The Big Year of the Littlebirder - 2014 in Review

Where to begin?

2014 was quite the journey. Jen and I celebrated our third year of marriage, which I think techinically graduates us out of the newlywed era, but we're still loving life together like newlyweds, label or not. I also completed two more semesters of my second MA (only one more semester left!), and kept up a job at the college and my church. And along the way, I had my most extensive, intensely concentrated, and successful year of birding to date.

A year ago I laid out my goals, which included 300 for Illinois and 450 for the ABA area. The latter goal took an extra bump when a surprise trip to Florida fell in our laps and made 500 a possibility.

I planned and planned. I executed. I studied. I chased. I documented almost all of it with my camera, mostly for my own sanity, but also to appease any skeptics who didn't know me or who (rightfully!) question the more obscure species on Big Year lists. You can see my 1500+ pics in an album on Flickr at this link (I think a couple got deleted accidentally along the way).

It was interesting balancing a state Big Year effort with significant time spent elsewhere in the country. My time in Illinois had to be focused because by the end of the year I had spent a total of six weeks out of the state! Add that to the two weeks I was out sick at the end, and it seems more like a Big 10 Months - and it makes 309 feel even a little bit better.

I'm really grateful to have had the opportunity to put so much work into an effort like this - having a supportive wife and flexible work schedule made the whole thing both possible and enjoyable. One of my biggest surprises was that I never really burned out. July was pretty slow and I took the chance to rest then when I could. The Fall was generally slower paced than the Spring because it was more about targeting specific species than accumulating as many as possible - and work was much busier in the Fall than the Spring, so the blog definitely took its biggest hit then. But at no point did I feel like throwing in the towel or seriously consider just coasting through to the end.

One of the most important aspects of the year, particularly in Illinois, was the strong start. It's not a necessity, but it sure does take the pressure off the closing months of the year. I was out several times a week and chased everything possible early on, and by the end of March I was already in really good shape for hitting my goal of 300.

I think one of the keys for anyone doing an Illinois Big Year is to plan a couple purposeful, seasonally-appropriate trips to the opposite end of the state in which they live, all the while understanding that a spontaneous chase to the other end will probably be necessary on a couple occasions too. As a northern Illinois resident, I got antsy and wound up taking a couple trips down south earlier in the year than I had anticipated due to winter's unrelenting grip on the northern reaches of the state, and on one of those I was able to pick up the Eurasian Wigeon on the way back. Seeing warblers and shorebirds a little bit earlier than usual was a huge jolt to the morale as well. These boosts were well timed in each case and kept my momentum at a high pace as May approached. One of those nerdy number things that I love - I had seen 215 species in Illinois by the end of April, and in May alone I saw 216 species, even with a one week trip to Arizona in the middle of it all.

I also can't say enough about the importance of planning. This was all the more necessary for me as Illinois was still relatively new territory to me. My main source was eBird, though I also had plenty of interactions over email and phone with the outstanding community that is the Illinois birding world - and in a couple cases I know I missed birds because I didn't make an extra call. But planning helped me know at the end of each month whether or not I was on pace, and the all-knowing Google Doc always kept my needs in front of me (btw, this is something you can do now with eBird's brand new Target Species tool, which is endlessly enjoyable).

To be sure, I generally would not recommend spending so much time outside the state in which you're doing a Big Year, though it hardly cost me a bird and actually wound up being refreshing at times. I found that one of the biggest commitments of birding elsewhere was the prep time involved. With a week long route to prepare for in Arizona, I had a host of new birds to learn, particularly calls. I spent most of the Spring doing bits and pieces of that work along the way. Florida was a different beast because it fell into our laps last minute, and my time to go birding there was more limited, so I had to be ready for new species and condense them into short, efficient trips. Birding in Washington - especially the east side - always feels like returning to my native dialect, so the prep time was less essential in those cases.

All in all, the extra travel and attempt at 500 in the ABA was a reminder that a big list is as much about one's ability to travel as it is anything else. True, you have to know what you're doing to track down specialized stuff like Five-striped Sparrows and Antillean Nighthawks, but for the most part simply showing up in a new region will provide a significant bump to your list. As I reflect back on 2014, I'm grateful that all the trips lined up the way they did and that I was able to find so many tough and new species. In the process, my love and appreciation for traveling and birding locally both grew tremendously. I want to do both for the rest of my life.

And now, the lister in me needs to make some, well, lists:

First, my top 10 birds of 2014 (I'm going to cheat a do a couple ties just to add a couple to the list because I can't narrow it down!):

#1 is a tie between the Slaty-backed Gull and Fork-tailed Flycatcher, neither of which were even remotely on my radar coming into the year.

#2 goes to the Elegant Trogon, which was one of my most desired birds since childhood.

#3 is the Little Gull that Nathan found for me.

