Burt Guttman wrote:

> I have an impression that the people who lead the expensive tours, like
> VENT, have a knack for being at the right place at just the right time; I
> sometimes feel like I have just the opposite knack. If anyone knows the
> Secret of Success (other than being in the field full-time) or the Magic
> Incantation, I wish they'd share it.

You create your own "luck" by being observant (unbelievably important),
patient and knowing what to look for and when to look for it.

A good example was Dick Veit finding the little stint at Iona Island,
Vancouver. Everybody else was scoping the ponds and (presumably) passed over
the bird as it was roosting. He noticed that the back of the neck was more
rufous then would be the case for a western sandpiper and voila, 3rd record
for BC (?).

However this takes a lot of experience, so I suppose in one way there is no
substitute for being in the field full time !!!

Stuart - aspiring towards competence ;-)
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Stuart MacKay AT&T Wireless Services
Consultant Developer Oakhurst Building
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ph. (206) 702-5151 Bellevue, WA
fax (206) 702-5451 98007

stuart.mackay at mccaw.com
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