Global Big Day 2022: Birds Caribbean Continues Record-breaking Streak! by BC

Once again, on Saturday 14th May 2022 the Caribbean birding community showed up and showed out for Global Big Day! Global Big Day is an annual celebration of the birds around you. Birders and bird lovers across the globe spend the day observing and recording essential data about the birds they see. Some also take this opportunity to visit new birding spots, reconnect with colleagues, and tick lifers off their lists. 
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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. 

Global Big Day 2020: birding's biggest team By Team eBird May 13, 2020

Orange-winged Parrot 

Birds always give us an opportunity to keep looking up. In every corner of the world, on every day of the year, birds are migrating, building nests, raising young, and inspiring people everywhere. This past Saturday, more than 50,000 people around the globe stood up, scanned the skies, watched their gardens, and strolled through their local patch to take pleasure in the joy of birds and birding. This is Global Big Day.

This year’s Global Big Day brought more birders together virtually in a single day than ever before in history ... >> continue reading here

Truncated Global Big Day 2020

Yellow-crowned Parrot

Every year I look forward to the Global Big Day but knew this year would be different because of the restrictions that are in place because of COVID-19.  I took advantage of the few hours given for exercising and beach visits, between 5:30 and 9 am,  to do some express birding.  After 2 ½ hours, my bird tally was 32 species including a 1-year bird.  The most eye-raising sighting for the day was what appeared to be a breeding pair of parrots of different species, Orange-winged and Yellow-crowned Parrot. It reminded me of a parrot John Webster photographed which was identified as a hybrid of these two species.  Interesting!!  

On returning home I saw an invitation, by email, to be part of The Flying Pintails (go donate) team as part of Birds Caribbean Global Big Day fundraiser.  The two other birders on the island who were part of the big day, John and Ed, were part of the team President's Perch (go donate).

I got started at 5:40 AM and quickly tick a few common birds like Barbados Bullfinch (Loxigilla barbadensis), Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa), Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita) and the ubiquitous Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto).  My first stop was at Pile Bay for sea birds but only saw  Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), but I added Caribbean Martin (Progne dominicensis), Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola).  As I drove through Bridgetown I got a few feral Rock Pigeons (Columba livia) and then to Belleville to look for Parrots and Parakeets but only saw the Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri).  My next stop was the Graeme Hall Swamp but on my way there I saw two parrots in a tree, a Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala) and Orange-winged Parrot (Amazona amazonica) that I referred to earlier.  A quick drive on the outskirt of the swamp gave me Little (Egretta garzetta) and Snowy Egret (Egretta thula), Green Heron (Butorides virescens) and Common Ground Dove (Columbina passerina). At my next stop, Oistins I added Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla).  From Oistins, I headed for home making a stop at Redland and adding  Sora (Porzana carolina), Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius), and Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria) with my final bird of the morning being Antillean Crested Hummingbird (Orthorhyncus cristatus).  In the late afternoon added my final species for the day Green-throated Carib (Eulampis holosericeus). 

I would have loved to spend the full day birding but I am satisfied with the result of the 2 1/2 hours spent. I hope you guys had a wonderful  World Migratory Bird Day and an  outstanding Global Big Day.

Here is a list of the birds I saw:

1. Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia)
2. Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa)
3. Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
4. Common Ground Dove (Columbina passerina)
5. Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita)
6. Antillean Crested Hummingbird (Orthorhyncus cristatus)
7. Green-throated Carib (Eulampis holosericeus)
8. Sora (Porzana carolina)
9. Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata)
10. Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)
11. Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria)
12. Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla)
13. Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens)
14. Great Egret (Ardea alba)
15. Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
16. Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)
17. Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)
18. Green Heron (Butorides virescens)
19. Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)
20. Yellow-crowned Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala)
21. Orange-winged Parrot (Amazona amazonica)
22. Caribbean Elaenia (Elaenia martinica)
23. Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis)
24. Black-whiskered Vireo (Vireo altiloquus)
25. Caribbean Martin (Progne dominicensis)
26. Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis)
27. Carib Grackle (Quiscalus lugubris)
28. Yellow Warbler (Golden) (Setophaga petechia sp. petechia Group
29. Grassland Yellow-Finch (Sicalis luteola)
30. Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola)
31. Barbados Bullfinch (Loxigilla barbadensis)
32. Black-faced Grassquit (Melanospiza bicolor)

Orange-winged Parrot

Snowy Egret

Rose-ringed Parakeet

Green Heron

Cattle Egret