#4 is the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, which absolutely blew me away in Arizona.

#5 is the Red-cockaded Woodpecker, mainly because it made me work so hard and I wasn't sure I would find it, then it wound up being my favorite Florida lifer.

#6 is a tie between Five-striped Sparrow and Montezuma Quail, because of the one morning my dad took the wild adventure back to California Gulch and had stunning views of both.

#7 - you know it was a heck of a year when a Northern Hawk Owl gets relegated to a measly #7.

#8 is another tie, between White-eared Hummingbird and Spotted Owl, which again came together in the same spot.

#9 is the Buff-collared Nightjar, which is the coolest sounding bird ever!

#10 is the Hermit Warbler, which as a state lifer for both my dad and me, is the only bird from Washington making this list.

I'm tempted to load this post with all the amazing stuff that happened this year, but I'll restrain myself. It's all on the blog somewhere. Here's a few more remarkable memories that stand out:

With an unprecedented amount of the Great Lakes frozen over due to the Polar Vortex, the waterfowl situation was uncanny. The number of Long-tailed Ducks and Red-throated Loons I got to see in Illinois was truly remarkable.

Also, Red-necked Grebes in six counties was an unexpected accomplishment along the way - I'm an advocate of county listing now more than ever (made all those trips down south more worth it too)!

Finding a Golden Eagle and two White-faced Ibis was an absolute thrill - can't say enough good things about Mason and Fulton Counties.

Not just the quantity, but the high quality of birds Andrew and I tracked down together just this year is pretty incredible. Smith's Longspur, Mottled Duck, Red Phalarope, and Scissor-tailed Flycatcher just start the list.

Breaking the Kane County Big Day record with Andrew and Scott with a whopping 145 in the middle of finals week probably encapsulates the craziness of a Big Year in one day as well as anything else.

The Spring soaked up most of the rarities and didn't leave much for the Fall, though the Lark Bunting at Montrose and the November Pomarine Jaeger were warmly welcomed additions!

Other highlights outside Illinois include point blank looks at Blue-throated Hummingbirds in Arizona...

all the Gray Kingbirds and Swallow-tailed Kites and Limpkins in Florida...

finally seeing Tufted Puffins again in Washington...

and my only day of birding all year spent in Indiana, which turned out to be one of my most incredible days of birding ever, with a highlight reel of Sabines Gulls, Parasitic Jaegers, and my lifer Pomarine Jaegers.

For all the amazing things I did see in 2014, there were still a couple misses that reminded me you just can't always get everything you hope for when it comes to birding. Here are my biggest misses:

Illinois - (these are just misses at the state level) Prairie Falcon, Hudsonian Godwit, and Black-throated Gray Warbler top the miss list because I was mere minutes from seeing each of them. Close competition for runner up includes Common Redpoll, which vertigo essentially prevented me from getting, and Barn Owl, which was a terrible miss, and Sabines Gull, because it was such a great year for them.

Arizona - Black Phoebe was a ridiculous miss, and no Greater Roadrunner stung too.

Florida - Brown-headed Nuthatch really should have happened in a couple different locations.

Washington - Clark's Nutcracker wouldn't cooperate though we tried and tried and tried.

ABA - in addition to these previous three, the Common Redpoll would probably be my worst miss of the year. I also should have seen a Burrowing Owl somewhere along the way.

Additionally, in Illinois, I would have thought that Spotted Towhee, Varied Thrush, Say's Phoebe, Whimbrel, California Gull, and Neotropic Cormorant would all be more likely than 8-10 of rarities I got instead - and that's what I love so much about birding, you just never know.


Here's a fun category I thought of along the way - birds of which I only encountered a single individual throughout the year. This shows just how narrow the margin can be; I could have easily missed 500 and 300, respectively. In addition to these, there's a another handful of species I only encountered once, but had two or more individuals in that lone encounter.

1. Barn Owl - my very first bird of the year flew by on January 1 before dawn for my dad and me, and neither of us saw another one for the rest of the year.
2. Northern Hawk Owl - also January 1, and not surprisingly my only individual of the year.
3. Slaty-backed Gull - mega
4. Fork-tailed Flycatcher - mega
5. Little Gull - so awesome
6. Lark Bunting - I shouldn't have encountered this bird at all last year
7. LeConte's Sparrow - surprising on two accounts, it was a Spring bird, and I didn't see any in the Fall
8. Red Knot - Montrose in the Fall
9. Upland Sandpiper - only had the one at M&M
10. Northern Saw-whet Owl - just one peep at the end of the year
11. Harris's Hawk - surprised we didn't have more in Arizona
12. Zone-tailed Hawk - a single flyby at Cave Creek
13. Juniper Titmouse - Cave Creek
14. Buff-collared Nightjar - ahhhhh
15. Snowy Plover - Wilcox in Arizona
16. Long-billed Curlew - Wilcox in Arizona
17. Elegant Tern - real random bird in Arizona
18. Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet - many syllables, just one individual
19. Violet-crowned Hummingbird - Paton's place
20. Black-capped Gnatcatcher - my dad's 650th ABA lifer
21. Virginia's Warbler - lone, uncooperative bird, found thanks to our guide
22. Black-chinned Sparrow - from the same spot as the Virginia's
23. Buff-breasted Flycatcher - on a killer stretch of road in Garden Canyon, Arizona
24. Mangrove Cuckoo - heard only unfortunately
25. Roseate Tern - nice looks in not so nice light, such a sweet bird
26. Shiny Cowbird - on that day in Florida I had Brown-headed and Bronzed too, crazy
27. Snail Kite - distant, but awesome bird
28. Dusky Grouse - flushed in front of the car on top of Mt. Salmo, Washington
29. Gray-crowned Rosy-finch - last day out birding in Washington

