Yard Squad Challenge

 Did you know there is such a thing as Fantasy Birding?  I didn't either until I got drawn into the competition from the real world side.  Fantasy Birding, like fantasy football or baseball, is an 'armchair' way to be a birder from the comfort of your own home.  So for anyone who likes competition and likes birds but is more of a fair-weather nature fan, go check out fantastybirding.com.

Red-tailed Hawk- species I can find throughout the challenge. (digibinned)

Now what does this have to do with me?  Well, the organizer of the website is also hosting real world birding competitions, that will also have a fantasy component.  Around 125 folks from around the world, divided into 12 teams, will go out and try to see the most bird species possible over a 3-month period during spring migration.  Each individual person will bird within their "yard" patch, up to a 5-mile radius circle.  The 5-mile circle just happens to be the same as my other competition, so now I have double the motivation.  

Bufflehead (male)- wintering ducks will be early targets

Going through the checklists from eBird hotspots over the past 100+ years, I have the potential for around 195 species, although a few of those were one-time vagrants.  The reality is seeing 150 species during this time would be a amazing.  The clock for me starts at midnight today EDT, and I can't wait to get going!  If you'd like to follow along with my progress (outside of the blog) and even join the competition as a fantasy birder, I encourage you to go check out the website.  My team is the American Dippers, although hopefully we don't dip on too many species.  

Common Goldeneye- most of my images will probably be this bad but the species is clear.

I have a list of target species to get started with as soon as possible and my plan is to start with a stop at a local pond tomorrow on my way home from work.  We also get points for adding media to our sightings, so maybe you'll get to see some horrible photos of birds as I see them.  And on top of all this, I still have some bird species to confirm breeding in for the CT Breeding Bird Survey but more on that next time!