2017 Photographic Big Year 81

Week 35 - Even though hundreds of birds are arriving on the island daily, as the southern (fall) migration continues, I am finding it difficult to add to my various checklists.  I am not too worried though as it is still early days and many year birds are expected before years end but you may be surprised to note that the 81^st bird of my 2017 photo challenge is a common bird, a Little Blue Heron.  I waited patiently for weeks, even months, for this juvenile heron, which sported an all-white plumage, to molt into its beautiful purplish-blue adult plumage. A few more day and it will be fully molt.

See images below.  See 2017 Photographic Big Year images here.

81 - Little Blue Heron - Egretta caerulea 

2017 Photographic Big Year 78 - 80

Birds are continuing to trickle in, as the southern migration progresses.  I have seen fair sized flocks of Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Sandpipers and a few Short-billed Dowitchers but was not expecting to see my 78^th bird, White-rumped Sandpiper, this early.  I saw two birds wading on the Sargassum Seaweed infested beaches at River Bay, St. Lucy.  Two other birds were also reported on the eastern coast of the island.

The other birds making their entrance to the 2017 Photographic Big Year gallery were, the Yellow-crowned Parrot⁷⁹ (one of the two parrots found on the island) and the Antillean-crested Hummingbird⁸⁰ (the smaller of the two hummingbirds).

That leaves me with 20 more species to reach my goal of photographing one hundred different species of birds in Barbados this year.  Will I get them?  What other birds will I see? Lifers, rare birds?  Stay tuned to this blog to find out.

See images below.  See 2017 Photographic Big Year images here.

  

78 - White-rumped Sandpiper - Calidris fuscicollis (R)

79 - Yellow-crowned Parrot - Amazona ochrocephala

80 - Antillean Crested Hummingbird - Orthorhyncus cristatus