For Illinois:

1. Slaty-backed-gull
2. Fork-tailed Flycatcher
3. Lark Bunting
4. Little Gull
5. LeConte's Sparrow
6. Upland Sandpiper
7. Red Knot
8. Northern Saw-whet Owl
9. Pomarine Jaeger (only one in Illinois, several in Indiana)
10. Eurasian Wigeon (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
11. Mottled Duck (only one in Illinois, many in Florida)
12. Barrow's Goldeneye (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
13. Eared Grebe (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
14. Western Grebe (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
15. Glossy Ibis (only one in Illinois, many in Florida)
16. Laughing Gull (only one in Illinois, many in Florida)
17. Western Sandpiper (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
18. Curve-billed Thrasher (only one in Illinois, many in Arizona)
19. Golden Eagle (only one in Illinois, several in Washington)
20. Townsend's Solitaire (only one in Illinois, many in Washington)
21. Bewick's Wren (only one in Illinois, many in Washington and Arizona)

Also, it would be remiss if I did not include some of the non-avian highlights from the year. One of the best parts of birding is that it gets you out into nature, where beauty abounds and anything could happen at any given moment. People generally think that birders are weird, and that's fair, because we are. But I don't think most realize that for the majority of us, birding is just an excuse to get outdoors, to connect with nature, to get away from the world of screens and meetings and contrived comforts, and instead breathe life from new buds and long trails and delicate intricacies that simply can't follow us back inside. In addition to the host of marvelous sunrises and sunsets that became the standard backdrop of my birding year, I think my favorite non-bird encounters were the baby Red Foxes Andrew and I got to see in the Spring, the Sonoran Kingsake in Arizona, a big softshell turtle in Illinois, all the turtles and tortoises and alligators in Florida, and the Sea Lions, River Otters, Long-tailed Weasel (so wish I could have photographed it!), and Moose I saw back in Washington.

By the numbers - here's the basic breakdown of the year:

ABA: 511
Illinois: 309
Washington: 241 (didn't see that coming!)
Arizona: 185
Florida: 126
Ohio: 67
Wisconsin: 56
Indiana: 45 (THREE of which were unique additions to the ABA year list at the time)
Idaho: 30 (contributed the hawk owl, though)
New Mexico: 13

ABA Lifers: 61 (not a typo, 61 freaking lifers in a single year! Safe to say I'll never do that again in the states.)
ABA Life list at the end of 2014: 590

Illinois Lifers: 27 (not bad! 5 of these were ABA lifers)
Illinois Life List at the end of 2014: 316

Counties with over 100 species: 20 (so my birding was deep, not just wide; i.e. I didn't just chase things then turn around and drive straight home)
   Illinois: 12 (including two over 200, Kane and Cook)
   Washington: 5
   Arizona: 3

If you're more of a visual person:

And at last, here's the lists, first ABA then Illinois:

1. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
2. Fulvous Whistling-Duck
3. Greater White-fronted Goose
4. Snow Goose
5. Ross's Goose
6. Brant
7. Cackling Goose
8. Canada Goose
9. Mute Swan
10. Trumpeter Swan
11. Tundra Swan
12. Muscovy Duck
13. Wood Duck
14. Gadwall
15. Eurasian Wigeon
16. American Wigeon
17. American Black Duck
18. Mallard
19. Mottled Duck
20. Blue-winged Teal
21. Cinnamon Teal
22. Northern Shoveler
23. Northern Pintail
24. Green-winged Teal
25. Canvasback
26. Redhead
27. Ring-necked Duck
28. Greater Scaup
29. Lesser Scaup
30. Harlequin Duck
31. Surf Scoter
32. White-winged Scoter
33. Black Scoter
34. Long-tailed Duck
35. Bufflehead
36. Common Goldeneye
37. Barrow's Goldeneye
38. Hooded Merganser
39. Common Merganser
40. Red-breasted Merganser
41. Ruddy Duck
42. Scaled Quail
43. California Quail
44. Gambel's Quail
45. Northern Bobwhite
46. Montezuma Quail
47. Ring-necked Pheasant
48. Ruffed Grouse
49. Dusky Grouse
50. Greater Prairie-Chicken
51. Wild Turkey
52. Red-throated Loon
53. Pacific Loon
54. Common Loon
55. Pied-billed Grebe
56. Horned Grebe
57. Red-necked Grebe
58. Eared Grebe
59. Western Grebe
60. Clark's Grebe
61. Sooty Shearwater
62. Wood Stork
63. Magnificent Frigatebird
64. Brandt's Cormorant
65. Neotropic Cormorant
66. Double-crested Cormorant
67. Pelagic Cormorant
68. Anhinga
69. American White Pelican
70. Brown Pelican
71. American Bittern
72. Least Bittern
73. Great Blue Heron
74. Great Egret
75. Snowy Egret
76. Little Blue Heron
77. Tricolored Heron
78. Reddish Egret
79. Cattle Egret
80. Green Heron
81. Black-crowned Night-Heron
82. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
83. White Ibis
84. Glossy Ibis
85. White-faced Ibis
86. Roseate Spoonbill
87. Black Vulture
88. Turkey Vulture
89. Osprey
90. Snail Kite
91. Swallow-tailed Kite
92. Mississippi Kite
93. Bald Eagle
94. Northern Harrier
95. Sharp-shinned Hawk
96. Cooper's Hawk
97. Harris's Hawk
98. Red-shouldered Hawk
99. Broad-winged Hawk
100. Gray Hawk
101. Swainson's Hawk
102. Zone-tailed Hawk
103. Red-tailed Hawk
104. Rough-legged Hawk
105. Golden Eagle
106. Clapper Rail
107. King Rail
108. Virginia Rail
109. Sora
110. Purple Gallinule
111. Common Gallinule
112. American Coot
113. Limpkin
114. Sandhill Crane
115. Black-necked Stilt
116. American Avocet
117. American Oystercatcher
118. Black Oystercatcher
119. Black-bellied Plover
120. American Golden-Plover
121. Snowy Plover
122. Wilson's Plover
123. Semipalmated Plover
124. Piping Plover
125. Killdeer
126. Spotted Sandpiper
127. Solitary Sandpiper
128. Greater Yellowlegs
129. Willet
130. Lesser Yellowlegs
131. Upland Sandpiper
132. Whimbrel
133. Long-billed Curlew
134. Marbled Godwit
135. Black Turnstone
136. Ruddy Turnstone
137. Red Knot
138. Stilt Sandpiper
139. Sanderling
140. Dunlin
141. Baird's Sandpiper
142. Least Sandpiper
143. White-rumped Sandpiper
144. Buff-breasted Sandpiper
145. Pectoral Sandpiper
146. Semipalmated Sandpiper
147. Western Sandpiper
148. Short-billed Dowitcher
149. Long-billed Dowitcher
150. Wilson's Snipe
151. American Woodcock
152. Wilson's Phalarope
153. Red-necked Phalarope
154. Red Phalarope
155. Pomarine Jaeger
156. Parasitic Jaeger
157. Common Murre
158. Pigeon Guillemot
159. Marbled Murrelet
160. Ancient Murrelet
161. Rhinoceros Auklet
162. Tufted Puffin
163. Sabine's Gull
164. Bonaparte's Gull
165. Little Gull
166. Laughing Gull
167. Franklin's Gull
168. Heermann's Gull
169. Mew Gull
170. Ring-billed Gull
171. Western Gull
172. California Gull
173. Herring Gull
174. Thayer's Gull
175. Iceland Gull
176. Lesser Black-backed Gull
177. Slaty-backed Gull
178. Glaucous-winged Gull
179. Glaucous Gull
180. Great Black-backed Gull
181. Least Tern
182. Black Tern
183. Roseate Tern
184. Elegant Tern
185. Common Tern
186. Forster's Tern
187. Caspian Tern
188. Royal Tern
189. Sandwich Tern
