specimen?

As I write this post, and school has started, I can see in my garden

Pica pica
Parus major
Parus caeruleus
Parus ater
Turdus merula

It was a small one

[Advicot]

Ah okay

[JimoAi]

Am cheating Abit as this is a public aquaria but I saw my favourite animal, Mobula Alfredi

[Isidro]

Yesterday I saw the first Iberian wall lizard of the year in my garden and the second Blue tit of the year, plus the usual magpies, collared doves, house sparrows etc

[bmathison1972]

Today I did something fun. On the weekends I usually run 9-12 miles. And since joining eBird I have on occasion stopped to document something as a 'mini checklist'. Today I ran 10+ miles/16+ kilometers (would have gone farther, but I got my second COVID vaccine on Friday and didn't want to push it). I started the app at about mile 3.5 and kept it going until the end of my run. Documented 9 species over 6.5+ miles. I probably could have gotten more, but I am still a 'fledgling' when it comes to bird ID, especially the LBJs. There were three large raptors circling (clearly hawks, not turkey vultures) but they were too far and too high for me to ID (they did look a bit big for Cooper's hawk, which I have seen in the area).

Anyway here is what I saw. Nothing exciting but still fun:
Eurasian collared dove
rock dove
mourning dove
European starling
American robin
black-capped chickadee
dark-eyed junco
house finch
black-billed magpie

I think I have invented a new activity: long-distance running and birding. I call it: 'Fun, Fitness, and Feathers' hahaha

Other than the birds the only wild mammal I saw were the ubiquitous fox squirrels

[Gwangi]

Congrats on the vaccine @bmathison1972. My wife recently got hers, and my sister as well. I afraid that I'm about as low priority as it gets so it will be some time for me. Did you get the Sibley bird book? What did you think of it?

[bmathison1972]

Congrats on the vaccine @bmathison1972. My wife recently got hers, and my sister as well. I afraid that I'm about as low priority as it gets so it will be some time for me. Did you get the Sibley bird book? What did you think of it?

Yes I got Sibley. It's very nice but I have to admit, it seems a bit big for 'field' work. Seems RTP or similar might be better for flipping through quickly in the field. That aside, Sibley appears to be the go-reference overall for North American birds.

[Advicot]

May I ask if it's free to join ebird? as I use that database a lot and I'd love to contribute and just make an observations list etc 

[bmathison1972]

May I ask if it's free to join ebird? as I use that database a lot and I'd love to contribute and just make an observations list etc 

yes, it is free

It's not intended for just an observation list (life list). It is designed to upload specific data (date, location, etc.). If you work off of a desktop or laptop, you can backtrack data, but you'll at least need to add the date and city/town. If you have it on a phone app, it will calculate your location and movement, so when you update a checklist for a specific day and place, it has coordinates.

[Advicot]

Thanks Blaine,

I think I'll use the family computer as it's easier considering I rarely use my phone 

[Gwangi]

Some pictures of the birds during the snow storm we had a couple weeks ago. The feeders are always busiest when it snows.

Downy Woodpecker (female)


Red-Breasted Nuthatch


A variety here. House Finches, Goldfinches, Dark Eyed Juncos, White-Throated Sparrows.


White-Throated Sparrow


Northern Cardinal (male) with some finches.


Red-Bellied Woodpecker (female) with a White Throated Sparrow.


Carolina Wren, taken before the snow.


Carolina Chickadee

[bmathison1972]

nice! there is a white-throated sparrow supposedly hanging around one of the buildings on campus, but I haven't seen it yet (Utah is an atypical winter migration spot, so it's a good find when you see it here). We are supposed to get more snow today/this weekend so maybe I'll see it!

[Gwangi]

nice! there is a white-throated sparrow supposedly hanging around one of the buildings on campus, but I haven't seen it yet (Utah is an atypical winter migration spot, so it's a good find when you see it here). We are supposed to get more snow today/this weekend so maybe I'll see it!

They are, perhaps, my most common feeder bird. Maybe second to house finches.

[bmathison1972]

just stepped outside at work where a co-worker reported spotted tohees and I saw them!!! New species for me!!! There were house finches, Eurasian collared doves, and black-billed magpies too

[Isidro]

Yesterday I saw first blackcap of the year, and first carpenter bees of the year

[stargatedalek]

All of that sounds wonderful, just the usual black capped chickadees and goldfinches at the feeders so far today. Did see the mystery hawk again though, we're thinking it must be a northern harrier with the orange on the underside of the neck it has.

[Newt]

I went for a walk with my Valentine today at a local greenway. We saw lots of white-tailed deer, as well as coyote scat, vole burrows, and squirrel nests, but none of the manufacturers of said artifacts. Plenty of birds, though. In approximate order of abundance, most to least:


American Robin
Song Sparrow
unidentified sparrow
Hermit Thrush
Killdeer
Blue Jay
Black Vulture
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
White-crowned Sparrow
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Red-tailed Hawk
Carolina Wren
Downy Woodpecker

[bmathison1972]

I just went for a short walk too in City Creek, a riparian area with year-round flowing water that is about 10 min walk from my apartment. We got some good snow last night so I hoped birds would be active. Lots of people and their dogs, so maybe bird activity was down (also, I need to invest in binoculars). But I did see these:
1. lesser goldfinch
2. Woodhouse's scrub jay
3. spotted towhees
4. American dipper!!!! (feeding in the creek!!)

Tomorrow I will walk to Liberty Park that has a pond and document waterfowl.