PeterHG's year

[PeterHG]

Thank you @@Treepol. We enjoyed Sri Lanka, with all its colourful birds, very much. For me Sinharaja, Bundala NP and Yala NP ( though rather crowded) stood out.

[PeterHG]

With no major trips coming up, additions to this years list are few and far between, but a trip to the coast sometimes helps . At the port of IJmuiden (gateway to Amsterdam) there are two piers sheltering the harbour and the southern one stretches some 3 kilometres into the North Sea. In autumn and winter a walk along the pier may yield some interesting birds. The first one was a Shag, rather uncommon in Holland.

 

226. Shag

Edited October 23, 2016 by PeterHG

[PeterHG]

227. Eurasian Rock Pipit. I have seen them on almost every trip to the IJmuiden pier, but never managed to get a decent photo. I got lucky today.

 

[PeterHG]

228. Jack Snipe. It was hiding among the basalt blocks, completely confident that its camouflage plumage would make it invisible. Well, it almost did.

 

[PeterHG]

228. Sanderling. One of my favorite waders.

 

 

[PeterHG]

229. Turnstone. One other wader that is almost always present at the pier. And sometimes quite confiding.

 

[PeterHG]

Ah, those first two sanderlings look remarkably alike:). Too late to edit....

[Tdgraves]

@@PeterHG love the snipe peeping out from the rocks

[michael-ibk]

Excellent shots of the Snipe and Pipit, well done - how close were you? (Very much, it seems). Agree about the Sanderlings - they are really fun to watch, always active, always running or picking.

[PeterHG]

Excellent shots of the Snipe and Pipit, well done - how close were you? (Very much, it seems). Agree about the Sanderlings - they are really fun to watch, always active, always running or picking.

 

Thanks @@Tdgraves and @@michael-ibk! I must have been about 4 meters from both the Snipe and the Pipit, so, yes, quite close!

[PeterHG]

The day after IJmuiden I took trip to another coastal location: the 'Maasvlakte'. Not the most attractive area, close to the Rotterdam port, with many refineries etc. But also some interesting strips of green, which may attract lots of migrant birds on a good day. Let's say my day was average, with some year firsts.

231. Redwing. Quite a few about (I used 228 twice, so I'm skipping a number....)

 

Edited October 25, 2016 by PeterHG

[PeterHG]

232. Horned Lark, a nice surprise.

 

[PeterHG]

233. Common Redpoll

 

[PeterHG]

234. Goldcrest. So hard to take a good shot of these tiny birds.

 

 

[Atdahl]

@@PeterHG. Great shots Peter. Love that Goldcrest. It's also nice to see a bird that is aptly named.

 

Alan

[TonyQ]

@@PeterHG

Lovely shot of the Goldcrest - they are always hiding in the shade when I see them! The Jack Snipe is excellent.

[elefromoz]

@@PeterHG, well you sure got a lovely shot of that sweet little Goldcrest. I'm really enjoying all the "waders" from everyone. I'm with @@TonyQ in saying that Waders really grow on you and I could see they could become quiet addictive.

[PeterHG]

I have not been able to do a lot of birding in november and december 2016, but well, I got a few more additions. Not great shots, but new ones for the year anyway

 

235. Velvet Scoter (Almere ). Long way off, but what a beautiful duck

 

[PeterHG]

236. Willow Tit.

Skittish, so almost impossible to get a good shot of.

 

 

[PeterHG]

237. Red Crossbill.

High up in the trees. A male, though, is always nice.

[PeterHG]

Well, that concludes the Big Year 2016 for me. I have thoroughly enjoyed participating, if only to admire the contributions from around the world and seeing all the beautiful photos! Also it made me more conscious of the species I photographed and to realize that I managed to take photos of 237 species out of a total of 381 I saw last year, is very satisfying! And I have 2017 to look forward to, starting at the end of this week with a trip through southern South Africa and the Kgalagadi. Go for it, @@xelas and @@michael-ibk , you both have an amazing number! Thanks all for joining.

Edited January 4, 2017 by PeterHG

[michael-ibk]

Thank you, @@PeterHG , I thoroughly enjoyed you thread and am looking forward very much to your 2017 contributions! Have a great time in South Africa!

[xelas]

The battle is all in @@michael-ibk hands now. I wish him to get to top, he desreves the first place. Ourselves, we have already started collecting birds for 2017, with first 10 or so species from Barbados.

 

@@PeterHG congratulations for 2016 count yet I can see 2017 will be even better!

[Peter Connan]

@@PeterHG, reading your thread has been a constant delight, with very interesting birds and excellent photos.

 

If by any change you are stopping at OR Tambo in JHB, give me a shout?

[PeterHG]

@@PeterHG, reading your thread has been a constant delight, with very interesting birds and excellent photos.

 

If by any change you are stopping at OR Tambo in JHB, give me a shout?

Thank you @@Peter Connan! I have definitely also enjoyed your contributions and hearing about the time you spent with @@xelas. It does not look like we'll be going to JHB on this trip, but there is no doubt we'll go there again in the future. I do want to back to Kruger and to places like Wakkerstroom etc. I would be delighted to meet you on such an occasion.