190. Black Skimmer
191. Rock Pigeon
192. White-crowned Pigeon
193. Band-tailed Pigeon
194. Eurasian Collared-Dove
195. White-winged Dove
196. Mourning Dove
197. Inca Dove
198. Common Ground-Dove
199. Yellow-billed Cuckoo
200. Mangrove Cuckoo
201. Black-billed Cuckoo
202. Barn Owl
203. Western Screech-Owl
204. Eastern Screech-Owl
205. Whiskered Screech-Owl
206. Great Horned Owl
207. Snowy Owl
208. Northern Hawk Owl
209. Northern Pygmy-Owl
210. Elf Owl
211. Spotted Owl
212. Barred Owl
213. Long-eared Owl
214. Short-eared Owl
215. Northern Saw-whet Owl
216. Lesser Nighthawk
217. Common Nighthawk
218. Antillean Nighthawk
219. Common Poorwill
220. Chuck-will's-widow
221. Buff-collared Nightjar
222. Eastern Whip-poor-will
223. Mexican Whip-poor-will
224. Chimney Swift
225. Vaux's Swift
226. White-throated Swift
227. Magnificent Hummingbird
228. Blue-throated Hummingbird
229. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
230. Black-chinned Hummingbird
231. Anna's Hummingbird
232. Costa's Hummingbird
233. Broad-tailed Hummingbird
234. Rufous Hummingbird
235. Calliope Hummingbird
236. Broad-billed Hummingbird
237. Violet-crowned Hummingbird
238. White-eared Hummingbird
239. Elegant Trogon
240. Belted Kingfisher
241. Lewis's Woodpecker
242. Red-headed Woodpecker
243. Acorn Woodpecker
244. Gila Woodpecker
245. Red-bellied Woodpecker
246. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
247. Red-naped Sapsucker
248. Red-breasted Sapsucker
249. Ladder-backed Woodpecker
250. Downy Woodpecker
251. Hairy Woodpecker
252. Arizona Woodpecker
253. Red-cockaded Woodpecker
254. White-headed Woodpecker
255. American Three-toed Woodpecker
256. Black-backed Woodpecker
257. Northern Flicker
258. Pileated Woodpecker
259. American Kestrel
260. Merlin
261. Peregrine Falcon
262. Prairie Falcon
263. Monk Parakeet
264. Nanday Parakeet
265. Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
266. Olive-sided Flycatcher
267. Greater Pewee
268. Western Wood-Pewee
269. Eastern Wood-Pewee
270. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
271. Acadian Flycatcher
272. Alder Flycatcher
273. Willow Flycatcher
274. Least Flycatcher
275. Hammond's Flycatcher
276. Gray Flycatcher
277. Dusky Flycatcher
278. Pacific-slope Flycatcher
279. Cordilleran Flycatcher
280. Buff-breasted Flycatcher
281. Eastern Phoebe
282. Say's Phoebe
283. Vermilion Flycatcher
284. Dusky-capped Flycatcher
285. Ash-throated Flycatcher
286. Great Crested Flycatcher
287. Brown-crested Flycatcher
288. Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
289. Tropical Kingbird
290. Cassin's Kingbird
291. Thick-billed Kingbird
292. Western Kingbird
293. Eastern Kingbird
294. Gray Kingbird
295. Fork-tailed Flycatcher
296. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
297. Loggerhead Shrike
298. Northern Shrike
299. White-eyed Vireo
300. Bell's Vireo
301. Yellow-throated Vireo
302. Plumbeous Vireo
303. Cassin's Vireo
304. Blue-headed Vireo
305. Hutton's Vireo
306. Warbling Vireo
307. Philadelphia Vireo
308. Red-eyed Vireo
309. Black-whiskered Vireo
310. Gray Jay
311. Steller's Jay
312. Blue Jay
313. Florida Scrub-Jay
314. Western Scrub-Jay
315. Mexican Jay
316. Black-billed Magpie
317. American Crow
318. Northwestern Crow
319. Fish Crow
320. Chihuahuan Raven
321. Common Raven
322. Horned Lark
323. Purple Martin
324. Tree Swallow
325. Violet-green Swallow
326. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
327. Bank Swallow
328. Cliff Swallow
329. Barn Swallow
330. Carolina Chickadee
331. Black-capped Chickadee
332. Mountain Chickadee
333. Mexican Chickadee
334. Chestnut-backed Chickadee
335. Boreal Chickadee
336. Bridled Titmouse
337. Juniper Titmouse
338. Tufted Titmouse
339. Verdin
340. Bushtit
341. Red-breasted Nuthatch
342. White-breasted Nuthatch
343. Pygmy Nuthatch
344. Brown Creeper
345. Rock Wren
346. Canyon Wren
347. House Wren
