Happy New Year everyone!

I'm not usually one that likes e-mail threads, but what the heck, hope this
is alright with everyone to start.

I thought it would be fun to do some reflection on the past year's birding
experiences of 2001, and hope that some of you will do the same. I figure,
why not try to see what everyone's bird or birds of the year are, maybe some
of your 2001 highlight experiences and so forth. Besides it gives everyone
one last time to brag about some of their killer bird sightings over the
last 365, since now (for those of us who keep year lists) the slate is wiped
clean and the fun and excitement of seeing as many birds as you can again
begins. Having all the real common birds again bring a jump of adrenaline
and excitement. (Not meaning I don't like to observe the common species
after that!) Anyways, My birds of the year. I have several, as it was hard
to pin it down to just one.

For Washington, my bird of the year happened real early in January, when
that chocolate brown bodied, huge wingspan of an albatross with a bright
bubblegum pink bill flew by the Monte Carlo 40 miles off Westport. 1.
Short-tailed Albatross. Wilson's Storm-Petrel was pretty cool too. A
distant third and fourth were the Little Curlew, and Mourning Warbler. What
can I say, I'm a seabird NUT!

I didn't't bird that much in Oregon last year, but I did one pelagic, and
seeing breeding plumaged Ancient Murrelets calling at point blank range.

Not one bird really comes to mind for my birding adventures in California,
though one particularly CRAZY chase with Shawn Steinberg does. Probably the
craziest chase of them all last year. Driving on mountain passes throughout
the night 12 hours to get to Stinson Beach for the Greater Sandplover, then
driving another 6-7 hours to get to Southern California for the Nuttings.
But it took us a few days (and many more hours of driving back and forth
from Ventura to Orange County) to actually get the bird, then immediately
driving 20 hours back home.

Arizona, I'd say the Broad-billed Hummingbird was the coolest bird. Close
second was the Magnificent, then third the Berylline. Though Montezuma
Quail was pretty trippy. No Oceanfront property in Arizona, so no seabird
on the top :(

Mexico, how can I not go with Tufted Jay? They were sweet! Chestnut-sided
Shrike-Vireo second. Actually beat out Cook's Petrel amazingly.

Hawaii I'd have to go with Puaiohi (Small Kauai Thrush) probably because it
was my most expensive bird ever! Though 12 or so Mottled Petrels on a
pelagic off Kauai was awesome. (It always goes back to seabirds).

BC: Ivory Gull, hands down.

....Oh nevermind, the Dark-rumped Petrel that flew across the bow of the boat
30 meters in front of me this past summer on my SoCal CALCOFI research
cruise was my bird of the year for California! Silly me! Almost forgetting
a seabird! And a 10th ABA record at that! I have some photos from that
trip scanned, but AT&T is being a pain as usual and can't upload quite yet

My 2001 year list standings: Washington State: 332, ABA
(BC,WA,OR,CA,AZ,MS): 477, ABA plus Mex and Hawaii: 609.

I actually tied my personal high of 332 for my WA year list which I did last
year. Heck I may have given Marv a run for his money had I not been out of
the state for about 2 months or so. Naa I still wouldn't have gotten 359!
Must have been a good pelagic year.

And now Marv had to put the year list mark at a very high level. Congrats
Marv, of course that 359 will sure to grow once the AOU splits the Fox
Sparrows and Common Teal in a few years or decades or so. Seems
unbeatable... but thats what they said about Mark McGuire's home run record
;-)

Quick prediction of 1st state records for Washington in 2002.

Streaked Shearwater
Crested Auklet
Terek Sandpiper
I can always dream!

But of course the thing that made this last year great was birding with a
lot of awesome people from whom I learned alot from, meeting a lot of new
people and sharing a lot of great experiences out in the field. And I look
forward to learning as much as I can in the field again this year. My new
years resolution is to do more studying of the birds in the field studying
plumage and molt more. And to take alot of pictures with my new Camera and
lens (I Love Ebay!)

Hope everybody has a great new year, and plenty of birds!
Ryan

----Ryan Shaw
----Lacey, Washington
----rtshaw80 at hotmail.com
----(360) 491-1084
----AIM: RTShaw80

----------This machine will not communicate,
---These thoughts and the strain I am under,
------------Be a world child, form a circle,
---------------------Before we all go under,
-------------------------And fade out again
~Radiohead~


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