Day 65 - Keeping Secrets

The first week of March came and went in a hurry.  I was able to get out birding and actually add 4 year birds during the week.  None of the 4 were anything that would make or break the year.  All were birds I expected to see at some point this spring.  It just so happened that I got them this week.  My first new species of March was a Dancing Bellower that I heard, but couldn't manage to get a good look.  I'll see some later in the spring, and probably in the year, but was a little disappointed in the audible only.  The 2nd new bird made up for it with incredible visuals.  My first Angry Thief of the year turned into several Angry Thieves.  What a show they put on as I watched in both amusement and awe.  These creatures simply make birding a joy.

At least 2 other possibilities slipped by on the morning of the bellower and thief outing.  One will require a few trips to make sure I nail it down, while the other should be arriving any day now in small numbers and remain into the fall.  The 3rd new species of the month wasn't anything out of this world either.  A flyby group of Lower Stirrers made a couple passes while I scoped for other birds.  These will be a constant most of the year, and it was just a fluke it took this long to track some down.

The 4th and final new bird of the month and year was a half unexpected Steppe Singer.  It showed up during an expected migration window at a location where they do pop up form time to time--but I had no expectations of seeing one when I did.  It was an exciting find, because I had missed this species previously this winter.  Yes--said species can be found year round in Narnia, sometimes in the same places year round, while in others it inexplicably leaves depending on the season.

4 birds down and 21 to go to reach my end of March goal.  I am looking at trying to track down 2 birds this week that have been around most of the winter, that I've missed while hoping to find them on my own.  At some point you have to throw in the towel and admit defeat--in this case it means chasing.  That's the least of my worries at the moment.  There are two birds I badly need for my year list.  1 is found most winters, but in such small numbers and long distances from the shire (new name for my home) that if you miss it when you're near it, you might be out of luck.  The other used to be a winter only find here--but in recent years has been found year round.  However, I've missed it thus far.  Do I simply let it go for now and hope for the best in November and December?  Or do I do the unthinkable--tell everyone in my life different stories about what I am doing one day and go try to find them?

Keeping some secrets on an undercover big year doesn't bother me.  But if I take a day and just disappear to go look for birds in a remote area of Narnia, I have to get all my preverbal ducks in a row to make sure my stories line up.  I may not have to worry about making the decision though.  I might be making a weekend trip with family and/or friends to the area these birds are found--if that happens and I don't find the birds, I will probably let it go.  But if for some reason we don't make the journey, then I might put weight on my back up plan.  All the what ifs start running through my head, and I wonder is this the right chase to do this on?  Are there going to better birds later that I need to do this for?  What if I do this and miss the birds? So many questions, decisions, and choices...

New birds today: 4
Year List: 154

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