348. Pacific Wren
349. Winter Wren
350. Sedge Wren
351. Marsh Wren
352. Carolina Wren
353. Bewick's Wren
354. Cactus Wren
355. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
356. Black-tailed Gnatcatcher
357. Black-capped Gnatcatcher
358. American Dipper
359. Golden-crowned Kinglet
360. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
361. Eastern Bluebird
362. Western Bluebird
363. Mountain Bluebird
364. Townsend's Solitaire
365. Veery
366. Gray-cheeked Thrush
367. Swainson's Thrush
368. Hermit Thrush
369. Wood Thrush
370. American Robin
371. Varied Thrush
372. Gray Catbird
373. Curve-billed Thrasher
374. Brown Thrasher
375. Sage Thrasher
376. Northern Mockingbird
377. European Starling
378. Common Myna
379. American Pipit
380. Bohemian Waxwing
381. Cedar Waxwing
382. Phainopepla
383. Olive Warbler
384. Lapland Longspur
385. Smith's Longspur
386. Snow Bunting
387. Ovenbird
388. Worm-eating Warbler
389. Louisiana Waterthrush
390. Northern Waterthrush
391. Golden-winged Warbler
392. Blue-winged Warbler
393. Black-and-white Warbler
394. Prothonotary Warbler
395. Tennessee Warbler
396. Orange-crowned Warbler
397. Lucy's Warbler
398. Nashville Warbler
399. Virginia's Warbler
400. Connecticut Warbler
401. MacGillivray's Warbler
402. Mourning Warbler
403. Kentucky Warbler
404. Common Yellowthroat
405. Hooded Warbler
406. American Redstart
407. Cape May Warbler
408. Cerulean Warbler
409. Northern Parula
410. Magnolia Warbler
411. Bay-breasted Warbler
412. Blackburnian Warbler
413. Yellow Warbler
414. Chestnut-sided Warbler
415. Blackpoll Warbler
416. Black-throated Blue Warbler
417. Palm Warbler
418. Pine Warbler
419. Yellow-rumped Warbler
420. Yellow-throated Warbler
421. Prairie Warbler
422. Grace's Warbler
423. Black-throated Gray Warbler
424. Townsend's Warbler
425. Hermit Warbler
426. Black-throated Green Warbler
427. Rufous-capped Warbler
428. Canada Warbler
429. Wilson's Warbler
430. Red-faced Warbler
431. Painted Redstart
432. Yellow-breasted Chat
433. Green-tailed Towhee
434. Spotted Towhee
435. Eastern Towhee
436. Rufous-crowned Sparrow
437. Canyon Towhee
438. Abert's Towhee
439. Rufous-winged Sparrow
440. Botteri's Sparrow
441. Bachman's Sparrow
442. American Tree Sparrow
443. Chipping Sparrow
444. Clay-colored Sparrow
445. Brewer's Sparrow
446. Field Sparrow
447. Black-chinned Sparrow
448. Vesper Sparrow
449. Lark Sparrow
450. Five-striped Sparrow
451. Black-throated Sparrow
452. Lark Bunting
453. Savannah Sparrow
454. Grasshopper Sparrow
455. Henslow's Sparrow
456. Le Conte's Sparrow
457. Nelson's Sparrow
458. Seaside Sparrow
459. Fox Sparrow
460. Song Sparrow
461. Lincoln's Sparrow
462. Swamp Sparrow
463. White-throated Sparrow
464. Harris's Sparrow
465. White-crowned Sparrow
466. Golden-crowned Sparrow
467. Dark-eyed Junco
468. Yellow-eyed Junco
469. Hepatic Tanager
470. Summer Tanager
471. Scarlet Tanager
472. Western Tanager
473. Northern Cardinal
474. Pyrrhuloxia
475. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
476. Black-headed Grosbeak
477. Blue Grosbeak
478. Lazuli Bunting
479. Indigo Bunting
480. Varied Bunting
481. Dickcissel
482. Bobolink
483. Red-winged Blackbird
484. Eastern Meadowlark
485. Western Meadowlark
486. Yellow-headed Blackbird
487. Rusty Blackbird
488. Brewer's Blackbird
489. Common Grackle
490. Boat-tailed Grackle
491. Great-tailed Grackle
492. Bronzed Cowbird
493. Brown-headed Cowbird
494. Shiny Cowbird
495. Orchard Oriole
496. Hooded Oriole
497. Bullock's Oriole
498. Baltimore Oriole
499. Scott's Oriole
500. Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch
501. Pine Grosbeak
502. House Finch
503. Purple Finch
504. Cassin's Finch
505. Red Crossbill
506. Pine Siskin
507. Lesser Goldfinch
508. American Goldfinch
509. Evening Grosbeak
510. House Sparrow
511. Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Illinois:

1. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
2. Greater White-fronted Goose
3. Snow Goose
4. Ross's Goose
5. Cackling Goose
6. Canada Goose
7. Mute Swan
8. Trumpeter Swan
9. Tundra Swan
10. Wood Duck
11. Gadwall
12. Eurasian Wigeon
13. American Wigeon
14. American Black Duck
15. Mallard
16. Mottled Duck
17. Blue-winged Teal
18. Northern Shoveler
19. Northern Pintail
20. Green-winged Teal
21. Canvasback
22. Redhead
23. Ring-necked Duck
24. Greater Scaup
25. Lesser Scaup
26. Harlequin Duck
27. Surf Scoter
28. White-winged Scoter
29. Black Scoter
30. Long-tailed Duck
31. Bufflehead
32. Common Goldeneye
33. Barrow's Goldeneye
34. Hooded Merganser
35. Common Merganser
36. Red-breasted Merganser
37. Ruddy Duck
38. Northern Bobwhite
39. Ring-necked Pheasant
40. Greater Prairie-Chicken
41. Wild Turkey
42. Red-throated Loon
43. Common Loon
44. Pied-billed Grebe
45. Horned Grebe
46. Red-necked Grebe
47. Eared Grebe
48. Western Grebe
49. Double-crested Cormorant
50. American White Pelican
51. American Bittern
52. Least Bittern
53. Great Blue Heron
54. Great Egret
55. Snowy Egret
56. Little Blue Heron
57. Cattle Egret
58. Green Heron
59. Black-crowned Night-Heron
60. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
61. Glossy Ibis
62. White-faced Ibis
63. Black Vulture
64. Turkey Vulture
65. Osprey
66. Mississippi Kite
67. Bald Eagle
68. Northern Harrier
69. Sharp-shinned Hawk
70. Cooper's Hawk
71. Red-shouldered Hawk
72. Broad-winged Hawk
73. Swainson's Hawk
74. Red-tailed Hawk
75. Rough-legged Hawk
76. Golden Eagle
77. King Rail
78. Virginia Rail
79. Sora
80. Common Gallinule
81. American Coot
82. Sandhill Crane
83. Black-necked Stilt
84. American Avocet
85. Black-bellied Plover
86. American Golden-Plover
87. Semipalmated Plover
88. Piping Plover
89. Killdeer
90. Spotted Sandpiper
91. Solitary Sandpiper
92. Greater Yellowlegs
93. Willet
94. Lesser Yellowlegs
95. Upland Sandpiper
96. Marbled Godwit
97. Ruddy Turnstone
98. Red Knot
99. Stilt Sandpiper
100. Sanderling
101. Dunlin
102. Baird's Sandpiper
103. Least Sandpiper
104. White-rumped Sandpiper
105. Buff-breasted Sandpiper
106. Pectoral Sandpiper
107. Semipalmated Sandpiper
108. Western Sandpiper
109. Short-billed Dowitcher
110. Long-billed Dowitcher
111. Wilson's Snipe
112. American Woodcock
113. Wilson's Phalarope
114. Red-necked Phalarope
115. Red Phalarope
116. Pomarine Jaeger
117. Bonaparte's Gull
118. Little Gull
119. Laughing Gull
120. Franklin's Gull
121. Ring-billed Gull
122. Herring Gull
123. Thayer's Gull
124. Iceland Gull
125. Lesser Black-backed Gull
126. Slaty-backed Gull
127. Glaucous Gull
128. Great Black-backed Gull
129. Least Tern
130. Black Tern
131. Common Tern
132. Forster's Tern
133. Caspian Tern
134. Rock Pigeon
135. Eurasian Collared-Dove
136. Mourning Dove
137. Yellow-billed Cuckoo
138. Black-billed Cuckoo
139. Eastern Screech-Owl
140. Great Horned Owl
141. Snowy Owl
142. Barred Owl
143. Long-eared Owl
144. Short-eared Owl
145. Northern Saw-whet Owl
146. Common Nighthawk
147. Chuck-will's-widow
148. Eastern Whip-poor-will
149. Chimney Swift
150. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
151. Rufous Hummingbird
152. Belted Kingfisher
153. Red-headed Woodpecker
154. Red-bellied Woodpecker
155. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
156. Downy Woodpecker
157. Hairy Woodpecker
158. Northern Flicker
159. Pileated Woodpecker
160. American Kestrel
161. Merlin
162. Peregrine Falcon
163. Monk Parakeet
164. Olive-sided Flycatcher
165. Eastern Wood-Pewee
166. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
167. Acadian Flycatcher
168. Alder Flycatcher
169. Willow Flycatcher
170. Least Flycatcher
171. Eastern Phoebe
172. Great Crested Flycatcher
173. Western Kingbird
174. Eastern Kingbird
175. Fork-tailed Flycatcher
176. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
177. Loggerhead Shrike
178. Northern Shrike
179. White-eyed Vireo
180. Bell's Vireo
181. Yellow-throated Vireo
182. Blue-headed Vireo
183. Warbling Vireo
184. Philadelphia Vireo
185. Red-eyed Vireo
186. Blue Jay
187. American Crow
188. Fish Crow
189. Horned Lark
190. Purple Martin
191. Tree Swallow
192. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
193. Bank Swallow
194. Cliff Swallow
195. Barn Swallow
196. Carolina Chickadee
197. Black-capped Chickadee
198. Tufted Titmouse
199. Red-breasted Nuthatch
200. White-breasted Nuthatch
201. Brown Creeper
202. House Wren
203. Winter Wren
204. Sedge Wren
205. Marsh Wren
206. Carolina Wren
207. Bewick's Wren
208. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
209. Golden-crowned Kinglet
210. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
211. Eastern Bluebird
212. Townsend's Solitaire
213. Veery
214. Gray-cheeked Thrush
215. Swainson's Thrush
216. Hermit Thrush
217. Wood Thrush
218. American Robin
219. Gray Catbird
220. Curve-billed Thrasher
221. Brown Thrasher
222. Northern Mockingbird
223. European Starling
224. American Pipit
225. Cedar Waxwing
226. Lapland Longspur
227. Smith's Longspur
228. Snow Bunting
229. Ovenbird
230. Worm-eating Warbler
231. Louisiana Waterthrush
232. Northern Waterthrush
233. Golden-winged Warbler
234. Blue-winged Warbler
235. Black-and-white Warbler
236. Prothonotary Warbler
237. Tennessee Warbler
238. Orange-crowned Warbler
239. Nashville Warbler
240. Connecticut Warbler
241. Mourning Warbler
242. Kentucky Warbler
243. Common Yellowthroat
244. Hooded Warbler
245. American Redstart
246. Cape May Warbler
247. Cerulean Warbler
248. Northern Parula
249. Magnolia Warbler
250. Bay-breasted Warbler
251. Blackburnian Warbler
252. Yellow Warbler
253. Chestnut-sided Warbler
254. Blackpoll Warbler
255. Black-throated Blue Warbler
256. Palm Warbler
257. Pine Warbler
258. Yellow-rumped Warbler
259. Yellow-throated Warbler
260. Prairie Warbler
261. Black-throated Green Warbler
262. Canada Warbler
263. Wilson's Warbler
264. Yellow-breasted Chat
265. Eastern Towhee
266. American Tree Sparrow
267. Chipping Sparrow
268. Clay-colored Sparrow
269. Field Sparrow
270. Vesper Sparrow
271. Lark Sparrow
272. Lark Bunting
273. Savannah Sparrow
274. Grasshopper Sparrow
275. Henslow's Sparrow
276. Le Conte's Sparrow
277. Nelson's Sparrow
278. Fox Sparrow
279. Song Sparrow
280. Lincoln's Sparrow
281. Swamp Sparrow
282. White-throated Sparrow
283. Harris's Sparrow
284. White-crowned Sparrow
285. Dark-eyed Junco
286. Summer Tanager
287. Scarlet Tanager
288. Northern Cardinal
289. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
290. Blue Grosbeak
291. Indigo Bunting
292. Dickcissel
293. Bobolink
294. Red-winged Blackbird
295. Eastern Meadowlark
296. Western Meadowlark
297. Yellow-headed Blackbird
298. Rusty Blackbird
299. Brewer's Blackbird
300. Common Grackle
301. Brown-headed Cowbird
302. Orchard Oriole
303. Baltimore Oriole
304. House Finch
305. Purple Finch
306. Pine Siskin
307. American Goldfinch
308. House Sparrow
309. Eurasian Tree Sparrow

