It's year 3 of birds!!
At the end of 2021 I decided that 2022 was going to be my first real attempt at a 'Big Year', or at least the biggest big year I could really practically do.
A Big Year in simple terms is where bird watchers/enthusiasts spend a the year attempting to see and identify as many different species of birds in the wild as possible. There are leader tables that include the US & Canada and Worldwide birders but the traditional Big Year can end up being terrible for the environment, of which is home to the beautiful birds being spotted, due to the amount of travel undertaken, including numerous flights throughout the year.
That being said, my Big Year will probably seem like a very Little Year to many as I only stuck to my home counties as well as a couple of places we drove to on small holidays. I have neither the time nor money to dedicate a full 365 to doing nothing but travelling the width and breadth of the UK in search of birds but I can still compete with myself and previous years haha!
Some people also count birds they have phsyically seen, howbere I am only counting those who I have photographed. There were a few awesome bird encounters had in 2022 that were sadly not caught on camera but that's just tough ha.
In 2020 my annual total was 34, with 4 more at 38 in 2021. See the birds I photographed in both 2020 and 2021 in the posts below.
At the end of 2021 I decided that 2022 was going to be my first real attempt at a 'Big Year', or at least the biggest big year I could really practically do.
A Big Year in simple terms is where bird watchers/enthusiasts spend a the year attempting to see and identify as many different species of birds in the wild as possible. There are leader tables that include the US & Canada and Worldwide birders but the traditional Big Year can end up being terrible for the environment, of which is home to the beautiful birds being spotted, due to the amount of travel undertaken, including numerous flights throughout the year.
That being said, my Big Year will probably seem like a very Little Year to many as I only stuck to my home counties as well as a couple of places we drove to on small holidays. I have neither the time nor money to dedicate a full 365 to doing nothing but travelling the width and breadth of the UK in search of birds but I can still compete with myself and previous years haha!
Some people also count birds they have phsyically seen, howbere I am only counting those who I have photographed. There were a few awesome bird encounters had in 2022 that were sadly not caught on camera but that's just tough ha.
In 2020 my annual total was 34, with 4 more at 38 in 2021. See the birds I photographed in both 2020 and 2021 in the posts below.
The Birds of 2020:
The Birds of 2021:
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Carrion Crow
Herring Gull
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Blackbird
Black Headed Gull
Fulmar
European Robin
Common Starling
Rock Dove (Common Pigeon)
House Sparrow
Collared Dove
Wood Pigeon
Dunnock
Blue Tit
Total - 14
What a start to the year!! Can you believe it? 14 birds all taken within 4 miles of our house, many in our own gardens.
As you'll see one of the very first birds we saw in 2022 was a Great Spotted Woodpecker on our walk on the 2nd of January. I was in complete shock and I'm not ashamed to say I had a little cry. It may not seem like the most special of sighting for many but it has been a good few years since I have seen a Woodpecker and I didn't expect it at all!
January was also home to the RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch and the last set of photos were taken on that day - my 9th year taking part - a good few visitors.
I can't wait to continue these monthly posts again this year and see the total of birds I managed to photograph in 2022. I hope to have at least surpassed 50!
Until next time...
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