One of my goals this year is to read, on average, a book a week.  Plan is to alternate Fiction/Non-fiction.  First up in the non-fiction is this one I've been eyeing for a long time.  I have it feeling it might support some arguments I have related to eponymous bird names.    

I've been putting this off long enough.  I've tried to not be too disappointed with not hitting 220 for the year.  It just wasn't in the cards with the way the weather hit at the end of the month.  I didn't even head back out until the 30th.  One highlight prior to the 2 day sprint at the end of the year was 2 Great Horned Owls calling back and forth.  The 30th and 31st had very few highlights also.  Hart's Lake I was able to get some audio recordings of Bald Eagle and Mute Swan for the first time.  It was truly an amazing sight with 38 Mute Swans and 34 Trumpeter Swans calling out.  The Mute Swans were a high count for the County.  I also got a flagged high count of Gadwalls at 28.  

Hart's Lake looked good, but most of the other lakes were relatively empty of birds.  Really was just a kick in the junk to nab any more birds.  I thought maybe some owls might come through, but I decided to go Duck Lake and hit J DR N for Short-eared.  Problem was when I got there, a couple of hunters were giving me crap when I pulled up there.  According to them there were no owl because it had been "sprayed".  By that time it was too late to try another spot I had thought might be a chance.  So I ended at 218 for the year.  Still the best year ever.  

So to look at the positives of the year.

• I saw 4 County Lifers this year (White-winged Crossbill, Connecticut Warbler, Whimbrel and Red-necked Phalarope)
• Found 2 1st County records (Whimbrel and Red-necked Phalarope)
• 14 Current year Code 4 and 5 (after recalculating with new data it popped up to 16)
• 3 Super rare birds, and first Spring records all within 1/2 mile and 5 minutes of each other (Black-bellied Plover, Franklin's Gull and White-rumped Sandpiper)
• I only missed seeing 8 birds that were seen in the county.  That is normally 15.  Only 2 are ones I dipped on, and that was due to the "sickness" causing me to wait till I could try for them.  
• That means I saw 96.5% of the birds in the county.  I tried to look at each county, but eBird still counts the domestics/escapees.  Hard to tell how really good that is.  With those birds included I was 9th best.  Still pretty darn good.  
• 2nd county records of Black-necked Stilt and Amerian Avocet happened this year, after 1st records last year.  
• A very good candidate for Eastern Palm Warbler.  
• Multipled Long-billed Dowitchers on the same day
• The largest group of American Golden-Plovers we have had with 24, one nearly full breeding plumage male.  
• High county for the county of 203 Lapland Longspur
• The county had a new high of 226 species
• North Carolina trip got me 7 more lifers this year.  
• New early state record for Solitary Sandpiper 3/20
• New Early/Late Records
  • 54 new early records
  • 12 late migrant records (Spring-fall, Winter)
  • 8 early migrants (Spring-fall, Winter)
  • 23 Late yearly records
• First Spring records for me of Black-bellied Plover, Franklin's Gull, White-rumped Sandpiper.
• First Fall record for me of Golden-winged Warbler and Forster's Tern

Have not done much so far this year, with really the only thing being out and about for the Albion CBC.  Not a bad trip as I hit 30 birds.  That is a good CBC around here.  I don't plan on going too crazy this year.  Highly doubtful I hit 200 this year.  Have to focus on some other things this year with my free time.