My concluding thoughts: I highly recommend a Big Year effort, particularly at the state level. I think it's great to take a year and really go after a lofty goal. I did so without the desire to break any records, which really took the pressure off and allowed me to enjoy myself all along the way. I learned a lot in the process, both about birds and myself, which definitely made it a worthwhile venture.

If you a do a Big Year, do a Big Year. Don't apologize for it or cower when the people around you start looking at you funny when you've been up at 4am three times this week before going into work. I actually found that most of my friends, while thinking (rightly) that I was a crazy person, thought that the whole thing was actually kinda cool. The people who truly don't get it are the same people who were probably never taught that nature and the outdoors are a gift to enjoy, not a threat to avoid or burden to endure. Who knows, maybe your steady love for nature will eventually rub off on them. (On this note, I recently found this article rather encouraging.)

And now, what's in the works for this year? Well, it's hard to say. My degree and job both end half way through the year, at which point Jen and I would love to return to our homeland back in the Pacific Northwest (anyone hiring a birder out there???). So, there's really no point in setting any state year goals, though 400 for the ABA seems like a reasonable possibility. I will probably focus mostly on bolstering local county and patch lists, though the latter will be frustrating if I have to wait till May to get open water again. I'd really like to spend a little time in Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan just to see some new territory and work on those respective lists before likely leaving the Midwest. I'll also be spending more time reading and studying.

With my ABA life list now at 591, I would really love to hit the 600 mark soon. And I'd really like to do it before doing a major pelagic trip off either coast. The main locations that could help me get there would be the north Atlantic Coast, Colorado, and southern California. If an opportunity to go to any of these regions presents itself, I may just have to jump on it. We'll see. As a general rule of thumb, any year that begins with an Ivory Gull is going to be a fantastic year!

Thanks to all who made this last year possible! I look forward to seeing you out in the field in 2015!

Good birding!