Global Big Day 2021: A Record-Breaker for Birds Caribbean!

 

On Saturday, May 8th, birders and BirdsCaribbean members around the world went outside birding to celebrate Global Big Day—the biggest birding day of the year which is timed to coincide with peak spring migration for many places in the USA. Approximately 53,000 participants joined in the fun—with 365 observers representing the West Indies and submitting 1,995 checklists—way to go!

This year, observers found 364 species in the West Indies—beating last year’s record by a whopping 19 species! (see Figure 1). Cuba clinched the lead for most species seen—161, followed by Puerto Rico at 139 species, The Bahamas coming in hot at 131 species, Dominican Republic close behind at 127 species, Jamaica swinging in at a nice 104, and Cayman islands finishing with a solid tally of 94 species.

And more Caribbean “eBirders” too… continue reading 

The Barbados Birds and Birding Report – April

Yellow-crowned Parrot

In April the birding was still very slow and as the dry season continued the water began to disappear.  Wet lands spanning from Chance Hall’s Pond in the north and Chancery Lane in the south were all being affected.  We were still able to add three year- birds to the islands checklist ending the month at 82 species.   The new birds were African Collared-Dove (Streptopelia roseogrisea), Willet (Tringa semipalmata), Orange-winged Parrot (Amazona amazonica), and the other local Amazona, the Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala).

April Rare Bird Sightings
Here are the rare birds seen during the month, highlighted below parish by parish. (* continuing Birds)

St. Andrew

• American Coot (Fulica Americana)*(10+) over ten individual birds at Walkers.
• American Coot (Fulica Americana)* One bird at Bawdens

St. George

• American Coot (Fulica Americana)* - one of a pair at a Redland Irrigation pond, maybe preparing to nest.
• American Coot - Red Shielded (Fulica Americana)* - one of a pair at a Redland Irrigation pond.  Confirmation of red-shielded was made by photograph but unsure of the other bird's status.

St. John

• Fulvous Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna bicolor)- one seen at a private location.

Christ Church

• Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)* – Seen at Chancery Lane and a private location.
• American Coot (Fulica Americana) (4) - Adult with two juveniles plus an orphaned juvenile  at a private pond.

St. Michael

• Snail Kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) our star raptor is still here at Bay Street on its usual perch, preying on red crabs. (see this)

Birds Caribbean Global Big Day 2021 Fundraiser campaign

For this year's World Migratory Bird Day and Global Big Day , the birders of this lovely island have joined the BirdsCaribbean Global Big Day 2021  Fundraiser campaign.  Our team is called "Bajan Birders" visit our page and donate to this worthy cause.

The Global Big Day 2021

We are just one week away from The Global Big Day bird count on May 8^th.   Last year over 50,000 persons in over 150 countries recorded 6,538 species in just one day.  Barbados contributed 46 species to the count, which was the 123^rd highest out of 153 countries, and 12^th out of 25 countries in the West Indies.  Our best species year thus far was 2017 when we saw 53 species, including a rare Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus).  Can we reach 55 species in 2021?  We can with your help, here is how you can participate.

How to participate

• Get an eBird account: eBird is a worldwide bird checklist program used by millions of birders. It’s what allows us to compile everyone’s sightings into a single massive Global Big Day list—while at the same time collecting the data to help scientists better understand birds. Signup here. It’s 100% free from start to finish.
• Watch birds on 8 May: It’s that simple. You don’t need to be a bird expert or go out all day long, even 10 minutes of birding from home counts. Global Big Day runs from midnight to midnight in your local time zone. You can report what you find from anywhere in the world.
• Enter what you see and hear in eBird: You can enter your sightings via our website or download the free eBird Mobile app to make submitting lists even easier. Please enter your checklists before 11 May to be included in our initial results announcement.
• Watch the sightings roll in: During the day, follow along with sightings from more than 170 countries in real-time on our Global Big Day page.

So get those birds in to ebird and join the count - Stay safe you’ll and enjoy your birding. 

Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival 2021 encourages participants to “Sing, Fly, Soar — Like A Bird”

The Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival (CEBF), now in its 21st year, announces its return for a month-long celebration of the region’s endemic birds! This year’s theme is “Sing, Fly, Soar — Like a Bird!” We will learn about our feathered friends, exploring their beautiful songs and astounding power of flight. Their flight expresses pure freedom and their songs reach out to us, as we connect with them and reflect on their amazing journeys with mixed feelings of envy and admiration. Who hasn’t wished they were able to slip “the surly bonds of Earth” and “danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings”?* These emotions stir us as we embrace this evocative theme. read more here>